The Building Emissions Reduction and Disclosure Ordinance (BERDO) Review Board ensures the equitable implementation of the BERDO (Boston City Code, Ordinances, Section 7-2.2). Through its work, the BERDO Review Board seeks to enhance the public health and welfare of Boston residents by reducing greenhouse gasses from large existing buildings.

BERDO is one of the leading municipal Building Performance Standards across the country. The Ordinance requires non-residential buildings greater than 20,000 square feet and residential buildings with 15 or more units to report their energy usage to the City and meet declining emissions standards, with the ultimate goal of achieving net-zero emissions by 2050. A unique aspect of the Ordinance is the BERDO Review Board. The Review Board works to ensure environmental justice communities benefit from resulting decarbonization efforts; and to ensure the Review Board reflects Boston communities, two-thirds of the nine-member board must be nominated by a Boston-based community organization. The Review Board will review applications from Building owners, decide how to grant money from the Equitable Emissions Investment Fund, recommend updates to BERDO regulations and policies, and more.

The BERDO Review Board Assistant is part of the Carbon Neutrality team within the Environment Department and will work with the Review Board, applicants, residents, businesses, and institutions to provide administrative, investigative, and technical assistance, and other services that support building decarbonization policies and programs of the Environment Department. This role will report to the BERDO Review Board Manager.

• Becomes thoroughly familiar with BERDO and related Regulations and Policies as well as the City of Boston’s climate and sustainability goals and the City’s administrative structure, programs, and staff responsibilities for climate action.
• Responds to inquiries from the public about application procedures and deadlines, building decarbonization issues, public hearing records questions, compliance and other BERDO related issues as they arise.
• Reviews all BERDO application filings and technical documents submitted to the Review Board and draft determinations, enforcement orders, grant awards, hearing agendas, meeting minutes, project review comments, and other correspondence with applicants and the Review Board.
• Assists with the administration of BERDO Review Board public hearings through the facilitation of agenda items, assisting applicants and Board members with setup, providing project review comments, and taking meeting minutes.
• Assists with the development and implementation of BERDO regulations and policies.
• Maintains and updates the Review Board website, application procedures, and important deadlines.
• Participates in site visits and inspections of buildings subject to BERDO and in response to possible violations.
• Undertakes research on decarbonization, building science, energy benchmarking, climate change, and other topics.
• Maintains public records.
• Performs other duties as required to support the implementation of BERDO and the department's sustainability goals and programs.
• Participates in Environment Department meetings and activities.

• At least two (2) years of full-time, or equivalent part-time, experience in environmental science or policy, environmental health, environmental permitting, environmental planning, natural science, building science, urban planning, energy, or a related field. A bachelor's degree in a related field is preferred and may be substituted for two (2) years of the required experience.
• Strong interest in working to achieve Boston’s climate goals.
• Strong organizational skills with attention to detail, ability to handle multiple and diverse tasks, execute clerical assignments and independent field work, and ability to meet deadlines.
• Strong verbal, written and presentation skills for communicating with a diverse audience, with the ability to clearly communicate planning and regulatory concepts.
• Ability to speak one of Boston's major spoken languages (e.g., Spanish, Haitian Creole, Cantonese) is preferred.
• Ability to work off-site and after hours as needed and with advance notice.
• Strong interpersonal skills and ability to work effectively as part of a team.
• Candidates with a strong knowledge of Boston neighborhoods will be preferred.
• Ability to exercise sound judgment and focus on detail as required by the job.
• Experience working directly with people from diverse racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic backgrounds and in incorporating the perspectives of multiple communities in the consideration of impacts and outcomes of a decision-making process.

Boston Residency Required

Terms:

Non Union/MO-6

Hours Per week: 35