Our Culture
Since its founding in 1967, the Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF) has been widely known by its simple and direct mission statement: Save the Bay.
Among our staff are scientists, policy experts, attorneys, educators, and communicators, grassroots organizers. They pursue our goal through environmental advocacy, litigation, environmental education, strategic communications, and habitat restoration throughout the Bay watershed. We inform and engage the public, the private sector, elected officials, and government employees to educate them about key Bay issues, and act as a watchdog to ensure that the tough political decisions and adequate public and private investments be made to save the Bay.
In our 50+ year history, we have achieved significant milestones to arrest the Bay system's decline and to begin to restore its health. From the landmark EPA study of the Chesapeake Bay in the 1970s to the first interstate Chesapeake Bay Agreement in 1983 to our ongoing support of federal and state funding to help farmers clean up the Bay, CBF has indeed been saving the Bay.
Though we are tough on fighting pollution in the Chesapeake Bay, we also enjoy a congenial work environment in some exceptionally beautiful settings. For example, our headquarters in Annapolis, Maryland, the Philip Merrill Environmental Center, and our Brock Environmental Center in Virginia Beach are two of the greenest buildings in the world. The Merrill Center is made entirely from recyclable and renewable materials. Warm bamboo flooring, exposed beams, and an entire wall of glass windows that overlook a sandy beach on the Chesapeake Bay provide a soothing work atmosphere. Kayaking, biking, and nature hiking are just a few of the activities available to staff. CBF also provides a locker room with showers, onsite lunches to reduce the need to drive elsewhere, and incentives for hybrid car owners.
In Virginia Beach, CBF’s Brock Environmental Center was designed to create a comfortable work environment that connects staff and visitors with nature. The Center’s expansive windows flood office space with natural daylight and provide incredible views from desks and meeting rooms. Its large deck is lined with chairs overlooking the beautiful Lynnhaven River and Pleasure House Point natural area, creating alternative spaces to work and meet. Staff enjoy hiking, paddling, and more using CBF’s onsite paddle boards and the adjacent natural area’s 2 miles of trails. The Brock Center has a staff locker room with a shower, hosts frequent staff gatherings, offers a coffee bar and is a perfect place to work to save the Bay.
As the 10th Living Building in the world, the Brock Center produces its own energy through onsite wind and solar and was the first commercial building in the continental United States to capture rainwater and treat it on site for drinking water.
CBF does not discriminate, treating its employees with the same care and respect as our non-two-legged friends in nature. We are equally concerned about the environment, our workplace, and our colleagues, and strive to create harmony between them.
Departments We Hire For
CBF's expert educators lead students and teachers in meaningful watershed experiences throughout the Chesapeake Bay region.
CBF Staff
Enthusiastic about saving the Bay? Then we want you! We are looking for qualified, motivated people to join our family in the following departments:
Accounting/Finance
The Finance department's mission is to establish and maintain a foundation-wide accounting system/department that provides the highest quality financial information and management reporting that responds to the needs of its funders, government regulators, administrators, and constituents.
Administration
Administration's mission is to significantly contribute to the improvement of the water quality of the Chesapeake Bay by providing a strong operations infrastructure for CBF staff. The mission is to develop and maintain procedures, systems, equipment, facilities, and property so that staff can work safely, efficiently, creatively, and productively to save the Bay.
Marketing and Communications
At the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, the Marketing and Communications Department is a programmatic department. Its role is to market CBF's priorities, including its policy, education, litigation, restoration, fundraising, and member-development programs; engage the public; and mobilize its advocacy and financial support. CBF's Communications activities are broken into four functional areas: Creative Services, Media Relations, Digital Marketing & Communications, and Operations and Internal Communications.
Philanthropy
The mission of Philanthropy is to provide financial resources for CBF to meet its long-term vision of saving the Bay. It establishes and implements strategies to motivate donors to contribute to the organization's programs and projects through two primary areas of activity: development and membership.
Education
Education provides programs that introduce students, teachers, and other residents to the wonders of the Chesapeake Bay watershed and works to heighten sensitivity, increase knowledge, and empower people to take positive action toward the Bay's restoration. Through activities that provide meaningful watershed educational experiences, model subject integration, develop problem solving skills, and offer real life community action projects, students are inspired to take positive action towards restoring the Bay.
Advocacy and Restoration
The Advocacy and Restoration department defends and restores the Chesapeake Bay by protecting the Bay's natural resources from pollution and other harmful activities. Staff fights for strong and effective laws and regulations; works to restore the Bay's essential habitats and filtering mechanisms; and involves the public in CBF's environmental efforts by recruiting and training them as effective partners and leaders.
People and Culture
At CBF we place people at the center of our work. We understand that our ability to achieve our mission is enhanced when staff are valued, united by a sense of purpose, and engaged in meaningful work. The People and Culture department advances policies, procedures, and programs that create an equitable, transparent workplace that promotes inclusion, belonging, and fellowship. People and Culture staff look for ways to celebrate all groups of employees and work with employees to develop pathways for growth, professional development, and leadership opportunities.
