Intern, Geospatial Analysis

Forest Geospatial Science Intern

Department: Forest Restoration

• Reports to: Senior Director, Forest and Restoration Science

Location:  Remote

FLSA Category: Non-Exempt

Status: This is a temporary, part-time position at approximately 20 hours weekly.

Salary: This position is paid at a rate of $25 per hour.

Duration: This position has a projected timeline of 5-6 months depending on the candidate’s availability.

ABOUT US:

American Forests is a national non-profit organization committed to creating healthy and resilient forests from cities to wilderness, that deliver essential benefits for climate, people, water and wildlife. We advance our mission through forestry innovation, place-based partnerships to plant and restore forests, and movement building. We envision a world in which the significant environmental, societal and economic benefits of forests are fully realized and equitably available to all people. Established in 1875, American Forests is the oldest national non-profit conservation organization in the U.S. working to restoring urban forests and forested landscapes for nearly 150 years.

American Forests is proud to be a diverse, equitable, inclusive and accessible (DEIA) workplace. These are our shared values. We welcome individuals who bring a variety of backgrounds and experiences to be a part of our team to help make a difference individually and collectively as we work toward achieving our mission. We are committed to fostering an environment that is welcoming and respectful and provides opportunities for advancement and professional growth for every team member.

PROJECT BACKGROUND AND GOALS:

American Forests has been actively engaged in over 1,300 tree-planting projects worldwide since 1990. To better quantify our impact and share the stories of our work, we are seeking an intern to meticulously collect and organize details about these planting projects. This project is perfect for someone looking to dig into American Forests project archives, identify and tell unique stories that span over 30 years of reforestation history, and gain experience working with project databases.

POSITION SUMMARY:

As wildfires reshape our forests at an unprecedented scale, understanding how to best support our forests following high severity wildfire in a changing climate is key to maintaining forest cover and the ecosystem services they provide. American Forests’ is working to better understand post-fire forest dynamics and translate that understanding into improved climate-informed planting prescriptions. As a Geospatial Analysis Intern, your primary project will focus on assessing spatial patterns of natural regeneration in post-fire landscapes and comparing those patterns to various planting orientations (e.g., grid, clustered, random) as progressive mortality occurs over time. By analyzing how natural spatial structure emerges and evolves, and how different planted configurations converge toward or diverge from those natural patterns, you will help inform reforestation prescriptions that produce more resilient, ecologically appropriate forest structures. In addition to this core research, you may support related work such as assessing monitoring data, identifying ideal spatial orientations and planting densities, and other analytical duties as needed. Working closely with the Reforestation Field Managers and the regional Senior Manager, you will develop spatial analyses, simulations, and data products that directly inform on-the-ground reforestation decisions. This internship is ideal for a graduate student or recent graduate eager to apply spatial statistics and geospatial analysis skills to real-world forest restoration challenges.

SPECIFIC RESPONSIBILITIES:

Spatial Pattern Analysis & Simulation (50%)

The Geospatial Analysis Intern will lead the core research effort analyzing spatial patterns of post-fire forest recovery, including but not limited to:

• Characterize the spatial structure of natural regeneration in post-fire landscapes using point pattern analysis (e.g., Ripley’s K/L functions, pair correlation functions, nearest-neighbor distributions) to quantify clustering, regularity, and randomness at multiple scales.
• Simulate and compare various planting orientations (grid, clustered, staggered, random) and model how progressive mortality reshapes planted spatial patterns over time toward or away from naturally regenerated structures.
• Analyze how site conditions (slope, aspect, soil type, burn severity, distance to seed source) influence the spatial patterns of natural regeneration and seedling survival.
• Develop metrics and indices to quantify the degree of convergence between planted configurations and natural spatial patterns as stands mature and experience mortality.
• Process and analyze remote sensing data (e.g., Landsat, Sentinel-2, LiDAR) and field survey data to map regeneration patterns, stem densities, and canopy structure across project areas.
• Build reproducible analytical workflows in Python and/or R to automate spatial pattern analyses and mortality simulations, ensuring methods are well-documented and transferable.
• Create maps, figures, and data visualizations that communicate spatial analysis findings to field managers, partners, and USDA Forest Service staff.

• Monitoring, Planting Optimization & Additional Analytical Support (30%)

• Assess reforestation monitoring data (stocking surveys, survival surveys, growth measurements) to evaluate planting outcomes and identify trends across project sites and planting configurations.
• Analyze planting density and spatial orientation data to identify configurations that optimize seedling survival, growth, and long-term stand resilience under varying site conditions.
• Support the development of evidence-based planting density and orientation recommendations by synthesizing spatial analysis results with field monitoring data and published literature.
• Develop and maintain geospatial databases in PostgreSQL/PostGIS to store, query, and manage regeneration survey data, planting records, and spatial analysis outputs.
• Integrate field-collected data (GPS points, ESRI Field Maps data, survey results) into centralized databases and ensure data quality through validation and documentation where needed.
• Support additional geospatial analysis tasks as needed, including burn severity mapping, seed source proximity analysis, site suitability modeling, and other duties as assigned.

Collaboration, Communication & Reporting (20%)

• Collaborate with Reforestation Field Managers to translate spatial analysis findings into actionable planting prescriptions and field guidance.
• Prepare technical summaries, maps, and presentations communicating research results to internal teams and external partners including USDA Forest Service staff.
• Coordinate with research scientists whose studies are being implemented as part of post-recovery project areas.
• Document workflows, methodologies, and standard operating procedures to support institutional knowledge transfer and reproducibility.

QUALIFICATIONS:

While we do not expect any one candidate to possess all of these qualifications, the ideal candidate will possess many of the following professional and personal skills and qualities:

• Currently enrolled in or recently completed a Master’s degree in Geospatial Analysis, GIS, Remote Sensing, Forestry, Environmental Science, or a related field.
• Proficiency with ArcGIS Pro and/or ArcGIS Online.
• Programming experience in Python and/or R for geospatial data processing and analysis.
• Working knowledge of PostgreSQL/PostGIS for spatial database management.
• Foundational knowledge of spatial statistics and remote sensing techniques.
• Self-starter with attention to detail, willingness to learn, and strong communication skills.

LOCATION & WORKING CONDITIONS:

This position is a remote position American Forests’ headquarters is located in downtown Washington, DC. This position is a remote position.

Light travel, less than 5% of the time may be required.

SUPERVISORY REQUIREMENTS:

There are no supervisory requirements for this position.

American Forests is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to diversity in the workplace. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, or other characteristics protected by law.

Reasonable accommodations may be made to provide access to all individuals along the continuum of human ability and experience.

Minority/Female/Disabled/Veteran/LGBTQ+

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In accordance with federal law and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) civil rights regulations and policies, this institution is prohibited from discriminating on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, age, disability, and reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication for program information (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, American Sign Language, etc.) should contact the responsible State or local Agency that administers the program or USDA’s TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TTY) or contact USDA through the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339. Additionally, program information is also available in languages other than English.