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Director of Public Relations

Hawai'i, New York, Washington D.C. & San Francisco

About Elemental Impact

Elemental Impact is a nonprofit investor with 15 years of experience advancing innovative technologies with deep environmental and local impact. The nonprofit is supported by 40 funders and its portfolio includes 160+ companies that have catalyzed $11.5B in additional funding and created 17,200 jobs. Elemental works to address market failures for first-of-a-kind and early commercial projects by providing catalytic capital and specialized expertise—from policy engagement to workforce development and capital coaching. The nonprofit anchors the Elemental Impact investment platform, which includes an expanding family of funds mobilizing capital into critical technologies. 

We are a dedicated, passionate, and diverse team that thrives in a fast-paced environment driven by a shared desire to maximize impact. At Elemental, where we are constantly pushing the edge of innovation, we find ourselves at an exciting inflection point - with more federal funding into climate solutions and philanthropic engagement than ever before, we will be steadily growing our team to meet the moment. Join us at Elemental Impact and be part of the next phase of our journey. 

About the role

Elemental Impact is seeking a Director of Public Relations to join our Communications & Creative team. In this role, you will lead Elemental’s external communications strategy to elevate the organization, our portfolio companies, and the climate innovation ecosystem. You will craft and execute high-impact media, storytelling, and thought leadership initiatives, coach Elemental portfolio companies on communications best practices, and drive executive communications to share our narrative with key audiences. This is a strategic, high-visibility role within the organization that will shape how donors, policymakers, and partners understand and engage with Elemental’s mission.

This position reports to the VP of Communications and may oversee communications staff or consultants as needed. The role is aligned with Elemental’s values of Joyful Work, Growth Mindset, Kuleana, and Humble Spirit, ensuring that communications strategies are not only effective but also collaborative, thoughtful, rigorous, and impact-driven.

Key Responsibilities Include:         

Communications and Media Relations for Elemental                

  • Develop and execute proactive and reactive communications strategies to raise Elemental’s profile across media, donors, and ecosystem stakeholders.
  • Lead media strategy, including press releases, op-eds, talking points, pitches, and media briefings.
  • Maintain a strong pulse on the media landscape, balancing proactive storytelling with reactive opportunities and crisis management.
  • Drive engagement with reporters covering technology, climate, and social impact sectors.
  • Leverage new media platforms, including influencers, creators, and independent outlets, to amplify Elemental’s impact.
  • Manage awards submissions and recognition opportunities. Monitor media coverage daily and provide strategic analysis, tracking trends and peer-level activity. 
  • Support key convenings and events across the organization that relates to our brand positioning and work with portfolio companies. 

Strategic Communications for Elemental Portfolio Companies 

  • Provide strategic media and communications coaching to Elemental’s portfolio companies, including guidance and feedback on communications materials, announcement strategy support, and narrative and messaging development.
  • Help companies craft stories and host events that resonate with their key audiences and accelerate trust and credibility.
  • Support portfolio companies on earned media strategy, including media training, outreach to media outlets, press release development, and media list creation.
  • Direct outreach on behalf of portfolio companies to relevant reporters to pitch announcements, bylines, and other stories.

About You 

You’re someone who naturally takes initiative and enjoys figuring things out. You’re energized by fast-moving environments and bring a thoughtful, growth-oriented approach to your work. You value creativity and rigor, and you genuinely enjoy collaborating with people across teams. You’ve spent time as a press secretary, media director, or senior communications leader in government, advocacy, climate tech, foundations, or investment spaces. You’re a natural relationship-builder, with trusted connections among senior reporters and editors, and you’re especially good at turning complex ideas into clear, engaging stories that resonate.

You lead with empathy, listen deeply, and foster a culture of respect, accountability, and continuous feedback. Above all, you are motivated by innovation and impact—you want to help entrepreneurs create technology that creates lasting environmental and local impact.        

Desired skills:   

  • Previous experience as a press secretary or media director for a government agency or a top advocacy organization, climate technology start up, fast-moving foundation, or investor. 
  • Experience working on issues related to climate, investing and/or social advocacy. 
  • A strong ability to draw connections across teams and identify new opportunities. 
  • Strong project management skills with a seasoned ability to prioritize, multi-task and meet changing deadlines in a fast-paced environment.
  • Exceptional organizational skills and an excellent attention to detail.
  • Outstanding written and oral communication skills.

Standout skills:

  • Significant experience working with the national media, including in crisis situations, as a media director or equivalent role in an organization, company or agency. 
  • Proven track record creating strategic media campaigns that elevate organizational and portfolio impact.
  • Exceptional people management skills and the passion to build phenomenal high-functioning teams.
  • Deep experience in engaging with creators and influencers in the industry. 

Even if you don’t meet every requirement, we encourage you to apply. We value candidates who bring adaptability, creative problem-solving, and a passion for climate innovation and social impact.

Compensation & Benefits

This is a full-time "at-will" position working at least 40 hours per week. You will be asked to travel for work periodically. 

The salary range for this role is $133,400 - $200,200, which is based on market data and the organization's compensation philosophy. Also, please note that while we strive to benchmark against for-profit companies and try to be as competitive as possible, we are a non-profit. Our offer will be within the range as required by certain state laws and individual salary offers will vary within the range depending on location, relevant education, knowledge, skills, and experience. We also offer comprehensive employee benefits, including a professional development stipend and three weeks paid time off (more details here). 

Location

We will consider candidates located near one of our headquarters: Honolulu, San Francisco, New York and Washington, D.C. Elemental has a hybrid working model and if you are within a reasonable distance to one of our offices in New York, DC, Bay Area, or Honolulu, we are asking employees to come into the office at least one day a week to build community with the team. Currently, most people come in 1-2 times a week, but we encourage those who are interested to come in more often if they’d like. 

Other Application Details:

Applicants must be authorized to work for any employer in the U.S. We are unable to sponsor or take over sponsorship of an employment Visa at this time.

We will accept and review applications on a rolling basis. Although all applications will be considered, we may be unable to respond to all inquiries. Please note that we do read cover letters, so we advise spending adequate time on them to share your relevant stories and experiences with us. We also ask that you keep the cover letter to 1-2 pages long. We try to keep applications open for at least 2 weeks, but if we receive a high volume of applications early on, we may close the position.                                              

Elemental is an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer. Elemental is also committed to providing access and reasonable accommodation in its services, activities, programs, and employment opportunities in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act and other applicable laws.

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