Director of Agricultural Policy

About Spark

We are a team of scientists, policy experts, innovators, and systems thinkers working to build today’s foundations for the comprehensive climate solutions we will need tomorrow. Rather than betting on individual pathways or innovations, we work to grow a field as a whole so that the most effective science and solutions can be surfaced and scaled. We use a large suite of field-building tools to support new research, markets, policies, and talent development, through both in-house initiatives and building broader coalitions. We are currently focused on super pollutants from agriculture (specifically methane and nitrous oxide), warming-induced greenhouse gas emissions, and methane removal.

Spark’s impact is made possible by a community of generous and pioneering individuals, foundations, and organizations that share our vision for a safer climate future. 

Position Summary

At Spark, policy plays a critical role in accelerating the fields we work in. For example, to advance public research funding for methane removal, Spark supported the development and introduction of the bipartisan Methane Removal Research and Innovation Act (MRRIA) in the House, which would establish the first dedicated federal methane removal research program at DOE; the Livestock Enteric Program helped advance the Innovative Feed Act, now included in the Senate Agriculture Committee's Farm Bill draft, which would establish a new, faster regulatory pathway for methane-reducing feed additives.

This role combines policy strategy and original policy development (drafting proposals, legislative language, and analytical memos) with active coalition and stakeholder engagement across federal agencies, Congress, trade associations, and producer groups. Specifically, this role will focus on:

1. Translation of the programs’ science and field needs into a viable and actionable long-term policy strategy for current and future Congresses and administrations.
2. U.S. federal policy development for approaches that include methane and nitrous oxide mitigation from crop and livestock systems, including research, development, demonstration, deployment, and de-risking proposals.
3. Coalition and stakeholder engagement with trade associations, producer groups, federal agencies, and Congressional offices.

This role reports to the Spark's Nitrogen Program Director and will work closely with the Livestock Enteric Methane Mitigation Program Director. 

Who We’re Looking For

• A seasoned agricultural policy professional with deep federal experience who knows how the farm bill, appropriations cycles, and USDA conservation programs (EQIP, CSP, RCPP) work and has experience influencing them.
• Someone with strong existing bipartisan relationships in agricultural policy circles: Hill staff, USDA, EPA, trade associations, producer groups, and ag policy NGOs.
• A capable writer who can move fluidly between technical policy memos, legislative language, congressional briefings, and concise stakeholder-facing materials.
• A strategic thinker who can work backward from a multi-year program goal and design the policy pathway, including which proposals to develop, when, and with whom.
• Someone with the judgment to know when Spark should lead, when it should support a coalition, and when it should sit out.
• Someone comfortable working across two program areas with overlapping but distinct stakeholder ecosystems and political dynamics.
• Someone who can balance the creativity and practicality needed to break through otherwise intractable policy challenges. 
• A collaborative operator who can take loose direction from Program Directors and a peer policy lead and turn it into a coherent work plan.
• Someone who cares about climate change, is energized by the specific problem of agricultural super pollutants, and is prepared to lead on both incremental proposals and broader visions that would help the U.S. best leverage policy to tackle the two largest sources of greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture. 

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the U.S. federal policy strategy for Spark’s agricultural programs, in support of the Enteric and Nitrogen Program strategies. 
• Develop (a) multi-year policy plan(s) that support both programs’ priorities, accounting for the U.S. agricultural policy opportunity landscape and refreshing it as the political environment evolves.
• Draft policy proposals, legislative language, and supporting analytical memos for federal RD&D and deployment policy, including marker legislation (e.g., CATTLE Act for enteric) and proposals targeting USDA conservation, risk management, and clean fuels programs (EQIP, CSP, RCPP, 45Z, SAFs) for nitrogen.
• Engage directly with Congressional offices, USDA, EPA, and other federal agencies on annual appropriations authorizing legislation, and rulemaking. 
• Lead trade-association alignment work for the Nitrogen program and support coalition engagement for the Enteric program, including establishing partnerships with new members.
• Advise on state-level engagement where high-leverage.
• Advise on international policy engagement opportunities as relevant.
• Represent Spark in policy convenings, congressional briefings, and partner forums.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree with 10+ years of professional experience in agricultural policy, federal government, or related fields; or Master's degree (e.g., MPP, MPA, JD) with 8+ years of experience. 
• Demonstrated track record developing and advancing federal agricultural policy, with examples of policy proposals, legislation, or rulemaking you helped shape.
• Strong existing network in agricultural policy: Hill, USDA/EPA, trade associations, producer groups, and ag policy NGOs.
• Excellent writing skills, including the ability to draft legislative language, technical policy memos, and stakeholder-facing materials with limited revision.
• Ability to translate scientific and technical content into policy proposals that are credible to both technical and political audiences.
• Sound strategic judgment about when, where, and how to engage; comfortable making and defending recommendations.
• Collaborative working style; able to operate across program teams with different priorities, voices, and stakeholder bases.

Nice to Have:

• Direct experience with one or both: livestock methane policy, nitrogen/nutrient management policy.
• Experience working at the intersection of agriculture and climate.
• Familiarity with EU and other international ag/climate policy regimes.
• Prior experience in a small, fast-moving non-profit or startup environment.

Why Join Us

Eligibility

Location

Compensation

• 170k-185k/year
• Competitive benefits package including 90% health coverage and 80% coverage for dependents, 401k matching, generous PTO, sick time, and an end-of-year closure, parental leave, annual national park pass, and more.

6-Month Goals

• Build a working U.S. agricultural policy opportunity landscape covering both enteric methane and agricultural nitrogen, in coordination with the respective program leads.
• Establish active relationships with priority Congressional offices, USDA conservation and clean fuels programs, and key trade associations across both program areas.
• Drive forward at least one priority federal policy proposal per program.
• Contribute to FY28 appropriations strategy.
• Develop and align the multi-year policy roadmaps for both programs and integrate them into Spark's broader policy function plan.
• Represent Spark in external policy convenings or briefings.