Josh (Dear conservationist, we need a Code of Ethics)

Written by Josh Gross

Dear conservationist, 

I’m thrilled that Jessie invited me to write for this blog. I’m a little different from the average Lonely Conservationist, though: I’m not trying to enter the conservation field, but to leave it. I’ve been working in conservation-related jobs for about 15 years. While I’m certainly not where I’d like to be, I’m also doing okay: I’m saving money, I have a government benefits package, and I have a supervisory position. So why leave?

There are several reasons why I want to shift my career path. First, I want the next phase of my life to be more directly about helping people. Second, my experiences in the conservation industry have shown me that this field isn’t for everyone; it’s for people who look a certain way, dress a certain way, talk a certain way, have all the same hobbies, and come from a specific background. I’m the wrong type of “character” to be a conservationist, and this will hamper my career growth no matter what I do.

Third, and most relevant for this post, in the past few years I’ve noticed a rise in unprofessional – and frankly inexcusable – behavior in this field. These are behaviors that would get employees fired in most professions, but in conservation, they seem to be tolerated. This hurts our public image, creates toxic workplaces, and keeps good candidates out of our field.

First, though, I’m going to talk a little about myself, so that you can understand where I’m coming from. I’m not a “normal” conservationist: I didn’t grow up in the country or in a bourgeois suburb, where most American conservationists seem to be from. I was raised in an impoverished, dying town outside of Cleveland, Ohio, which is the second-poorest city in the United States. To put things in perspective, while some conservationists find rare animals at work, my coworkers and I find bodies. Most of the bodies we find are victims of suicide, whereas others may have been murdered.

Thus, I can be a tad grumpy, and I have little tolerance for the following behaviors, which strike me as ways to openly flaunt one’s privilege (i.e., “Look what I can get away with”). One example of what I call “frat boy behavior” comes from a former supervisor of mine. This supervisor got drunk almost every night, and then would show up to work talking about how hung-over he was. The fact that this was treated as funny irked me, because “back in my day” we were expected to show up to work ready to go.

One time, following a work event, this supervisor and another colleague got plastered drunk, and decided to take one of our work vehicles for a joy-ride. Thankfully they didn’t crash, but the fact that this was seen as acceptable bothered me. Operating a company vehicle while you’re off the clock should incur strict penalties, and doing so while drunk should get you fired. In conservation, however, it’s good fun.

Another example of bad behavior was less dangerous but also unprofessional. One of my former coworkers in the conservation industry used to sleep on the job. He didn’t just do this once or twice, he did it often, and in full view of the public. In fact, he openly admitted to sleeping on the job. This coworker was verbally reprimanded for his behavior, but he was never formally disciplined, so nothing changed.

This last example of inexcusable behavior was told to me as a second-hand story, so some details might be inaccurate. Nevertheless, it was relayed to me by a reliable source. My most pleasant experience in the conservation industry took place while I was serving in a volunteer program run by the U.S. government through a large, nationwide conservation organization. I learned that one of the employees at this conservation organization had been caught routinely sleeping with one of the volunteers.

For context, These volunteers are basically interns and have little power within their organizations. The staff member in this scenario was two steps above the volunteer in the company hierarchy and was acting as her direct supervisor. He was also the only staff member around her at the time, so she was completely isolated, and realistically didn’t have the option of saying “no.” Taking advantage of someone so far below you, in such a vulnerable position, should lead to immediate termination. However, when this story was told to me, the employee who’d been caught sleeping with the volunteer was still with the organization.

As many Lonely Conservationists have pointed out, securing a paid job within the conservation industry isn’t easy. By protecting “conservation frat boys,” we’re depriving more deserving candidates of opportunities. We’re also creating negative work environments where some employees are able to act with impunity, which drives away the best workers. 

Furthermore, in today’s world, nothing stays secret forever. Conservation in the United States is a political issue, with some people being strongly opposed to anything we do, and much of the American public simply not caring about conservation (we also help them not to care, more on that in the future). When they see us acting unprofessionally, or hear stories about the behaviors that some conservationists get away with, then this doesn’t help our cause.

As such, we need to stop tolerating unacceptable behavior in conservation. One solution would be to create a unified Code of Ethics, similar to what the Mental Health Counseling field has, that establishes a baseline for professional behavior in our field.

While some organizations, like Conservation International, have their own codes of ethics, we need one that reaches across different companies and regions, and that has teeth. Having a unified, publicly available, and enforceable Code of Ethics would go a long way towards improving our public image, making room for the best candidates in our field, and creating positive workplaces that will retain those individuals.

For more of Josh, check out his blog here.