Arborist Fellow - Yosemite National Park

Summary

American Conservation Experience, a nonprofit Conservation Corps, in partnership with Yosemite National Park, is seeking Two Members to contribute to arborist projects alongside park Staff.

For more information about ACE, please visit our website.

Start Date: Early February 2026

Estimated End Date: May 2026*a 12-week minimum commitment is required.*

Location Details/Description:

The ACE members will be based in El Portal, CA in the Yosemite Division of Resource, Management, and Science building. A touchdown office space will be provided in the Cultural Resources Program branch of History, Architecture, and Landscapes. Work will primarily take place in Yosemite Valley, with other work locations in Wawona, Foresta, and El Portal.

Yosemite National Park, California, known worldwide for its spectacular natural beauty is the backdrop for this position. Sitting astride the Sierra Nevada Mountains, the park covers 1,182 square miles of varied wilderness ecosystems, from river valleys to alpine meadows to lofty 13,000-foot-high peaks. Yosemite Valley is located 208 miles from San Francisco, 81 miles from Merced, and 94 miles from Fresno. Shopping, medical, postal and laundry services are available in the park and in El Portal. Elevation at the Valley floor is approximately 4,000 feet and 2,200 feet in El Portal.

For more information about Yosemite National Park please visit the NPS website.

Position Overview: The ACE EPIC members will assist Yosemite National Park staff in the stabilization of up to seven historic orchards and other culturally significant flora throughout the park. Through the work, the members will perform the techniques of arboriculture to preserve trees as old as 170 years. Tasks will include pruning, apple picking, clearing dead and diseased trees, removing encroaching vegetation and application of herbicide on trees recently cut. Other projects the ACE members may be tasked with are the dating of potentially historic trees and removal of non-historic fruit trees. In addition to working with Yosemite's History, Architecture, and Landscapes branch, the ACE members will also work with teams from Vegetation and Ecological Restoration, Wildlife, and Forestry. The members will also work with Horticulturists and Landscape Architects from other NPS offices.

For additional responsibilities, information and to apply, click here.