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Title

Conservation Planning and Spatial Assessment Lead

Posted
Reference   (Please mention Stopdodo/Environment Jobs in your application)
Sectors Sustainability, Climate, CSR, EMS
Location New York - America North
Town/City Bronx, NY
Type Fixed Term and Permanent Roles
Status Full Time
Level Mid Level
Deadline 31/08/2015
Company Name Wildlife Conservation Society
Contact Name Recruitment- Global
Telephone 718-220-5886
Email pWatim@wcs.org
Website Further Details / Applications
Wildlife Conservation Society logo
Directory Entry : The Wildlife Conservation Society, founded in 1895, has the clear mission to save wildlife and wild places across the globe.
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Description

 

 

Position: Conservation Planning and Spatial Assessment Lead

Division: Conservation Science and Solutions (CSS), Global Conservation

Reports to: Executive Director, CSS

 

Position Objectives

 

The Conservation Planning and Spatial Assessment Lead at WCS is responsible for supporting spatial planning activities and promoting best practice in the field of conservation decision making in WCS Land and Sea-Scapes around the world. The ideal candidate will be well versed in the principles of systematic conservation planning and have extensive experience applying those principles to enable decision makers to make better choices and greater conservation impact around the world.  

 

Conservation, Science and Solutions produces and applies world-class science to enable novel conservation solutions at globally important sites for biodiversity and to advance policy solutions at multiple scales.  We do this a Science program and a Conservation Planning and Spatial Assessment program as well as 5 Initiatives:

q  Climate Change Adaptation Solutions

q  Climate Change Mitigation: REDD+

q  Ecosystem Services and Payments for Ecosystem Services

q  Markets: Investing in Conservation (trust funds, CEDP, innovative conservation finance vehicles)

q  Markets: Safeguards and Standards (industrial extraction, banking, natural capital accounting)

 

Principal Responsibilities

A) Planning and decision support

?     Lead systematic conservation planning processes for WCS project teams, partners and stakeholders by guiding decision makers through the process of establishing quantitative objectives for conservation and other uses, identifying metrics to assess achievement of the objectives, identifying and prioritizing actions to achieve those objectives, and evaluating trade-offs arising from alternative courses of action.

·         Work with WCS project teams and external stakeholders to identify and assess current status, trends and likely trajectory of key drivers of change (e.g. demographic change, economic development, climate change, resource extraction), and use the information to develop spatially explicit scenarios for what the future may look like.

?     Work with science and conservation staff from around the work to identify and gather information to identify priority areas for conservation and support informed decision making about the use of environment resources through the implementation of a decision support tools (such as Marxan, Zonation) that is informed by the best available science and future smart.Analyze trade-offs in design of land and seascape, and provide recommendations on efficient zoning and use of land and marine resources.

 

B) Data Analysis

·         Support ground breaking science that supports the WCS mission through design and providing support in spatial analysis,  statistics, and/or modelling

·         Develop and manage spatial databases of biodiversity and socio-economic activities. Proficiency in the use of a GIS (Geographic Information System) to analyze and assimilate spatial and non-spatial data and the ability to design and conduct spatial analysis. Develop, organize, and maintain spatial datasets using relational databases

·         Guide project teams through GAP analysis and work with project managers and scientists to prioritization data collection and design research agendas to fill gaps identified. 

 

C) Project management

·         Coordinate and prioritize work on multiple projects, set realistic timelines and budgets for task completion, and develop timely progress reports for donors and external stakeholders at specified project milestones.

·         Maintain and build upon collaborative engagements with project partners

·         Ability to lead/work on multiple project teams simultaneously. 

 

D) Project development

·         Contribute to the design of new projects and assist program staff with grant/proposal writing and other fundraising activities to support the continued growth of the program.

·         Work with WCS project teams to identify new funding opportunities

 

E) Stakeholder outreach/Communication

·         Build capacity within WCS on the use spatial planning tools and use of objective-based planning processes using the theory of decision science. Develop training materials and lead workshops for internal and external audiences that contribute to the mission of WCS.

·         Use strong written and verbal communication skills to develop a broad suite of communication materials, including publishing in peer-reviewed scientific journals, white papers for managers, and content for websites.

·         Promote data and tool sharing through partnerships with government agencies and other organizations

QUALIFICATIONS

·         Advanced university degree (Master's/PhD or equivalent) in landscape ecology, conservation biology, natural resource management, environmental economics, or other relevant discipline

·         4+ years of professional experience

·         Strong spatial analysis skills in one or more platforms (e.g. AcrGIS, R, GRASS, )

·         Experience using programming languages (e.g. R, Python) to analysis data and automate routine tasks

·         Experience leading structured decision making processes

·         Experience with scenario planning

·         Knowledge of climate adaptation principles in a conservation setting

·         Familiarity with the principles and practices of the mitigation hierarchy, net positive impact and biodiversity offset design, and the concept of High Conservation Value (HCV).

·         Strong communication and interpersonal skills, and the ability to work with partners and diverse stakeholder groups to promote buy-in to planning process.  

·         Ability to prioritize competing needs and communicate/balance between direct and indirect supervisors

·         Experience working overseas

·         Demonstrated ability to thrive in an organization characterized by a science and mission-driven workforce. 

·         Demonstrated ability to produce concise written summaries of analytical findings and communicate complex science to a broad variety of audiences

Preferred

·         Ability to speak and work in at least one other major language relevant to WCS scapes (e.g., Spanish, French)

·         Analytical background including statistical and GIS software capabilities

All applicants are requested both to apply online at wcs.org (http//www.wcs.org/about-us/careers) and also to send a cover letter and CV to globalinitiatives@wcs.org. Please list the title of the position in the subject line. 

Position: Conservation Planning and Spatial Assessment Lead

Division: Conservation Science and Solutions (CSS), Global Conservation

Reports to: Executive Director, CSS

 

Position Objectives

 

The Conservation Planning and Spatial Assessment Lead at WCS is responsible for supporting spatial planning activities and promoting best practice in the field of conservation decision making in WCS Land and Sea-Scapes around the world. The ideal candidate will be well versed in the principles of systematic conservation planning and have extensive experience applying those principles to enable decision makers to make better choices and greater conservation impact around the world.  

 

Conservation, Science and Solutions produces and applies world-class science to enable novel conservation solutions at globally important sites for biodiversity and to advance policy solutions at multiple scales.  We do this a Science program and a Conservation Planning and Spatial Assessment program as well as 5 Initiatives:

q  Climate Change Adaptation Solutions

q  Climate Change Mitigation: REDD+

q  Ecosystem Services and Payments for Ecosystem Services

q  Markets: Investing in Conservation (trust funds, CEDP, innovative conservation finance vehicles)

q  Markets: Safeguards and Standards (industrial extraction, banking, natural capital accounting)

 

Principal Responsibilities

A) Planning and decision support

?     Lead systematic conservation planning processes for WCS project teams, partners and stakeholders by guiding decision makers through the process of establishing quantitative objectives for conservation and other uses, identifying metrics to assess achievement of the objectives, identifying and prioritizing actions to achieve those objectives, and evaluating trade-offs arising from alternative courses of action.

·         Work with WCS project teams and external stakeholders to identify and assess current status, trends and likely trajectory of key drivers of change (e.g. demographic change, economic development, climate change, resource extraction), and use the information to develop spatially explicit scenarios for what the future may look like.

?     Work with science and conservation staff from around the work to identify and gather information to identify priority areas for conservation and support informed decision making about the use of environment resources through the implementation of a decision support tools (such as Marxan, Zonation) that is informed by the best available science and future smart.Analyze trade-offs in design of land and seascape, and provide recommendations on efficient zoning and use of land and marine resources.

 

B) Data Analysis

·         Support ground breaking science that supports the WCS mission through design and providing support in spatial analysis,  statistics, and/or modelling

·         Develop and manage spatial databases of biodiversity and socio-economic activities. Proficiency in the use of a GIS (Geographic Information System) to analyze and assimilate spatial and non-spatial data and the ability to design and conduct spatial analysis. Develop, organize, and maintain spatial datasets using relational databases

·         Guide project teams through GAP analysis and work with project managers and scientists to prioritization data collection and design research agendas to fill gaps identified. 

 

C) Project management

·         Coordinate and prioritize work on multiple projects, set realistic timelines and budgets for task completion, and develop timely progress reports for donors and external stakeholders at specified project milestones.

·         Maintain and build upon collaborative engagements with project partners

·         Ability to lead/work on multiple project teams simultaneously. 

 

D) Project development

·         Contribute to the design of new projects and assist program staff with grant/proposal writing and other fundraising activities to support the continued growth of the program.

·         Work with WCS project teams to identify new funding opportunities

 

E) Stakeholder outreach/Communication

·         Build capacity within WCS on the use spatial planning tools and use of objective-based planning processes using the theory of decision science. Develop training materials and lead workshops for internal and external audiences that contribute to the mission of WCS.

·         Use strong written and verbal communication skills to develop a broad suite of communication materials, including publishing in peer-reviewed scientific journals, white papers for managers, and content for websites.

·         Promote data and tool sharing through partnerships with government agencies and other organizations

QUALIFICATIONS

·         Advanced university degree (Master's/PhD or equivalent) in landscape ecology, conservation biology, natural resource management, environmental economics, or other relevant discipline

·         4+ years of professional experience

·         Strong spatial analysis skills in one or more platforms (e.g. AcrGIS, R, GRASS, )

·         Experience using programming languages (e.g. R, Python) to analysis data and automate routine tasks

·         Experience leading structured decision making processes

·         Experience with scenario planning

·         Knowledge of climate adaptation principles in a conservation setting

·         Familiarity with the principles and practices of the mitigation hierarchy, net positive impact and biodiversity offset design, and the concept of High Conservation Value (HCV).

·         Strong communication and interpersonal skills, and the ability to work with partners and diverse stakeholder groups to promote buy-in to planning process.  

·         Ability to prioritize competing needs and communicate/balance between direct and indirect supervisors

·         Experience working overseas

·         Demonstrated ability to thrive in an organization characterized by a science and mission-driven workforce. 

·         Demonstrated ability to produce concise written summaries of analytical findings and communicate complex science to a broad variety of audiences

Preferred

·         Ability to speak and work in at least one other major language relevant to WCS scapes (e.g., Spanish, French)

·         Analytical background including statistical and GIS software capabilities

All applicants are requested both to apply online at wcs.org (http//www.wcs.org/about-us/careers) and also to send a cover letter and CV to globalinitiatives@wcs.org. Please list the title of the position in the subject line.

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