Conservation Scientist - Great ape and forest elephant programme in Djoua-Zadie-Mwagna, Gabon

A position is available, starting as soon as possible for an initial period of 12 months, as a Conservation Scientist on ZSL’s great ape and forest elephant programme in Gabon. The Zoological Society of London (ZSL) has been working in Gabon since 2001 and has recently started a landscape wide great ape and forest elephant conservation programme in the Djoua-Zadie-Mwagna (DZM) area in the north east of the country. A priority over the next 12 months is to gain an up-to-date knowledge on the status and distribution of populations of these species and characterise the threats facing them as part of the development of a long term strategy for the conservation of the species in the region.

The post will be based in the town of Makokou in north east Gabon, with some time in Libreville when necessary. The candidate should be prepared for extensive stays in remote tropical forest locations.

The successful candidate will be responsible for the successful completion of the research component of project activities. This includes the design and implementation of field surveys (both forest surveys and village social surveys), day to day co-ordination of research efforts, management of research teams and associated staff, and management of collected data, subsequent analysis and communication of findings.

The post holder should have a postgraduate qualification in conservation science, ecology or a related discipline, a strong research and analytical background and experience of carrying out forest wildlife surveys and/or community social surveys. Experience of managing and training survey teams is essential (preferably in Central Africa), and the candidate should have a good understanding of tropical forest conservation issues, excellent communication skills, fluency in spoken and written French and a good standard of written and spoken English.

A base salary of £20,576-£24,037 p.a., plus benefits including, annual return flight from Europe to Gabon, visa, insurance under ZSL’s group travel insurance policy and housing in ZSL’s project accommodation will be provided. The position is to start as soon as possible.

Applicants should send their CV and a covering letter detailing relevant experience and skills, by email to ZSL’s HR Department (hr@zsl.org) by 22^nd January 2012.  Terms of reference for all the positions can be found on the ZSL website (www.zsl.org/jobs). This post is being re-advertised - previous applicants need not apply. We regret that we will only be able to contact applicants who have been selected for interview.