International Consultant: Environmental Economist

The Central Zagros Mountains region of contains globally significant ecosystem, species and genetic diversities. The area is home to a vast range of species including over 2,000 species of higher plants and several endangered and endemic mammal species. The zone constitutes one of the most important centres of endemism not only in the country but also in the region.

In this zone, biodiversity has been and continues to be a lynchpin of both economic and social development. Some estimates suggest that harvesting of wild plant and animal species accounts for up to 50% of the cash income of poor households. Due to its ecological, economic, social and cultural significance, the Government of Islamic Republic of Iran has been giving a high priority to the sustainable development of the region. The Government aims to develop the Central Zagros Landscape Conservation Zone as an area integrating biodiversity conservation with sustainable development.  

The ‘Central Zagros Landscape Conservation Zone Project’ which covers over 2.5 million hectares of the central Zagros Mountains region is active in four provinces of the country since 2006. The Project will contribute to the overall goal of the Government of Iran, which is to ensure that the socio-economy in the Zagros Mountains develops and is mutually supportive of biodiversity conservation and restoration. The project can be considered as one of the most challenging, innovative and ambitious conservation projects the government of Islamic Republic of Iran has been currently undertaking with the financial and technical support of the Global Environment Facility (GEF) www.thegef.org and UNDP www.undp.org.ir as well as financial contributions by the Government. The project is being implemented by the Department of the Environment of the Islamic Republic of Iran www.irandoe.org and www.cbcz.ir (the Project website)..

The project works at all levels of governance and engages with a wide range of actors and stakeholders. The project support will complement specifically

in developing the required national level capacity to support biodiversity conservation in the central Zagros mountains;
in removing the barriers to mainstreaming the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity into the development processes and the economic sectoral processes throughout the Conservation Zone; and
in developing capacity for participatory, village-driven development that assures sustainable use, biodiversity conservation, natural resource exploitation and socio-economic development in a win-win manner at the village level. The necessary capacity, at individual, institutional and systemic level, in national agencies will be developed to institutionalize and replicate the innovative approaches to biodiversity conservation being developed in the Zone.

It is important to understand both economic barriers and drivers of biodiversity conservation to effectively mainstream biodiversity conservation and sustainable utilization into the natural resources and tourism sectors. At present, there is not only lack of incentives to conservation, many national policies promote unsustainable exploitation of natural resources and land use practices. For example, water is undervalued, meaning that the water-catchment function is undervalued. In general, all ecosystem goods and services get low value and are not properly appreciated by the national economic and development policies. The sustainable conservation financing which is considered to be lynchpin to long term conservation hardly exists. The cost of environmental degradation is not calculated and incorporated into the national accounting systems despite the development plans having required this to be practices.

There is a need to create awareness for the economic cost of environmentally unsustainable policies and practices, improve understanding of the benefits and costs of interventions and catalyze the design of market-based incentives to adopt environmentally sustainable behavior. More importantly, there is a need to ‘internalize’ environmental values in development decision-making and national accounting systems.

The study on the valuation of biodiversity in the Zagros region is thus designed to introduce economic instruments for mainstreaming environmental concerns into development policy of the government. Specifically the study

• estimates the monetary value of biodiversity in the Zagros Mountains;
• helps Iimprove national policies which favour sustainable harvesting of biological resources;
• suggests incentive mechanisms to make conservation an economically attractive and desirable course of action  for sectoral agencies, the private sector, communities, households and individuals; and
• charts out sustainable conservation financing mechanisms to support conservation activities in the Zagros region.

The International Environmental Economist will work under the supervision of the National Project Manager. S/he will receive technical guidance from the International Advisor of the project and work with a “paired” national consultant (National Economic and Financial Policy Coordinator), and a team of national and provincial experts. The consultant will also receive the support of the Project Central Office, and be integrated with a team of other core international consultants. The incumbent will also liaise with the UNDP, relevant government agencies and other key stakeholders including private sector to ensure timely completion of the study and ownerships of the outputs. S/he will report to the DOE with copy to UNDP.

•  Review government’s economic and development policy documents as well as natural resources policies via forestry, rangeland and pastoralist, agriculture, water and tourism to assess their biodiversity conservation compatibility. Identify improper incentives and propose how their negative effects on biodiversity can be removed or mitigated.
• Identify a full range of existing and planned incentive measures provisioned by various agencies for biodiversity conservation.
• Identify existing sources of funding for biodiversity conservation and analysis of the adequacy and effectiveness of this funding.
• Conduct field studies to estimate the monetary and no monetary values of biodiversity in the Zagros Mountains in terms meaningful to national, provincial and village decision-makers.
• Conduct a series of focus group discussions with key actors such as economic policy makers, nomad group, tourism entrepreneurs, water resource experts, commercial farmers, NGOs and natural resource managers etc.
• Give at least two seminar (half day each – one in the beginning and another at the end of the study) to economic policy makers, development planners, resource mangers and private entrepreneurs on the need and importance of payment of ecosystem services and sustainable conservation financing.
• Identify field researchers/local consultants with help of National Economic and Financial Policy Coordinator to carry out in depth study on valuation of selected environmental products.
• Provide technical inputs, including best practices, to develop communication materials to raise awareness on the importance of conserving biodiversity, in monetary and other terms. These materials will be centerpiece of awareness campaigns targeting political and economic decision-makers.
• Design mechanisms for capturing the total economic value of environmental services such as biodiversity, watershed protection, soil formation, and erosion resistance.
• Suggest economic instruments for mainstreaming environmental concerns into development policy.
• Specifically, explore the opportunities and challenges of payment for environmental services (PES) in return to the water supply that the biodiversity rich watersheds provide and the generation of revenue from eco-tourism.
• Suggest positive economic incentives that will encourage investments in biodiversity conservation by governments, communities and the private sector.
• Identify full range of potential incentive measures that could be potentially employed to enhance biodiversity conservation in . Analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of each measure.
• Design in consultation and suggestion study tour with relevant staff, consultants of the project the outline of the study, guide and monitor the progress of work and review/compile final reports.

A well designed and comprehensive study report containing:

• An assessment of the baseline situation with regard to the economic barriers and drivers of biodiversity mainstreaming including a review of relevant policies and practices;
• Innovative conservation financing mechanisms suitable for the central Zagros Mountains area.
• Mechanisms for capturing the total economic value of environmental services
• Set of targeted communication and outreach materials on economic incentives to biodiversity conservation.
  

• At least an advanced university degree in Environmental Economics or other relevant fields with proven knowledge on biodiversity conservation and policy works.
• Minimum 5 years of experience in the field of ecosystem valuation with proven practical experience on developing conservation financing mechanism;
• Adequate working experience in multicultural environments and sensitive to local culture and traditions; 
• Proven communication skills and ability to work in a team, under pressure and ability to meet deadlines;
• Prior experience with UN/UNDP/GEF projects and ability to work in is an advantage.
• Familiarity with the economic soft ware, including e-views, etc, proficiency with spread sheet and data base applications as well as facility with word processing, presentation, programs and the internet.
• Work Experience with government and international organization responsibility for environmental and sustainable development issues.
• Experience in planning, organizing and facilitating coordination and partnership between various government sectors agencies.
• Fluency in written and spoken English. Demonstrated writing and presentation skills in English.