Project Manager, Wonegizi REDD+ Project, Liberia

Founded in 1903, Fauna & Flora International (FFI) is the world’s longest-established international conservation organisation. Our vision is to create a sustainable future for the planet where biodiversity is conserved by the people living closest to it. We aim to do this through the conservation of threatened species and ecosystems worldwide, choosing solutions that are sustainable, based on sound science and take account of human needs. We have become a trusted entity in the world of conservation. Today FFI is active in over 40 countries.

The Conservation Finance & Enterprise programme addresses the related challenges of establishing long-term, sustainable funding models for conservation initiatives; strengthening local and global incentives for conservation; and the urgent need for greater recognition of biodiversity and ecosystem services values within the global economy. The team has a vision where access to sustainable economic opportunities drives positive conservation outcomes by enabling and motivating local and global actors to enhance protection of threatened habitats and species.

Working closely with local partners, FFI’s Africa Programme currently operates in 14 countries in West, Central, East and Southern Africa, and is implementing a range of projects focused on species and habitat conservation, biodiversity planning, protected area management, institutional development and capacity building, sustainable use and community-focused wildlife management initiatives.

The Liberia Government made a declaration in 2006 to put aside 30% of its forest for a protected area network (PAN) in 2006. To date, less than 4% of the PAN has been officially gazetted to formal protected status. The Wonegizi project site sits on the Liberia-Guinea border and is a key example of a critical transboundary forest found within a proposed protected area that is unable to offer the practical protection required whilst addressing the needs of local communities. With previous funding from the Norwegian Development Agency (Norad), FFI has been working at the site since 2010, with the aim to create Liberia’s first REDD+ pilot, integrated with protected area management.

FFI is seeking a qualified candidate to manage a substantial project funded by Norad. The project is one of the most ambitious agricultural extension and transformation programmes undertaken by FFI to date, and will pioneer innovation in the long-term financing of conservation efforts in Liberia. At its core is a focus on uniting the conservation and development agendas within and around an area of significant importance for biodiversity – a substantial area of the remaining Upper Guinean Forest ecosystem in Liberia.

The vision and impact of the project will extend beyond the immediate project area, and will inform the development of national policy processes that support replication of community and biodiversity-centred approaches to forest conservation throughout the country. The project illustrates a truly cross-cutting and collaborative approach to delivery, both within FFI and with partners and stakeholders in Liberia. Within FFI the Conservation Finance & Enterprise and Liberia Programmes will provide strategic and operational leadership. With such a complex project, core to its success will be the collaborative nature by which it will be managed and delivered. In particular, working across the Conservation Finance & Enterprise and Liberia programmes, the Project Manager will need to ensure the project is delivering on a range of priorities within the organisation, with a strong focus on building internal and external relationships through trust and cooperation.

You will have strong technical skills in relevant aspects of conservation and sustainable land-use management, and have a strong proven track record in managing large-scale sustainable development or conservation projects, with requisite operational, project, grant and financial management skills. Strong leadership and people management skills are essential to the role to ensure a professional and motivated team that delivers effectively against project aims, objectives and timelines.

This position is based in FFI’s office in Monrovia, Liberia with regular domestic travel to Lofa County as needed, and international travel as required (including regular travel to FFI’s head office in Cambridge, UK). In return, the role offers the opportunity to work within a ground-breaking and entrepreneurial organisation, at the forefront of global conservation.