Consultant in Natural Resources / Protected Areas Management, Cambridge, United Kingdom

About The Biodiversity Consultancy (TBC)

We are a consultancy based in Cambridge (UK) specialising in biodiversity and ecosystem services (BES) management. We provide technical expertise, policy advice and field capacity to the private, public and NGO / science sectors. The consultancy delivers solutions to emerging BES challenges such as ecosystem service risk management, No Net Loss / Net Positive Impact, IFC PS6, community-based natural resource management, protected areas management, biodiversity offsets, and ecological impact assessment. We develop corporate and government policy; we follow through to programme design and development on the ground; we design, develop and implement field programmes whilst building national capacity to run the programmes we have initiated. Known for our pragmatic intellectual leadership, we operate as a resource for problem solving and a platform for cross-sector engagement.

Our staff comprise specialists in biodiversity policy and science, field natural resource management, protected areas management, ecosystem services assessment etc. We have a focus on industry's interaction with protected areas, both impact and investment. We specialise in the environmental lending criteria of the major international financial institutions, such as IFC PS6, EBRD PR6; and those of Equator banks / EPFIs. We have developed dedicated expertise in quantitative, clear metrics for natural environment issues, and this core capacity lays a foundation for several emerging business needs including design and implementation of the mitigation hierarchy for both biodiversity and natural resource issues. Examples of our work can be found on www.thebiodiversityconsultancy.com

Specifications

TBC wishes to recruit a Consultant to work full time on a number of different projects and programmes within our Cambridge team. The post is initially offered as a two year contract. An ability to think creatively and put oneself in the shoes of our clients will be essential. The capacity to understand our clients' viewpoints coupled with a sound and grounded knowledge of the complexities of natural resource / ecosystem service management is required: the chosen candidate will be able to bridge the gap between assessment of ecological impacts and the social challenge of implementing conservation programmes.

The chosen applicant will have outstanding verbal and written communication skills, being able to digest, dissect and summarise large amounts of information into readable, technically sound précis. Importantly, the chosen candidate will be a clear conceptual thinker with the capacity to reduce complex problems into scientifically and politically defensible solutions. If you have worked in international conservation and natural resource management, with a focus on communities and government capacity, and wish to make a real change to the way the world works then the post may be for you.

Roles

• Implementing corporate ecosystem service and NRM (natural resource management) programmes, including issues such as design and field testing of baseline survey methods, natural resource and ecosystem service metrics, impact assessment protocols, mitigation programmes and offsets design and implementation.
• Facilitating industry engagement with protected areas and their management
• Convening and facilitating workshops bringing together multiple parties.
• Collation and analysis of wide range of data on the natural environment
• Research and review of baseline data; consulting and briefing specialists.
• Report writing and editing.
• Designing natural resource / BES management strategies.
• Managing and strengthening partnerships and relations with companies, NGOs, and government institutions in emerging markets / non OECD.
• Engagement with clients and partners to implement corporate ecosystem services policy
• Client relationship management
• Identification of ecosystem service / natural resource priorities based on baseline data
• Field-based support for mitigation and offset implementation.
• Coordinating field surveys.
• Application of financial lending criteria e.g. PS6 to development projects

Attributes

Essential skills and attributes

• At least five years' experience in natural resource management (management, monitoring, research) and / or community-based protected areas management
• Experience in human community – natural resource management and biodiversity issues such as livelihoods, bushmeat and NTFPs.
• Field experience in implementation and monitoring of Natural Resource Management programmes, especially in non-OECD contexts.
• Broad knowledge of natural resource management field survey techniques and sampling design – both social and ecological.
• Stakeholder engagement experience (collaborative work with community and/or institutions
• Diplomacy and negotiation skills.
• Excellent writing and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to think laterally and solve problems.
• Proven ability to be able to work fluently in French.
• An ability to provide intellectual leadership, creativity and simplicity to problem solving.
• Willingness and enthusiasm to travel globally and work in challenging environments.
• Positivity and teamwork.
• A good Honours' or preferably Masters' degree and a postgraduate qualification in relevant disciplines.

Desirable experience and attributes

• Four years of conservation management experience, particularly in protected area or natural resource management including law enforcement and community engagement
• Experience of working with or engaging with industry
• Monitoring and evaluation of natural resource management outcomes.
• Experience of designing and implementing PES/REDD+ programmes.
• Confident public speaker, with experience of planning and facilitating workshops.
• Multinational mining or oil and gas experience.
• Map making and analytical GIS skills.
• Experience with tools such as the WRI / WBCSD CESR
• Spanish speaker.
• Familiarity with scientific publishing.

Details

Position details

• The post is initially offered as a two year contract with intention to continue for the right candidate. Location: Cambridge, with significant international travel. The consultant will work from the TBC Cambridge office.
• Salary range: £35k-£42k full time per annum
• Information also at www.thebiodiversityconsultancy.com

Application details

Deadline 5 May 2014. Send the following to recruitment@thebiodiversityconsultancy.com

• Curriculum Vitae
• A short one-page application letter explaining your interest in the job and showing clearly how you meet our job and person requirements
• One short and pithy (maximum four pages) extract of work that you have written within the past two years
• A one-page brief to the CEO of a mining company to explain why ecosystem services and natural resources are important in terms of risk management and the opportunities for managing impacts on them as part of IFC PS6 compliance.
• Interviews: Will be held by phone or in person.

The Biodiversity Consultancy Ltd, 3E King's Parade, Cambridge, CB2 1SJ, UK Tel: +44 1223 366238 enquiries@thebiodiversityconsultancy.com www.thebiodiversityconsultancy.com Company Number: 6413116 VAT Number: 941 2882 18