DUTY STATION: Eastern Region of Nepal

PROJECT OVERVIEW

KTK-BELT is working with the Rainforest Trust to create new Conservation Areas in the eastern region of Nepal. The new Conservation Area will help expand protected areas, safeguarding endangered species on the IUCN Red List. To achieve this, KTK-BELT is building a team of project managers, thematic experts, community mobilizers, and youth fellows, to work at both the community level and at the advocacy level.

SCOPE OF WORK

The incumbent will be responsible for collecting plant data that will contribute to the creation of a geo-referenced biodiversity inventory/portal to build the science case for new protected area delineation. The incumbent will be responsible for helping delineate local species conservation priorities and link them to national and global priorities, help identify and map critical hotspots based on technical criteria. S/he will lead technical staff and youth fellows in plant collection exercises and train them in cataloguing specimens, data entry and other protocols.  S/he will help build the taxonomic team for KTK-BELT’s biological inventory work and advise on strategic hires that are necessary.

RESPONSIBILITIES

• Catalog specimens using taxonomic standards
• Digitize herbarium specimens by geo-referencing and entering data according to protocol
• Organize citizen science workshops and sampling expeditions
• Set up a research stations for plant research
• Establish an herbarium

KEY QUALIFICATION/EXPERIENCE

• B.Sc. or PhD in Botanical Sciences, Ecology, Natural Resource Management, or related topic
• Strong knowledge of using dichotomous botanical keys and field guides and deep familiarity with the major angiosperm plant families.
• Demonstrated experience in identifying and keying out plants of the Himalayan region
• Experience with herbarium curation and seed bank development
• Past experience in plant collection and biological inventories required
• Authorship of articles and papers on Himalayan taxa
• Expertise in plant family groups represented in the Himalayas preferred
• Experience in related fieldwork and surveys with an emphasis on wildlife in the Himalayan region

TIMING

Applications must be received by April 7, 2017. The position will be filled by the end of April 2017 and will be for an initial six-month term, with possibility of extension contingent on performance and funding.

RENUMERATION

Dependent on qualifications and experience and limited by allocation from the project funder.

APPLICATION PROCESS

The initial contract is for a six-month term with one-month trial basis. Please submit your cover letter, CV, 3 work samples and 3 references with a range for salary expectations to [email protected] or [email protected] including the position title in the subject heading of your email.