Back Forest Restoration Specialist

Position Overview

Based in the coastal town of Fort Dauphin in the southeast of Madagascar, this post will provide support to SEEDs reforestation Programme in the south of the country. The successful candidate will work within a combined national and international team to assist in the development of the programme, including planning, implementation and research. The role is predominantly office-based with around 25% of time spent in the bush. The diversity of activities undertaken will provide a wide-ranging experience for an early career professional who can effectively and efficiently deal with a comprehensive range of tasks related to the complex world of overseas conservation efforts.

About the Organisation

SEED Madagascar is a British Charity working in partnership with communities in the southeast of Madagascar. We integrate high quality community health, sustainable livelihoods; education infrastructure and conservation programmes to support long term, sustainable change and add to international best practice through research and publication across all of our programmatic areas.

Title: Reforestation Specialist

Location: Fort Dauphin, Madagascar

Probationary Period: three months

Contract: 18 months with a local salary, and a contribution towards an return flight and insurance.

Reporting to: Senior Programme Officer

Duties and Responsibilities

Strategy and Planning

1. Work closely with the Senior Programme Officer (SPO) to ensure that research aims, and practical initiatives are completed on time and deliverables align with donor agreements
2. Provide input into project team meetings on learnings extracted from the research data and ensure project staff are aware of project deadlines and deliverables
3. Compile learnings and disseminate to the wider SEED team, community, local stakeholders, and the wider international community
4. Lead on identifying challenges from the field and in the development of mitigation strategies; including providing training and managing nursery trials for seedling germination, survival, and drought mitigation techniques
5. Identify local resource needs and use, and develop a community-led, sustainable forest management strategy in collaboration with a diverse range of stakeholders.

Supporting Implementation

1. Support national staff to ensure project delivery meets international best practice, objectives are completed against progress indicators and fit within the contextual challenges of Madagascar
2. Lead on aligning the project to SEEDs Reforestation Programme long-term goals, working closely with the wider Environment team
3. Strengthen the capacity of the Project Ala team in relation to methods and best practice. Develop project related activities to meet staff development needs (e.g., bespoke courses or sourcing online training)
4. Support the Project Co-ordinator (Malagasy) in identifying key stakeholder knowledge and skills and develop appropriate education/training resources

Research

1. Compile desk-based research on suitable reforestation approaches and techniques, including theoretical and education approaches. Assimilate lessons learned from other projects and tailor Project Ala to emerging best practices
2. Lead on reforestation methodologies and research. Formulate planting schedules and nursery trials. Collaborate and share information and data with SEED’s Conservation Research Programme (SCRP)
3. Design, implement and manage the monitoring, evaluation, and learning (MEL) tools for the botanical research for both the corridors and plant nursery
4. Support in the timetabling and organisation of research trips, inputting information on to trackers for use by SCRP and the implementation team
5. Manage and monitor data quality, conduct analysis and report findings during quarterly project meetings. Ensure all data is up to date and accessible through the google drive
6. Provide biannual technical reports on botanical research including indicators of progress, challenges, successes, and plans for future work
7. Identify opportunities to disseminate research data in the form of scientific publications where applicable

Positioning, Networking and Communications

1. Act as the key contact between Project Ala and SCRP teams, ensuring good communication and joint working at all times
2. Network with other organisations undertaking similar work, ensuring that partners and learnings are shared and accessible throughout the organisation
3. Support the Project Development team in writing and editing project summaries and progress reports for donors and stakeholders
4. Provide technical input where appropriate on projects requiring forestry expertise and skills
5. Work with the communications team to develop social media content including blogs, posts and technical feedback and, where applicable, live events for World Days or forestry related networking
6. Ensure all of SEEDs policies and procedures are evident throughout the work of the department, including those for safeguarding, whistleblowing and anticorruption, and undertake continual training to ensure these are promoted at all times
7. Complete other ad-hoc tasks as required by the Head of Programmes or Director of Operations and Heads of Departments to further the aims and work of the organisation.

Person Specification

• Masters or BSc in environmental studies, conservation, development, or related field
• Minimum 3 years botanical / forestry experience, with knowledge of nursery and forestry techniques
• The ability and desire to work closely with teams from different economic and cultural backgrounds and across multiple language barriers
• Experience of or capability to work with translators
• Be able to work both independently and as part of a multicultural and multilingual team
• Demonstrate an understanding of and commitment to SEED’s ethos and approach and be a good ambassador for SEED at all times
• Have passion, curiosity and motivation for the job and the ability to enthuse others
• Demonstrate proven ability to recognise and appropriately deal with challenging situations and possess excellent problem-solving skills
• Demonstrate an awareness of and comfort with increased social and professional responsibility, working at all times with cultural sensitivity and respect
• A demonstrable ability to give clear guidance and support to other members of the team in respect of the philosophy and procedures of SEED in order to protect both their safety and the reputation of the NGO
• Be punctual and be able to work to tight deadlines in an organised manner and to a high standard
• Have a flexible and patient attitude
• Experience of living and working in at least one developing country, preferably in Africa.