Back Intern - AI-Driven Climate-Smart Beekeeping for Women (AID-CSB), Tashkent, Uzbekistan

  Intern - AI-Driven Climate-Smart Beekeeping for Women (AID-CSB) Intern Tashkent, Tashkent Region, Uzbekistan Contract 30 March 2021 (or until the position is filled)

Description

About the AID-CSB project

The project goal is to support biodiversity and enable improved hive management among women by leveraging traditional knowledge and technical assistance to become more productive beekeepers, using a gender-sensitive, participatory and inclusive app development process.

Based off of a participatory design and user-research process with women beekeepers in Uzbekistan, AID-CSB will localize a

beekeeping companion app and make it available to beekeepers. Enhanced by Artificial Intelligence and the crowdsourcing of data-collection, this app will incorporate traditional and local knowledge of beekeepers to train women, support their decision-making for hive management, and provide a low-barrier means of livelihood improvement. The women beekeepers will use the app to monitor and manage their hives by entering data on hive inspections and receiving helpful notifications on when to inspect the hive, weather, pests, diseases, and more.

In Uzbekistan, using a gender-sensitive, participatory and inclusive feedback process, we will train and develop the app with 20 women beekeepers and enhance their beekeeping with the long-term aim to become entrepreneurs for their own enterprises while improving local biodiversity and crop yields.

Intern Responsibilities

The intern will provide support over a period of 4 months full time or 6 months part time (March-August) to help with liaising between project managers and field assistants, digitization of local beekeeping practices and knowledge, and background research and data collection. We expect the intern's responsibilities to require ~8h/week during the school year and ~30h/week during the summer holiday period.

• Support to field assistant: During the project monitoring period (April-September; the intern will be active through August) while the beekeepers will be using the app to monitor and manage their hives, the field assistant will be visiting the beekeepers and providing in-person support. During this time, the intern will liaise between the project managers and the field assistant to communicate project information; ensure quality, timely visits to beekeepers; and conduct field visits to the field assistant and beekeepers as needed (estimated 5-8 visits).
• Digitization for app development: Before the app is developed, beekeepers will keep paper records during hive inspections. The intern will help enter this data into excel or other data collection software. As other information is collected on local beekeeping practices and knowledge, the intern will also help translate this into quantitative data.
• Data collection/background research: The intern may aid in research and collection of data as needed on topics such as blooming times of flora; locally present pests, diseases and treatments; and other subject areas as requested.
• Presentations & Reporting: For workshops with beekeepers, the intern may provide support by preparing and reviewing workshop materials, and/or in-person facilitation. The intern may be requested to allocate 20h of their time to support the final project report.

Requirements

We are looking for a current or recently graduated student with a background in entomology (preference for those with background in honeybee health) or agronomy. Given the project focus on women beekeepers, a woman intern is preferred.

• BSc and background in entomology (preference for those with background in honeybee health) or agronomy
• Experience with data management and analysis
• Fluent in Uzbek and English
• Access to a computer and a smartphone, familiar with using a smartphone
• Experience with beekeeping will be beneficial
• Interest in app development will be beneficial

Benefits

The intern will be provided with a monthly all-inclusive stipend of USD 300 (for full-time) payable in local currency.

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