Background
IUCN’s Science Team, within the Science & Data Centre, represents IUCN’s expertise on conservation science with an emphasis on standards and metrics to assess the status of and risk to biodiversity, and reduce and responses to reverse this risk. It generates new and insightful analysis that advances conservation perspectives and raises IUCN’s credibility and profile, while at the same time, provides the necessary support to other teams for the consistent integration of scientifically robust baselines and analysis across the IUCN programme portfolio. The Science Team is globally decentralised with staff and consultants in San Jose (Costa Rica), Cambridge (United Kingdom), Gland (Switzerland), and Washington DC (USA).

The Species Threat Abatement and Restoration (STAR) metric was developed by IUCN and designed to support science-based target setting for species conservation (Mair et al. Nature Ecology and Evolution, 2021). STAR quantifies the reduction in global species extinction risk that could be achieved through the abatement of threats and restoration of habitat in any given area of interest. STAR thus allows contributions from any conservation actors to be considered within frameworks that specifically relate threat abatement and habitat restoration activities (Targets 1-8 in the KMGBF) to species conservation outcomes (Goal A). Estimated STAR scores provide useful information on the species and threats expected to be present within an AOI, but to inform setting and measuring progress towards targets in an AOI, species and threat presence must be confirmed within an AOI, and the AOI STAR score recalculated to give a calibrated STAR score against which progress can be delivered.
“Location for the position is flexible to be based at any one of IUCN’s numerous offices across Africa, see https://iucn.org/our-work/region/west-and-central-africa and https://iucn.org/our-work/region/eastern-and-southern-africa for details”


Job description
Major responsibilities
The Conservation Scientist will support the execution of the portfolio of projects through the Science Team. Application of data and knowledge products mobilised against IUCN standards will be a common theme, and these are expected to be harnessed as appropriate in all projects. Most if not all Science projects will be implemented jointly with the IUCN Commissions and/or with peer conservation science -related institutions and networks, both among the IUCN Membership and beyond it (e.g., the Global Environment Facility). Most if not all projects will also anticipate written outputs for publication into the peer reviewed literature, either into independent scientific journals or as IUCN publications, as well as presentations in scientific and policy-related conferences and other fora.
The Conservation Scientist will serve a substantial role in supporting end-user’s (businesses, governments, civil society institutions) efforts to calibrate STAR analyses at their specific sites through spatial analysis in R, working with Integrated Biodiversity Assessment Tool (ibat-alliance.org), coordination and organization. Likewise, the Conservation Scientist will also serve a substantial role in supporting the coordination of new work on science-based targets for species biodiversity. Finally, the Conservation Scientist will support project design and management involving tracking and reporting on the Science Team project portfolio, and liaison with the finance team for budget management aspects.
As the Conservation Scientist will be based in regional office, is anticipated that the Conservation Scientist will work with regional data and information mobilization, written outputs for publication, and data analysis for the preparation of presentations in fora and conferences. For the first year of employment, it is anticipated that 100% of time will be spent on Science Team projects; however, from the second year onwards, up to 15% of the Conservation Scientist’s time may be supported through engagement in regional projects.


Specific duties
• Undertake a substantial role in supporting end-users’ efforts to calibrate STAR to guide conservation actions in their particular areas of interest through spatial analysis (eg in R), interactions with IUCN tools and systems, interactions with end-users and other stakeholders, and coordination with experts (eg. IUCN SSC Commission Members)
• Support the implementation of Science Team projects, in particular through the development of the metrics and methods for science-based targets for biodiversity, including GIS analyses in R, coordination, meeting and event organization and preparation, publications, and liaising with the broader network of stakeholders and contributing to novel analysis.
• Support the application of the data and knowledge products mobilised against IUCN standards (including but not limited to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species and Red List of Ecosystems, the World Database of Key Biodiversity Areas, and the World Database of Protected Areas, IUCN Green List, World Heritage) as appropriate in all projects, including, contributing to novel analyses (e.g., of agriculture as a driver of extinction risk).
• Provide training and guidance to staff, partners, and communities
• Support dissemination of results, with particular attention to integrating regional data through (a) presentations in scientific and policy-related conferences and other fora and (b) publication into the peer reviewed literature, either into independent scientific journals or as IUCN publications.
• Fulfil project management responsibilities for substantive tracking and reporting on relevant aspects of the Science Team project portfolio.
• Perform other duties as may be assigned from time to time.


Please Note: The above TORs contain the main responsibilities and duties of this position. However in an ever evolving organisation such as IUCN staff members are expected to show flexibility in their approach to work and be willing to undertake other tasks that are reasonably allocated to them but which are not part of their regular TORs. Where any task becomes a regular part of staff member’s responsibilities, the TORs should be changed in consultation between the manager, the staff member and the HR Unit. Any one of the three may initiate the consultation.


Requirements
• PhD in conservation-related scientific field preferred, MA with 3 years’ experience may be considered
• Fluency in English and French essential
• Excellent writing and communications skills required.
• Excellent people skills, organization, and attention to detail required
• Excellent knowledge of the conservation-related scientific literature required
• Analytical skills including expertise and comfort performing geospatial analysis in R
• Ability to work independently required
• Ability to work effectively with multidisciplinary teams and adapt to diverse cultural contexts
• Experience collaborating with stakeholders at local, national, and international levels very useful
• Strong quantitative and qualitative research skills essential
• Familiarity with Nature Positive frameworks and global conservation targets, such as the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework very useful.
• Excellent written and oral communication abilities, including a demonstrated capacity to simplify complex scientific information for diverse audiences essential
• Willingness to undertake some travel associated with the position required
• Experience of field conservation in the Global South useful
• Passion for conservation essential


The above job description contains the main duties and responsibilities for this position. However, in an organization such as the IUCN Secretariat, staff members are expected to show flexibility in their approach to work and be willing to undertake other tasks that are reasonably allocated to them, but which are not part of their regular job description. Where any task becomes a regular part of an employee’s responsibilities, the job description will be changed in consultation with the employee and the Human Resources Management Group.