Research Officer Job in Kenya

The Organization: The Ol Pejeta Conservancy (OPC) – a leading wildlife conservancy that works to conserve wildlife, provides a sanctuary for great apes and to generate income through wildlife tourism and complementary enterprises for re-investment in conservation and community development is seeking high caliber, self-motivated and dedicated individual to fill the position of Research Officer.

The Location: Located three and a half hours from Nairobi, Ol Pejeta Conservancy lies directly on the equator, just outside Nanyuki town, with Mt. Kenya rising up on the near horizon. 

Links from Nairobi to Nanyuki are excellent with the Thika Highway a proportion of the way and good roads the rest of the journey. Nanyuki town is between 30-40 minutes’ drive from the HQ offices in the Conservancy and has all major amenities and supermarkets. 

Ol Pejeta sits on the Laikipia plateau, recognized globally as having some of the richest densities of wildlife anywhere in the world. 

Role Summary: Responsible for ensuring an efficient management of OPC’s rangeland by generating information from analyzed field data collected by or in the domain of the Ecological Monitoring Unit and preparing reports while highlighting any emerging trends and/or patterns of concern for management.

Role Deliverables
  1. Ensure all databases relevant to Ecological Monitoring Unit are updated
  2. Assist in timely data analysis and production of quarterly and annual reports on status, trends, viability of fauna and flora or as per the agreed frequency and highlighting any trend or patterns that may require further investigation or management intervention
  3. Assist in developing work plans and implementing effective ecological monitoring program designs to ensure consistency in data collection and analysis using appropriate statistical software and tools
  4. Develop monitoring tools including a set of indicators that allows for the collection and reporting of rainfall and temperature data, wildlife mortalities, movements of wildlife across corridors, grass biomass monitoring including NDVI data, and vegetation monitoring in general
  5. Training of field assistants and interns in field work projects that include among others, field preparation activities, data entry templates, data cleaning and archiving of data sets
Competencies Expected:
 
Qualification
  • Minimum BSc. degree preferably in statistics and its application in natural resource management or related Science discipline
Experience
  • At least 5 years in the field of wildlife management operations in Kenyan rangelands and data analysis skills. 
Key skills and qualities 
  • Good written and spoken English.
  • Proactive team-player requiring minimum supervision and to work under pressure.
  • Good administrative skills and capable of working within the Kenyan rangelands environment.
Contacts Arising from the Job
 
Within the Organization;
  • Chief Conservation Officer
  • Deputy Managers in the Conservation Department
  • All other Conservation Department personnel
Outside the Organization;
  • Third party researchers on OPC, other local wildlife conservation agencies including KWS, LEWA, Laikipia Wildlife Forum etc
The Cultural Fit we are looking for: 

We look for ‘Role Models’, people who lead and demonstrate every day the values and personality that we believe in.

The values we believe in are:
  • Guardianship: Our people take their role as protectors of endan¬gered species, wildlife in general and the environment seriously. Whilst we aim to have a fun and humorous working environment, we keep in mind the global importance of what we do.
  • Innovation: Our people are always looking for new and better ways to do things, from the big (e.g. integrating cattle and wildlife) to the small (e.g. new requisition systems). We are prepared to fail as long as we learn from it.
  • Authenticity: Our people keep scientifically credible conservation, and measurable community benefits at the front of mind in every decision they make – especially the commercial decisions.
The personalities we look for are:
  • Responsibility: Our people are accountable for their work, taking responsibility for both successes and failures, focusing on long-term results and not just short term tasks.
  • Inspirational: Our people get the people around them (whether it be their teams, tourists or supports) excited about the value of the wildlife and of communities so that they want to further support our aims. Our people have a sense of humour and make work fun.
  • Passion: Our people get enthused and excited by conservation and community development
Interested and qualified candidates should send their applications with updated CV, cover letter and testimonials by Friday, 4th September 2015 to: 

jobs@olpejetaconservancy.org 

Address to:

The Human Capital Manager
Ol Pejeta Conservancy
P.O. Box Private Bag,
 
Nanyuki -10400


www.olpejetaconservancy.org