Background

The Wildlife Conservation Society is seeking to hire a marine scientist to support ecological evaluations of reefs and social evaluations of coastal communities to support WCS’s project- Miamba Yetu: Sustainable Reef Investments. This position will be based in Zanzibar, Tanzania.

WCS is receiving funding from the Global Fund for Coral Reefs (GFCR) to implement a blended finance facility to support community-based and private sector initiatives aimed at achieving protection of coral reefs in the western Indian Ocean of Kenya and Tanzania. The programme will support the incubation and development of businesses that will contribute to the conservation of coral reefs in the region and support coastal community development. This position will lead national surveys of coral reef systems to develop a coral reefs threats assessment and will assess ecological and social progress of business ventures that are funded through the program. This is primarily a field-based position and will require ~50% time in the field conducting surveys.

Responsibilities:

The position will be responsible for:

• Generating and analyzing data on reef threats nationally and develop a report on conservation status and conservation needs for donors and investors,
• Developing frameworks to assess ecological and social impacts of businesses being considered for funding,
• Assessing ecological and social impacts of business projects underway and report results for donor.

The successful candidate will lead and undertake the national ecological and social surveys for the Miamba Yetu programme, and will coordinate activities with the WCS marine team operating across Tanzania and Kenya. The position reports to the Tanzania Marine Director and will require close and frequent collaboration and communication with the regional Marine Director and the Miamba Yetu Programme Director. The successful candidate will be responsible for data collection and analysis, as well as report writing on both field missions and results, and will contribute to reports to the donor.

Required Qualifications

• SCUBA (open ocean) certified
• Demonstrated experience in data entry, data checking, and graphing in Excel
• 4years field experience conducting underwater marine field surveys in coral reefs +Masters Degree.
• 6years field experience conducting underwater marine field surveys in coral reefs + Bachelors degree
• Demonstrated ability to undertake social survey with coastal communities
• Demonstrated writing skills as a lead author on technical reports or scientific publication
• Ability to work independently and at fast-pace with strict deadlines
• Availability to spend 50% of time in the field
• Fluent in English and Kiswahili
• Legally eligible to work in Tanzania

Desired Qualifications

• Skills in programming language preferred (e.g. R or Python)
• GIS experience (e.g. QGIS or ArcGIS)
• Coral and/or fish identification to genus level
• Experience with KoboToolbox

Project Location

The Miamba Yetu Marine Scientist will be based in the Stone Town, Zanzibar.

No relocation allowance will be provided.

Terms

Position will be hired on a contract from May 2023 through December 2023, with renewal possible contingent on performance and funding.

How to apply

• Qualified candidates should send 1) Cover letters, 2) CV, Applications should be sent via email to WCS Tanzania the County Director at wcshrtanzania@wcs.org

• Position is Open for Tanzanian Nationals Only

Applications should be submitted by May 21^st, 2023.