Applied Forest and Climate Scientist

The Nature Conservancy • Minnesota, GA

380d • $65,280 - $89,675 • Hybrid

About The Position

As the Applied Forest Climate Scientist (AFCS), you will provide technical and scientific leadership in forest ecology, monitoring and evaluation of conservation strategies, and forest-based climate mitigation and adaptation strategies and policy. You will be part of the Science team and an integrated member of the Resilient Forest team that serves as a thought partner to provide science to direct biodiversity and climate-driven strategies, fill research and information gaps, and quantify biodiversity and GHG emission outcomes. You will also supervise staff, including performance management, training, and onboarding. Task-oriented projects may include leading a forest monitoring and evaluation initiative, evaluation of carbon benefits of improved forest management practices, developing carbon accounting protocols for conservation projects, evaluating effectiveness of adaptation approaches, or staying current on forest science to advise TNC's external affairs team. In this role, you will contribute to the Science Team and Resilient Forest Team's communication goals by communicating scientific findings, literature, and knowledge syntheses to a diverse audience (including the general public, partners, media, and the scientific community). Communication outlets include written reports, fact sheets, scientific publications, popular media stories, media interviews, and both formal and informal oral presentations. You will also provide technical and scientific leadership for forest resilience and climate mitigation and adaptation strategies and policy. As the AFCS, you will work with internal and external colleagues to collect and manage data for forest resilience and climate mitigation and adaptation projects. You will convene/facilitate interdisciplinary collaborations, conduct scientific surveys and research, record data, write reports and support donor engagement, and develop proposals to support forest science information gaps or needs. Depending on the project, field work might be necessary; therefore, you should expect to work in variable weather conditions, at remote locations, in hazardous terrain or under physically demanding circumstances.

Requirements

• Master's degree in a science-related field and 2 years of experience or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Experience managing people, projects, workloads, and finances with adherence to deadlines.
• Experience leading and working with cross-functional teams.
• Experience synthesizing, interpreting, and communicating scientific information.
• Experience preparing reports of findings.
• Record of peer-reviewed publications in scientific journals.
• Experience working and communicating with a wide range of people.
• Experience working in forested ecosystems or with forest ecosystem carbon modeling.
• Experience with common environmental science software applications (e.g., ArcGIS, R, Microsoft Office).

Responsibilities

• Provide technical and scientific leadership in forest ecology and climate strategies.
• Supervise staff including performance management, training, and onboarding.
• Lead forest monitoring and evaluation initiatives.
• Evaluate carbon benefits of improved forest management practices.
• Develop carbon accounting protocols for conservation projects.
• Communicate scientific findings to diverse audiences through various outlets.
• Collect and manage data for forest resilience and climate projects.
• Facilitate interdisciplinary collaborations and conduct scientific surveys.

Benefits

• Health care benefits
• Flexible spending accounts
• 401(k) plan with an 8% employer match
• Parental leave
• Accrued paid time off
• Life insurance
• Disability coverage
• Employee assistance program
• Other life and work well-being benefits

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level
• Industry: Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations
• Education Level: Master's degree