Climate Metrics Specialist

The Nature Conservancy•Arlington, TX

5d•Remote

About The Position

The Climate Metrics Specialist is an impact scientist who provides technical and scientific support and leadership for climate metrics and indicators in service of TNC’s 2030 goals and beyond. Specifically, they provide technical support and advice and ensure climate metric accounting is consistent, reliable, and accurate. They work closely with the Global Climate team, the Chief Conservation Office, and TNC field teams to refine and report outcome and intermediate result indicators and metrics in service of programmatic monitoring, evaluation, and learning plans and internal tracking systems. The Climate Metrics Specialist is an impact scientist who supports the quality and accuracy of conservation impact indicators and metrics for both the Global Climate team and key priority climate projects and strategies across TNC. The Specialist will inform the development of climate mitigation metrics, particularly through carbon accounting for nature-based solutions and clean energy programs, as well as climate adaptation and resilience metrics. They will help ensure the effectiveness and overall accountability of priority strategies and programs in service of TNC’s 2030 climate goals. They will support the Chief Conservation Office’s (CCO) Conservation Data and Conservation Strategy teams in ensuring that appropriate metrics robustly and accurately capture the impact of climate projects and programs. As relevant, they may also conduct analysis and research in support of improving baselines, measuring and monitoring impact and/or co-benefits, and adaptive management. The Specialist may develop metrics and MEL capabilities in line with TNC’s Conservation Impact System and other organizational needs. The Specialist will report to the Global Climate Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) Lead and will work closely with climate strategy teams, the CCO’s Conservation Data Team, and relevant field teams. They will serve as the Global Climate team’s primary expert on climate monitoring and metrics, leading and advising the Global Climate team and other TNC teams on the development of direct and proxy metrics and measures in service of the 2030 Climate goals.

Requirements

Master's degree in science-related field and 2 years of experience or equivalent combination of education and experience.
Experience collecting, manipulating, analyzing, and interpreting data.
Experience synthesizing, interpreting, and communicating scientific information, including translating scientific concepts to general audiences.
Experience preparing technical reports, or scientific publications, and creating engaging visualizations of findings.
Experience leading and collaborating with cross-functional teams.
Experience working and communicating with a wide range of people.
Experience working with conservation or climate programs.
Experience in developing metrics, monitoring, evaluation, outcome reporting, or related expertise.

Nice To Haves

Previous or current experience working with The Nature Conservancy.
Multi-language skills and multi-cultural or cross-cultural experience.
Team player with ability to either lead or support depending on situational need.
Specific experience working in climate, such as carbon accounting, the intersection of clean energy and nature conservation, quantifying ecosystem services or co-benefits of climate action, measures of ecosystem resilience, measuring indirect or unintended outcomes of climate or land use policy, articulating the people benefits of climate outcomes and ecosystem resilience, or similar concepts.
Extensive experience in the field of MEL, particularly on the topics of metrics selection and quality.
Knowledge of common software applications for analysis or MEL.
Track record of producing reproducible analysis.
Experience coding in R, Python, or other computing languages for large-scale geospatial analysis and/or data manipulation would be an advantage.
Statistical skills, potentially including sampling design and impact evaluation, and ability to apply a variety of analytical tools as determined by the research question.
Record of peer reviewed publications in scientific journals.
Experience developing or conducting trainings or building capacity.
Negotiation skills and ability to influence without authority.
Ability to take initiative and drive results based on program goals in a decentralized work environment.
Ability to advance multiple projects in parallel and prioritize diverse responsibilities to meet deadlines.
Strong organizational and time management skills.
Ability to make independent decisions.
Attention to detail.

Responsibilities

Serve as primary expert and point of contact for the Global Climate team on all aspects of impact metrics and tracking systems, and support priority field projects and strategies with metrics selection and use.
Work with the MEL Lead to develop and deploy climate mitigation or adaptation metrics, proxy metrics, or methods in service of 2030 climate goal progress reporting.
Develop adaptive management and MEL plans and support the design and implementation of adaptive management and monitoring protocols with a focus on data, indicators, and metrics.
Design and conduct quantitative analyses as relevant to inform baselines and measure impact, drawing on conservation knowledge and methodological variety including carbon accounting, additionality principles, impact evaluations, surveys, field sampling, and more.
Support climate adaptation and mitigation metric refinement and help teams develop and utilize high-quality program monitoring approaches and impact metrics.
Help develop MEL systems and protocols to inform 2040 and beyond goals, outcomes, adaptive management, and reporting approaches to demonstrate ongoing conservation impact.
Deliver tools and training to staff and partners, as appropriate.
Manage spatial, tabular, and other data, develop new datasets and tools as necessary, and ensure access to collaborators.
May include fieldwork to collect data.
May conduct applied, reproducible statistical and geospatial analyses on climate actions and outcomes, as well as the impact of the Global Climate team and other priority projects, providing rigorous interpretations and compelling visualizations of findings.
Contribute to others’ research and analysis as appropriate to support metrics and MEL priorities described above.
May supervise staff, interns, or volunteers on a project basis.
May manage a grant, contract, or request for proposal.
Must be able to work in variable weather conditions, at remote locations, in hazardous terrain and under physically demanding circumstances.