Organization:
Caucasus Nature Fund
(CNF)
Position
Title: Conservation and
Social Officer (CSO)
Job Schedule:
Full-time (with a
6-month probation period)
Duty
Station: CNF Tbilisi
Office
Start
Date: As soon as
possible
Application
Deadline: 22nd of
September, 2023 (COB UTC/GMT
+4h)
Application
Procedure: The application package should
be sent to recru...@caucasus-naturefund.org
Background
The Caucasus Nature
Fund (CNF) is a conservation trust fund founded in
2007 with the support and encouragement of the
German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation
and Development (BMZ) through the German
Development Bank KfW, Conservation International
(CI) and WWF.
By providing long-term
funding and management assistance to help meet the
core needs for Protected Areas (PAs) in Armenia,
Azerbaijan and Georgia, CNF supports the
conservation of the unique flora, fauna and
ecosystems of the Caucasus for future generations,
while at the same time improving the lives of
local people today.
CNF provides matching
grants for the operating costs of the protected
areas, including staff training to build new
protected area-level capacities, to introduce new
technologies to ensure better patrolling and
protection, salary supplements, and equipment
including vehicles and uniforms. CNF also supports
biodiversity monitoring projects by paying for
equipment and studies so the parks have reliable
data about the species in the region;
encourages cooperation among governments, local
communities and park authorities to promote
sustainable economic development and nature
protection; supports sustainable tourism plans
which provide alternative and more sustainable
economic opportunities and has worked with
international consultants and local NGOs to create
a standard for management plans that encourages
long-term planning and efficient use of
resources.
Duties and
Tasks
The Conservation and
Social Officer (‘CSO’) will assist the Regional
Conservation Director (‘RCD’) in carrying out the
Georgian conservation portfolio in the CNF Georgia
office, namely, to assist in the planning,
implementation and monitoring of
conservation-related programs, including
Environmental and Social Management System-related
activities.
The tasks of CSO will
include but will not be limited
to:
-
Developing annual CNF
Georgia conservation portfolio with activities,
milestones, key results, outcomes, outputs and
respective budgets;
-
Elaborating ToR’s for
activities to be implemented in close
collaboration with other CNF staff members,
potential beneficiaries and field experts as
needed;
-
Planning and
organizing regular visits to Georgian PA’s and
surrounding communities to participate in and
monitor conservation-related
activities;
-
Tracking the progress
of implementation, of the annual CNF Georgia
conservation portfolio, including budget
spending;
-
Coordinating the
review process and delivery-acceptance of
deliverables, including narrative and financial
reports;
-
Reviewing and
commenting on the studies carried out by
CNF-contracted experts or
organizations;
-
Drafting
quarterly/annual reports for internal use or for
partner/donor organizations;
-
Actively
communicating and coordinating with partner
organizations, and governmental,
non-governmental, scientific and international
on planning as well as implementation
phases;
-
Planning and
organizing working
meetings/workshops/seminars/trainings, as
needed;
-
Contributing to the
METT Scorecard development and revision as
needed;
-
Contributing to
periodic update of the CNF Dashboard as
needed;
-
Contributing to
regular update of the CNF Database as
needed;
-
Supporting the
establishment and operationalization of ESMS in
CNF Georgia, which might
include:
-
Planning and
organizing regular visits to Georgian PA’s and
surrounding communities to collect ESMS-related
information;
-
Coordinating with
other members of the CNF team, as well as
external partners, for the collection of
ESMS-related information;
-
Participating in
drafting the analysis and reporting, external as
well as internal, on ESMS
implementation;
-
Interacting and
coordinating actively with other members of the
CNF/Programme Office team. More specifically:
for procurement and admin-related tasks,
exchanging with the Financial/Admin team; for
country-specific and PA-related tasks,
communicating with the CNF national program team
to ensure data gathering and flow of the
information; for PR and communication purposes,
interacting with the Communication/PR
team.
Qualification and
experience
We are looking for a
smart, open-minded, energetic and enthusiastic
professional who has the passion to work on a
diverse conservation portfolio of CNF, including
social aspects within the Protected Areas system
of Georgia. She/he should be a team player, a
quick-learner willing and able to travel often
while doing meticulous office work that requires
attention to detail, discipline, analytical and
critical thinking and a creative attitude. The
person should be comfortable working in a small
team while guided and supervised by senior staff
members.
Mandatory
requirements:
-
Academic background
in nature conservation, natural resources,
ecology, environmental law, public affairs,
development studies, tourism, geography or other
social sciences preferably with professional
trainings/qualification in nature
conservation;
-
At least 1 year of
practical experience in project management,
preferably related to conservation, protected
areas, natural resources management, forestry,
climate change, green economy, sustainable
tourism and/or natural
disasters;
-
Ability to travel to
different parts of Georgia independently or
accompanied;
-
Strong writing and
verbal communication skills in Georgian and
English languages;
-
Strong computer
skills and knowledge of MS Office
program.
Preferable
requirement:
-
Professional
training/qualification in project
management;
-
Experience in
fieldwork, preferably related to conservation,
protected area management or
related;
-
Experience in
reviewing scientific/technical studies and
papers;
-
Experience in
communication with local
communities;
-
Experience in
communication and coordination with governmental
structures and donor
organizations;
-
Experience in
organizing meetings, including
logistics;
-
Experience in public
speaking and participation in working meetings;
-
Skills required for
accurate and systematic management and tracking
of a large number of documents and/or
data;
-
Knowledge of PA and
the conservation sector of Georgia and/or the
Caucasus;
-
Knowledge and
experience in ESMS or
similar.
Application
package:
-
Full CV or Resume in
English, indicating relevant knowledge and
experience in English;
-
One-page cover letter
in English explaining why the position is
interesting for a candidate and how it fits with
a person’s past experience, interests and future
plans in English;
-
Contact information
of 3 referees (at least, one of them should be a
former or present
employer).
Note: Short-listed
candidates will be invited for written test and
interview.
