Conservation Capacity Development Officer

Would you like to help restore St Helena’s extraordinary cloud forest? Are you a great team builder? If so, this could be the opportunity for you.

We have an exciting opportunity for someone to play a critical supporting role with our lead partner (St Helena Government) to deliver an incredibly exciting collaborative, partnership-based project to scale up cloud forest restoration efforts on the island of St Helena, a UK Overseas Territory in the south Atlantic.

The cloud forest is safeguarded in the ‘Peaks National Park’, but only 16 hectares of old growth cloud forest fragments remain on the highest peaks and steepest slopes. The remaining cloud forest is arguably the single most important site anywhere on British soil for species: at least 250 unique species are found entirely or nearly entirely in these fragments. This represents 1/6th of all unique British wildlife. Restoring the forest is critical for climate change as most of the island’s water comes from catchments in the central Peaks area of the island, and the majority (60%) of this is derived from mist capture, which is most effectively achieved by the native cloud forest.

Through a highly collaborative process, a project-partnership has been formed with funding secured from the UK Government’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) to deliver the island's collective vision for the future; aiming to restore St Helena's iconic cloud forest for wildlife, water security and for people.

The Conservation Capacity Development Officer (St Helena) is a key team facilitation role. You will:

• be responsible for supporting St Helena Government’s Nature Conservation Division (NCD) with the cloud forest restoration in one of the National Conservation Areas.
• help catalyse the implementation of the management plan for the Peaks National Park working with St Helena’s highly skilled and inspirational habitat restoration teams alongside key roles within Government and the Partnership.
• work with the relevant teams to help set direction to achieve the project’s goals.
• work with relevant teams to coordinate pathogen response activities on St Helena and produce a conservation action plan to manage conservation work to take account of impacts and risk of plant pathogens threatening key cloud forest species.
• be an excellent collaborator who is motivated by bringing teams together and fostering talented people.

The Conservation Capacity Development Officer (St Helena) will play a key mentoring role to others, notably NCD’s Terrestrial Conservation Officer and the Cloud Forest Restoration Ecologist role, to ensure long-term capacity is built in respect to habitat and project management. You will support the collaborative development of work plans key skilled teams and provide opportunities for staff development as the next phase of the project takes off.

We are looking for an experienced conservation practitioner and team facilitator, with the following skills and experience to bring to this exciting role:

• Extensive experience in conservation work and a proven understanding of habitat management.
• Relevant qualification and/or equivalent work experience in a conservation related subject
• Good understanding of conservation challenges on islands
• Relationship and partnership building to enable work with a wide range of stakeholders nationally and internationally.
• Demonstrable leadership ability and people management experience
• Diplomacy and negotiation skills to solve problems and avoid and overcome conflict.
• Cultural sensitivity to ensure mutually respectful working relations with a wide range of stakeholders, nationally and internationally.
• Knowledge of the theory and practice of project management.
• Risk management.
• Proven time management and organisational skills.
• An ability to persuade and influence a wide range of people.
• Able to work under pressure and adapt to changing circumstances.
• The ability to produce verbal and written communications in a passionate and credible manner.
• Driving licence

This post is funded through the St Helena Cloud Forest Project and is a critical management role that will build local capacity to deliver this hugely ambitious project. You will also support the habitat management needs of other valuable terrestrial National Conservation Areas.

This fixed-term full time role is being offered until 31 March 2025, and starting as soon as possible on the island of St Helena, based within RSPB’s Cloud Forest Office. We encourage internal applicants on a secondment basis for the role. Should you have any queries about this role, please contact Kirsten.Ellis@RSPB.org.uk.

Please see accompanying document on our website for more details (job pack).

The RSPB reserves the right to extend or make this role permanent without further advertising dependent on business needs at the end of the contract term.

We are looking to conduct interviews for this position as soon as possible, so please don't delay in applying. 
As part of this application process you will be asked to complete an application form including evidence on how you meet the skills, knowledge, and experience listed above.
The RSPB is an equal opportunities employer. This role is covered by the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974.