GIS Conservation job in Virginia

GIS Lab Manager/Spatial Ecology and Conservation Specialist

Agency:  Smithsonian Institution

Salary Range:  63,722/year & benefits

Grade:  IS-11

Position Information:  Full-time, one-year with the potential to renew, Trust Fund

JOB SUMMARY:

This position is located at the Conservation GIS Lab of the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI) in Front Royal, Virginia. We are seeking a skilled, dynamic analyst that enjoys working with people on different conservation projects and likes teaching.  The employee provides technical expertise, support, and training in GIS and remote sensing analysis to Lab scientists, postdocs, and students working on species conservation projects.  The employee also manages the lab’s formal and informal training program in GIS and RS, and day-to-day operations (e.g. basic hardware and software administration). 

The position requires some national and international travel (5-20% of the time) to assist with conservation projects, offer training and capacity building workshops, and visit field sites for data collection. This may include travel to remote areas involving hiking and carrying of light-medium weight loads and other moderate physical activities. Fieldwork frequently requires longer than 8-hour days.

KEY REQUIREMENTS:

Pass Pre-employment Background Investigation

May need to complete a Probationary Period

Maintain a Bank Account for Direct Deposit/Electronic Transfer

DUTIES:

1.                 Provides technical assistance in GIS and remote sensing to lab members working on conservation issues.  This may include but is not limited to:

o                  Acquiring, managing, and maintaining geospatial data;

o                  Using satellite and time series data to document land cover changes and habitat decline for endangered species;

o                  Integrating field survey and expedition data on species distribution with broad scale satellite mapping efforts to better understand the spatial ecology and conservation geography of habitat-species relationships;

o                  Conservation mapping and priority setting exercises for critically endangered species;

o                  Mapping animal movement trajectories.

2.                 Manages the lab’s formal and informal training program in GIS and RS

o                  Coordinates logistics, planning, and computer lab preparation for formal training courses;

o                  Translates lessons-learned from existing conservation GIS/RS projects into hands-on training materials for formal classroom training;

o                  Provides instruction and assists participants in training courses.

3.                 Supervises and manages day-to-day Lab operation in Front Royal, including supervision of 2-4 undergraduate interns.

4.                 Conducts capacity needs assessment at SCBI field sites.

QUALIFICTIONS:

1.                 Advanced knowledge of GIS and remote sensing, preferably also some experience with R, Python, and open source software.

2.                 Strong background in integrating environmental data with species information from surveys, tracking, etc.

3.                 Knowledge of geospatial analysis for conservation/ecology, such as species distribution modeling, species-habitat models, habitat fragmentation, change detection, etc.

4.                 Experience in working with students and/or capacity building.

5.                 International conservation experience is not required but is advantageous in competing for this position.

HOW TO APPLY:

Please send letter of interest explaining your qualifications, a CV, and three references to SCBIGIS@gmail.com by 19 June 2015.