Coordina una estación de campo en el Caribe (puntos extra si buceas)

Little Cayman Research Centre Field Station Manager
LOCATION: Little Cayman, Cayman Islands

Closing date: 1 November 2023

Interviews scheduled: week commencing 13 November 2023

Position start date: January 2024

The Central Caribbean Marine Institute (CCMI) a USA, UK, and Cayman not-for-profit company. Our key strategic goal is to become the Caribbean’s premiere marine research and education institution, unlocking the clues to coral reef resilience and bringing relevant science to society. CCMI’s programs are mostly located on our Little Cayman campus, the Little Cayman Research Centre (LCRC). Our aim is to conduct and facilitate ocean science, strengthen ocean literacy and ocean stewardship in the Cayman Islands, and train and mentor a local workforce who value healthy oceans.

CCMI maintains well-funded internal research and education programs that require effective on-site leadership. We seek to hire a mature and experienced facilities and operations manager to support research and education at LCRC.

JOB DESCRIPTION

The Field Station Manager will manage all logistical and administrative aspects of daily operations of LCRC to ensure all research and education programs are supported at the highest operational and safety standards.

ROLES & RESPONSIBILITIES include, but are not limited to:

Manage schedules for use and maintenance of facilities, vehicles, boats, housing, and station operational equipment.
Maintain all systems according to schedule and ensure preventative maintenance and repair as needed, arranging for professional maintenance or repair of systems when required.
Work with CCMI staff to ensure compliance with company standard operating procedures.
Manage and maintain CCMI staff work permits.
Manage operational staff work schedule and vacation requests (cook, cleaners, maintenance staff).
Provide oversight of all logistical activities associated with facilities operation and maintenance to ensure safe practices and minimize risk in support of research and education departments.
Organize and execute storm and hurricane preparations to ensure the safety of personnel and facilities.
Keep detailed records of all activities and provide operational information and statistics to our development and financial teams when needed, including staff attendance, facility use, resource use, asset condition, etc.
Provide estimates and invoices for all in-house charges to resident staff and visiting groups/scientists, such as boat usage, bench fees, accommodation, etc.
Maintain station inventory (e.g., food, office supplies, kitchen and dorm supplies) and order supplies as needed.
Receive and ship supplies and equipment, including all customs, duty, and fees.
Manage field station contractors.
Assist visiting groups and researchers with obtaining government permits, including work permits for temporary staff.
Assure compliance with Cayman Islands labor and pension laws.
Liaise with Cayman Islands Government departments, including the Departments of Immigration, Customs, Environment and Education, ensuring compliance with local laws, guidelines, and restrictions.
Assist education and research groups with boat and diving support.

Required Qualifications and Abilities:
Candidate should have excellent organizational skills; experience in boat handling and driving (Captain’s license preferred), and conducting diving operations; SCUBA certification (minimum Rescue Diver, Divemaster preferred); be proficient in managing tracking and financial spreadsheets in Excel; and experience with Microsoft Office environment. The position requires an individual who can work under strenuous conditions and who is well-adapted to living in a small community.

Work week: Five (5) days per week depending on station activity and in-house programs. Candidate must be willing to work non-traditional hours.

Location: Based on Little Cayman Island

Compensation: Minimum US $60,000, adjusted based on experience. Generous benefits package including vacation time, health insurance, and pension.

For consideration, please forward Resume, Letter of Interest, and a list of three (3) references (emails and phone numbers), along with salary requirements to: careers@reefresearch.org

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Puesto de gestor.a del campamento Kokolopori para la investigación de bonobos

Oferta compartida por Cristina

Laura Martínez Íñigo del Biogrupo tiene información privilegiada

JOB DESCRIPTION:
The Kokolopori Bonobo Research Project (KBRP) seeks a field camp manager for a one-year appointment to join our international team running a small research site at Kokolopori, Democratic Republic of Congo. Candidates will be responsible for supporting the maintenance, logistics, and management of the bonobo research camp. In addition to working closely with the local population, candidates will also work with a second assistant. Together, the two will be primarily responsible for organizing the data collection on the bonobos and may help supervise additional research activities. Typical duties include communication with local villages and administrators, coordinating community projects, organizing work schedules, payments coordination and basic financial accounting, supply organization, and maintenance of camp infrastructure. Exact distribution of duties will be decided according to the background of the candidates. Candidates will represent KBRP in interactions with regional administrators and village leaders, therefore French language skills are an essential requirement.
Kokolopori’s field site is in an extremely remote location, accessible by motorbike several hours from a small airfield, without running water or electricity. Field camp members are housed in tents at the field site. Meals provided will consist primarily of locally sourced foods (beans, manioc, rice). The work can be physically and mentally taxing. Candidates will need to provide proof of health insurance covering expenses in case of a health emergency evacuation by charter plane. We ask that you take this into careful consideration before applying.
Additional information about the Kokolopori area and field site is available at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kokolopori 

QUALIFICATIONS/EXPERIENCE:
Essential requirements are listed in order of importance: (1) field experience and language skills in French and English, (2) above average physical fitness, (3) above average resistance to social/psychological stress. Must feel comfortable being far away from family and friends and be emotionally mature, energetic, and patient. It is necessary that applicants have good social skills, especially in small groups, and be able to maintain a positive and humorous attitude towards challenging and tiring work, and (4) practical and technical skills to supervise and maintain the camp’s technical infrastructure such as solar electricity, generator, satellite phone, and sw-radio. In addition, candidates are expected to organize and supervise simple construction work (e.g. makeshift buildings in camp) and oversee habituation of neighboring bonobo communities. Candidates must have a sense of leadership, independent motivation to take on responsibility, fortitude, resilience, and strong diplomacy skills. They must be capable of achieving tasks through improvisation, using the limited resources available. Furthermore, candidates should have the capacity to live and work with a small team including local staff, as well as a tolerance for customs and practices of traditional societies. KBRP strives to maintain a respectful, equitable, and harassment free environment. Sexual and/or gender-based harassment of any type will not be tolerated and will be grounds for immediate dismissal at your own expense.
SALARY/FUNDING:
500 US Dollar/month (higher pay will be discussed for candidates with more than 2 years of relevant experience)
ADDITIONAL SUPPORT:
· Food (mix of primarily local food and some western food items)
· Lodging (in tents) at the field site
· Airfare for one roundtrip international flight to DRC and one roundtrip domestic return flight from Kinshasa to the field site, plus accommodation in Kinshasa
· Expenses for Visa (reimbursed after successful completion of 12-month appointment)TERM OF APPOINTMENT:
Twelve months beginning in August 2023 Please submit applications by June 25. Applications should include an updated CV, statement of interest highlighting qualifications/experience, and three references (or contact information). Please email to Dr. Martin Surbeck (msurbeck@fas.harvard.edu) and KBRP administrator Danielle da Cruz (danielledacruz@fas.harvard.edu)

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Trabaja como coordinador (research manager) en una estación de investigación en Trinidad

Oferta compartida por Nuria

Research managers (2) are needed to help lead a multi-disciplinary, multi-investigator, experimental study of the evolution of species interactions in Trinidad, West Indies. The research is led by Professors David Reznick (University of California, Riverside), Joseph Travis (Florida State University), Tim Coulson (University of Oxford), and Ron Bassar (Auburn University). We seek to integrate multiple biological fields for the study of these interactions in experimental populations of guppies and killifish in Trinidad. Major duties include coordinating logistics and research activities at the field station in Trinidad, leading a monthly censuses of guppy populations in montane streams, and supervising junior interns.

There are potential start dates in April 2023. We will pay a monthly stipend, cover travel, living expenses, and provide housing. Managers are expected to complete a 3-month initial training as a junior intern prior to becoming a manager.

Qualifications
Research will take place in semi-remote areas of Trinidad, sometimes under inclement weather conditions. The monthly censuses include long hours in the field and laboratory. 

Successful applicants will have excellent organizational and interpersonal skills, be able to drive manual transmission and 4wd vehicles, and be able to carry heavy backpacks over slippery and steep terrain. Applicants must be in good physical condition and be able to meet the demands of field research under these conditions.
Applicants with first-aid/first responder training, skills in automobile maintenance, and construction skills are highly desirable. Please address these skills when applying.

Please see our website www.theguppyproject.weebly.com for more information on the project and access to reprints. Be sure to check out our video menu, which includes a "guppy censuses" as submenu VII. It details the main tasks associated with the internship.

Applicants should send a cover letter, CV, and the names and e-mail addresses of three or more professional references to David Reznick (gupy@ucr.edu). At least two of the references should be academics.

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Pon tus habilidades organizativas (¡y tu suajili!) en uso y conviértete en coordinador(a) de trabajo de campo internacional

Oferta compartida por Nuria

The newly founded Department for the Ecology of Animal Societies led by Prof. Meg Crofoot is a joint institution of the University of Konstanz with the nearby Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior and has an open position for an International Fieldwork Coordinator 

The department embraces an explicitly collaborative approach to scientific exploration. Its multidisciplinary team works together to develop new ways of measuring, analyzing and interpreting the behaviour of socially complex animal species in ecologically and evolutionarily relevant field settings. To understand the causes and consequences of social variation, the department takes comparative approach, analyzing social interactions—from dyad to group to population—within and between species. Our working language is English and consequently applicants must be fluent in this language. 

We are searching for an International fieldwork Coordinator who will work with members of the department to facilitate our field-based research. The successful candidate will be the central contact person for all international field research activities and animal experiments and will support department scientists in research planning, permissions, logistics and reporting. In addition to the coordination and organization of the departmental activities at the different international field sites, she/he will be responsible for implementing safety trainings and protocols and ensuring compliance with national and international regulatory requirements. 

We seek a candidate who is committed to supporting and potentiating our worldclass research programme, has strong organizational skills, and has a demonstrated capacity for effective cross-cultural communication. Prior experience with international, field-based research in ecology, animal behaviour or related fields is desirable, as are Spanish, French and/or Swahili language skills.

Your Responsibilities

• Coordination of the departmental activities at international field sites
• Support in planning and organizing animal experiments and field trips, including required licenses and ethical approvals
• Ensuring compliance with international and national regulatory requirements
• Supporting the drafting of international collaboration agreements
• First point of contact for international partners
• Coordination of safety trainings, implementation of safety protocols and fieldwork emergency support response
• Support in export control including logistics
• Documentation and archiving of research records and experimental data
• Coordinate workshops (e.g., ethics, safety)
• Manage the research equipment inventory and deployment
• Assist in the development of collaborative agreements and serve as the primary liaison between the various international field sites and the University of Konstanz and the Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior

Your Competencies

• Graduate degree (Master or PhD level) in biology, ecology, anthropology, or a related field
• Excellent interpersonal and intercultural skills, and a desire to work as part of a service oriented team
• Ability to work with the Director as part of a leadership team
• Strong organizational and communication skills
• Experience in international field work and/or environment
• Knowledge of animal ethics beneficial
• Excellent English and German skills in speaking and writing

We Offer

• A vibrant, interdisciplinary research community
• A global hotspot for the integrated study of animal behaviour across a wide range of species and across scales of organization
• Good development opportunities, extensive training and an attractive remuneration package
• Classification according to the tariff regulations of TV- L (depending on the personal prerequisites up to pay group E 13 TV-L)

For further information please see: https://stellen.uni-konstanz.de/jobposting/2a8fbac4905cd08d6794620397a745b799ede7420.

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Gestiona un una estación de campo de investigación en primatología para el Loango Chimpanzee Project en Gabón.

Laura Martínez Íñigo, moderadora del biogrupo, ha formado parte del proyecto desde 2018 y se ha ofrecido amablemente a responder cualquier duda. Contacta con ella por aquí. 

Research Coordinator/Camp manager for an ongoing long-term project - the Loango Chimpanzee Project (LCP) - in Loango NP, Gabon. The person will be in charge of camp management, logistics, communication and coordination of data collection for different research projects. This includes organizing working schedules and payments for local field assistants, organizing food and other supplies, maintenance of camp infrastructure, communication with the National Park authorities (ANPN) and the National Research Institute (CENAREST). The camp manager is also in charge of processing and maintaining the sample collection ranging from urine, feces, plants, tissue and bones on a daily basis. The living conditions at this project are basic. Our camp has only basic amenities (no running water, only minimal solar power for electricity). Loango National Park is located on the coast of Gabon and consists of several ecosystems including coastal forest and swamps. Information about the field site and research activities at Loango are available at: https://www.eva.mpg.de/primat/research-groups/chimpanzees/field-sites/loango-chimpanzee-project.html

Requirements/qualifications:Essential requirements are: (1) field experience, (2) language skills (English and French), (3) above average resistance to social/psychological stress, (4) practical and technical skills required to maintain the camps technical infrastructure (e.g. solar electricity, satphone, cybertracker software), (5) the ability to achieve tasks by improvisation, using limited resources that are available, (6) the capacity to live and work with an international team of students, volunteers and local staff. Candidates should have social skills, a sense of leadership, a strong motivation to take responsibility and tolerance to local costumes, (7) Qualification in zoology will be preferred, (8) Experience driving a quad bike is an asset.You will be required to have basic health insurance that also covers emergency repatriation and liability. You also must have vaccinations for measles, yellow fever, hepatitis A and B, polio, and meningitis and a negative TB test.

Salary/funding:1.000 Euro/monthSupport provided for position
- per diem for travel
- lap top
- food and accommodation in single room at the field site
- domestic transportation
- international return flight (reimbursement ONLY AFTER SUCCESSFUL COMPLETION OF A 12 MONTHS TERM OF APPOINTMENT)

Term of Appointment:minimum One Year - starting September 2021

Application deadline:July 1st, 2021

Contact Information:Dr. Tobias Deschner
Max Planck Institute for evolutionary Anthropology, Former Department of Primatology
https://www.eva.mpg.de/primat/research-groups/chimpanzees/field-sites/loango-chimpanzee-project/
Email: deschner@eva.mpg.de

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Dos ofertas para trabajar por la conservación marina en las islas Cayman

The Central Caribbean Marine Institute seeks to fill two positions- Marine Education Manager and Field Station Manager, both primarily based in Little Cayman. Detailed position descriptions and application instructions available at https://reefresearch.org/who-we-are/our-people/positions-available/

Marine Education Manager

We seek to hire a mature, experienced marine educator to manage the CCMI sponsored and visiting education programs. Through science education, outreach and communications, the Marine Education Manager will inspire a more sustainable marine environment. CCMI’s programs aim to strengthen ocean literacy and ocean stewardship in the Cayman Islands; promote minority representation in science; and train and mentor a local workforce who value healthy oceans.

Field Station Manager

We seek to hire a mature and experienced facilities and operations manager to maintain the physical facilities, manage field station operational personnel and field station operational budgets, and provide support for diverse research and educational programs. CCMI maintains well-funded internal research and education programs that require effective on-site leadership. Through strong organizational and operational leadership, the Field Station Manager will ensure safety and excellence while providing field and operational support for leading marine scientists and universities.



Beth Chafin

Science Communications & Development Manager

Central Caribbean Marine Institute (CCMI)

Cayman Islands

Reefresearch.org

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Hazte cargo de una estación de campo en Gabón estudiando primates

Research manager for a scientific research base in Gabon

The Mandrillus Project (www.projetmandrillus.com), created in 2012, is a
long-term scientific project to study the ecology and sociality of a
Gabonese forest primate, the mandrill (*Mandrillus sphinx*). The study
population consists of +200 individuals living in a large social group in
the Lekedi private park, in southern Gabon, near the village of Bakoumba.
The study population is monitored daily.

*The Mandrillus Project is recruiting a research manager to supervise this
research station,* which employs 6-10 persons (volunteers and field
assistants) and regularly hosts students and researchers for short or long
stays.

*The tasks / activities related to the manager position are:*

-behavioral data collection in the field and daily follow-up of the
mandrills

-laboratory work for the management of biological samples collected in the
field

-management of the scientific data sent regularly to researchers

-management of scientific protocols developed by researchers and students.

-administration (planning, payrolls and administration with the Gabonese
authorities, budget management) and human resource management of a team of
Gabonese and European field assistants

-welcoming and facilitating stays of students and researchers

-management of the car park

-management of scientific/telecom equipment

-writing of monthly reports on project events

-management of the relationships with local communities and employees of
the Lekedi Park

*Required skills for the manager:*

-Previous experience in the field is *mandatory* (preferentially in
Equatorial/tropical countries)

-Previous experience in the study of animal behavior is a real plus

-Experience(s) abroad and / or in isolated conditions

-Previous experience(s) in management / logistics is a plus

-Excellent communication skills

-Be *physically* and *mentally* resistant (the field is very rough, harder
than expected!)

-Be open to cultural differences

-Abilities to live in isolated areas

*-Excellent level of French (mandatory)*

-Excellent physical conditions (mandatory)

*Desirable assets:*

-Bachelor degree

-Skills in car mechanics and maintenance

-Scientific rigor

We are looking for a very organized, motivated and serious person. The
recruited person must be ready to live in isolated conditions and in an
Equatorial environment, in an intercultural context. Although weekly days
off are scheduled, this position often requires *a daily investment*. The
hired person must be ready to manage their time optimally for the project.

Because of the isolated conditions, couples are welcome.

The manager will be housed on site, in the private park, in good material
conditions (shared house equipped with air conditioning, water and
electricity). The Lekedi Park is located 7kms away from a small Gabonese
village, Bakoumba, and an hour away from a small town, Moanda.

*Contract length:*

1 renewable year (3 months probationary period)

*Salary and benefit:*

- Manager: local stipend roughly corresponding to a French salary of an
engineer assistant.

- Housing included.

- An international round-trip (at the beginning and at the end) for the
manager reimbursed at the end of the contract if the duties have been
respected.

*Starting date:*

*As soon as possible. Auditions will be done íau fil de lóeauó.*

*Application file:*

Please send your CV (with names and addresses of three references) and a
detailed and personalized letter of motivation (standard letters are not
encouraged) by email only to: projetmandrillus@gmail.com

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Varias ofertas de postdoc, director de campo, y voluntariado en Sudáfrica

Postdoc Project either on  Reproductive Competition and Sociality or alternatively on Environmental harshness and social stress

(NOTE: We also advertise 2 paid positions as field managers for 1.5 to 4 years, and unpaid volunteer positions for 2-12 months. See other advertisements or ask via email carsten.schradin@iphc.cnrs.fr)

We are looking for a highly motivated postdoc to join the striped mouse project www.stripedmouse.com and our group at the University of the Witwatersrand (Johannesburg). The postdoc is paid via a grant of the South African NRF for two years from Prof. Neville Pillay at the University of the Witwatersrand. The postdoc is expected to spend most of the time at the Succulent Karoo Research Station, conducting field work, analysing and publishing data.

We have two possible projects for a postdoc. Both projects are of similar interest to us. When applying, please state for which of the two projects you apply.


Project 1: Reproductive Competition (Seasonal Unpredictability and Social Flexibility)

For this project, a long-term dataset on social organisation of striped mice will be available for analyses (from 2003 to present) and further data collection will extend to 2021. Sociality (% of solitary versus group-living striped mice) will be studied in relation to population density and the intensity of reproductive competition, which is (i) very high during the spring breeding season when all females breed, (ii) absent during most summer dry seasons, (iii) low during summers with unexpected rains when few females breed (6 out of 17 summers in the current data set).

Questions and predictions: We expect that reduced reproductive competition during summer breeding will lead to more social instability in spring compared to summer, i.e. groups to be more stable in summer. We will also study which factors differ between females that breed during the summer vs. females that don’t. Finally, the impact of rare summer breeding on population dynamics will be studied.

Time planning: Preferred start is July 2020 and the position must be started in 2020. The postdoc is expected to be in the field for most of the time but can plan two slots of 3 months each to spend at the University of the Witwatersrand.



Project 2: Environmental harshness and social stress in a biodiversity hotspot: corticosterone might not be the only nor the best measure

Animals have to cope with harsh environments and with stress but these phenomena are not synonymous. Stress is the activation of the sympathetic nervous system (SNS) and the hypothalamic-pituitary (HPA) axis, leading to the secretion of catecholamines and glucocorticoids, providing extra energy to overcome the stressor inducing stress. Environmental conditions are termed harsh when they are long-lasting and life threatening, such as seasonal food shortage. Thus, while harshness demands energy saving, stress demands increased energy expenditure, predicting that the stress response will change as environmental harshness changes. In our study model, the African striped mouse Rhabdomys pumilio, we will measure several indicators of stress under varying conditions of harshness, some for the first time in an eco-physiological framework. We will evaluate three different aspects to differentiate between effects of harshness (dry season) and social stress (reproductive competition during the moist season) on survival, and fitness. These include: 1) neuropeptide y as an indicator of sympathetic activity and thus short-term stress; 2) corticosterone as an indicator of mid-term investment in increased energy expenditure; 3) Measures of resting metabolic rate and how these are related to corticosterone levels. Our study will be the first to assess how the stress response adapts to environmental harshness, predicting that in the harsh dry season, the HPA axis will be downregulated, while the response of the SNS will not change seasonally, allowing for an immediate response to life threatening events such as predation. Thus, we predict an adaptive desynchronization of the SNS and the HPA axis, a phenomenon so far only described as pathology in humans. This project will contribute fundamentally to our understanding of how to distinguish harshness from stress and how animals can cope with these two phenomena adaptively via different mechanisms.

Time planning: Preferred start is July 2020 and the position must be started in 2020. The postdoc is expected to be in the field for most of the time but can plan to spend 1-2 months in Strasbourg (France) for laboratory analyses and 4 months at at the University of the Witwatersrand.



Key requirements: Strong statistical skills. Strong CV with 3 publications from the PhD and at least 1 publication per year from postdoc studies, some of them in high ranking journals (impact factor >3). Willingness to spend considerable time in the field in South Africa. Ability to analyse data and to write manuscripts while being field based.



What you will learn: Strong field skills and understanding of theory underlying social evolution / eco-physiology of stress.



How to apply: In a single PDF, send a letter of motivation, your academic CV, and contact details of a minimum of 2 (better more) referees to Carsten Schradin, carsten.schradin@iphc.cnrs.fr and Neville Pillay, neville.pillay@wits.ac.za.

Application deadline: Skype interviews will be held beginning of March, so best send your application latest the 17th February, giving us time to contact your referees for a letter of reference. If necessary, a second call will be published in March 2020.




More information:

www.stripedmouse.com

http://www.iphc.cnrs.fr/-Carsten-Schradin-.html

https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Neville_Pillay.

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