Position I: Project Assistant - (1 position)
Location: Ratnagiri, Maharashtra (With travel to Bengaluru as required)
Program: Sharks and Rays, Marine Programme.
Reporting Head: Pragramme Manager Sharks and Rays
Duration: 1 Year
Desired language proficiency: Marathi and English
About us:
The Wildlife Conservation Society-India works to conserve wildlife backed by science. We work in partnership with governmental and non-governmental organizations to deal with conservation challenges such as human-wildlife interaction, countering wildlife trafficking, conservation of marine ecosystems and species, conservation of endangered species, livelihood development of local communities, and so on. Committed to wildlife conservation and the ecological worldview that recognizes the inextricable link between human welfare and the protection of wildlife and wild spaces, WCS-India endeavours to inspire positive attitudes in people towards wildlife.
WCS-India is an Equal Opportunity Employer and encourages applications from qualified individuals regardless of race, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, or disability.
The WCS-India Marine Program aims to conserve the unique diversity of India’s coastal habitats and seas by working with communities and partner organizations to overcome these challenges through a multidisciplinary approach. The program’s efforts are focused on five broad work streams: (1) strengthening the area-based management, marine protected area and/or Other Effective Area-based Conservation Measures (OECM) network of India (2) reducing marine megafauna bycatch (3) addressing the decline of sharks and rays (4) incorporating sustainability into marine-centric tourism; supporting sustainable fisheries and (5) generating awareness on India’s marine biodiversity.
Project Background:
Elasmobranchs are among the most vulnerable animals on the planet, with several species having faced population declines by up to 90% as a direct result of unplanned fishing, unintentional capture and other human-driven threats. We seek to halt this staggering decline by addressing critical gaps in baseline knowledge to implement effective on-ground action involving community outreach, capacity development and policy change towards conserving sharks and rays in Indian waters. Our approach includes understanding elasmobranch fishery socioeconomics through surveys and studying fishing efforts and behaviour via questionnaires. This information will contribute to the landing surveys and provide a bigger picture of ground realities, helping us implement on-ground strategies for engagement more effectively towards elasmobranch conservation. We are also involved in spatial conservation strategies for marine areas through research, strengthening local and regional capacity, and increasing awareness of MPAs (Marine Protected Areas) and OECMs (Other Effective area-based Conservation Measures) by working on policy and engagement with important stakeholders to achieve the same.
Roles and Responsibilities:
- Conduct field surveys to assist in fisheries and socio-economic data collection as per project requirements
- Liaise with fishers, relevant Government authorities, partners, and other stakeholders towards collaborative conservation efforts.
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Assist in designing and execution of focus group discussions, capacity development, awareness and community outreach activities.
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Assist in designing and execution of on ground pilot interventions.
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Assist in maintaining databases, preparation of reports, scientific publications, popular articles and other relevant documents as required by WCS-India.
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Collaborate with members of the Marine Program or WCS-India on research ideas, ancillary projects.
Qualification & Requirements:
Experience and Knowledge
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0-3 years of work experience in social sciences, and marine conservation, and/or with coastal communities.
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Fluency in Marathi.
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Prior experience in conducting interview surveys and working with local communities for at least 3-6 months.
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Basic understanding of fisheries research and management, marine conservation, and community led conservation efforts.
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Highly motivated individual demonstrating a willingness to learn and the ability to apply their knowledge and skills to project activities.
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Experience in academic and non-academic writing and editing or outreach activities is desirable.
Education
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Post-graduate degree, preferably a Master's degree in Wildlife Biology, Anthropology, Social Sciences, Conservation Sciences, or allied subjects
Desirable Skills
- Experience in conducting interview surveys with stakeholders.
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Basic identification of shark and ray species.
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Knowledge of curating, representing, analysing, and visualizing data using analytical software such as MS Excel, R, etc.
If interested, kindly submit an application with us at careers@wcsindia.org with the subject line “Application: Project Assistant - Sharks and Rays”, and include 1) CV/Resume, 2) Cover Letter and 3) Contact details of three references by 2nd January 2025.
Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.