Open Position: Project Associate
No. of position: 1
Location: Bengaluru (With frequent travel to Maharashtra and Goa field sites)
Program: Marine Programme
Reports to: Project Manager, Sharks and Rays.
Desired Work Experience: Minimum 2-year experience
Position Type: Fixed-term employment.
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.
About the Project: 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.
About the Position: We encourage applications from candidates with a minimum of 2 years' experience on projects involving fisheries and market-based surveys and stakeholder engagement. The project associate will work with the existing shark and ray team and is expected to co-lead field activities, carry out research studies, and maintain project-stakeholder relations. Additionally, the project associate will also support project management activities and other programmatic deliverables.
Role and Responsibility:
- Design and execute interview surveys and fishing community based engagements with team members.
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Conduct focus group discussions and stakeholder workshop activities at project sites.
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Design and execute on ground interventions with the help of team members.
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Conduct necessary desk-based reviews, compile project reports, deliver on scientific and/or popular articles and guide outreach deliverables.
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Ensure the timely completion of activities and project deliverables in collaboration with program members
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Collaborate with members of the Marine Programme and WCS-India on administrative and outward facing activities.
Required Qualification and Skills:
Essential Requirement:
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Master’s degree in Marine Biology, Social Sciences, Conservation and wildlife management, Fisheries management and/or allied Wildlife Conservation.
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Minimum of 2 years' experience on projects involving fisheries-based surveys and stakeholder engagement.
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Demonstrated experience in managing field activities, project reporting, and research database.
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Language proficiency: English, Marathi and Hindi.
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Intermediate knowledge of analyzing qualitative data.
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Fluency with Microsoft Office.
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Good understanding of fishing practices and associated information.
Desired Qualification and Skills:
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Demonstrated experience in science/popular writing.
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Prior experience in producing creatives – e.g., infographics, posters, and other outreach material.
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Fluency in analytical and exploratory software such as R, QGIS, or ArcGIS.
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Desired Language Proficiency: Marathi or Malvani.
If interested, kindly submit an application with us at careers@wcsindia.org with the subject line “Application: Project Associate – 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.