Job Title: Digital Development Assistant (GIS and Data)
Closing Date: 16th January 2023
Interview Date: Week commencing 23rd January 2023
Salary Range: Up to £27560
Term: Permanent
Based at: Applicants preference. Fully remote or hybrid working is possible with the attendance of monthly workshops at Tyland Barn or other KWT site (primarily Blean Woods) as required.
Globally and nationally wildlife is in steep decline. We appear to be reaching critical tipping points around the loss of biodiversity as well as around climate change, both being interlinked. Human society cannot prosper without wildlife and healthy ecosystems.???
Kent’s wildlife needs to be restored to much higher levels. We can no longer allow common things to become rare. We can only do this by restoring large-scale natural habitat areas and processes. Doing this will contribute to solving global problems. But we won’t be able to do this unless we publicly aspire to a higher level of impact and show that we can deliver this.
The Job: As Kent Wildlife Trust Group; which includes Kent Wildlife Trust, the attached Consultancy Services and Wilder Carbon; strives to deliver a Wilder Kent, we know that we need to continually improve our own systems and take advantage of the constant advances in technology. As such, KWTG are undergoing a full digital transformation to streamline manual processes and enable all staff to easily access key information to aid in day to day decision making, which makes it a very exciting time to join the trust!
This role will sit in the Development Team, but a key element of the Digital Transformation will be within the Conservation Directorate. Much of this role’s time will be spent with the conservation team, streamlining the provision, analysis and visualisation of GIS (and some non-spatial) data to the directorate, which ranges from reserve management, to wilding, to nature-based solutions. This role will be consequently be involved in some of the most exciting conservation projects in the country, including the flagship Wilder Blean project, where you would have responsibility for the day to day running of the first EarthRanger implementation in the UK to track and monitor the Bison and other grazers across the reserve. Other projects include: Kent’s Nature Recovery Network, species introduction and recovery (e.g. Pine Marten, Chough and Turtle Dove) and Wilder Carbon – the UK’s first high integrity carbon credit provider.
The Digital Development Assistant will sit within the Digital Development Team, and will work closely with the Digital Development Manager and Nature Based Solutions (NBS) Manager to help deliver marketable NBS products, which will vary from a modelling report to a web application. Both the Trust and the Consultancy have an emerging NBS team, and the two work together to offer market leading, innovative products and approaches to a wide variety of stakeholders and clients.
KWTG also play a key role in the Kent Nature Partnership, and this role will support the Digital Development Manager in providing mapping and other digital solutions, such as a Biodiversity Net Gain Sites Register, to facilitate Kent’s Local Nature Recovery Strategy and Biodiversity Net Gain implementation.
We are looking for a creative, independent and ambitious individual with a passion for data. As a trust, particularly in a digital sense, we are always looking to innovate and improve, and we are looking for someone who is comfortable to throw themselves into a project and research best practises on the fly, always learning, expanding their skillset and sharing that information with colleagues and managers. This is, therefore, a flexible role and we encourage you to apply and have a conversation with us even if you may not tick all aspects of the job description, to see how we could make the most of your digital skills and enthusiasm.
You: This post would suit a recent graduate/early career professional. The successful applicant will have a good understanding & demonstrable experience of using R or Python to support current nature conservation policy, wilding and nature based solutions. Knowledge and experience in GIS (QGIS preferably) would be a benefit, although the willingness to go on a training course and the enthusiasm to self-teach would be acceptable. Good interpersonal and communication skills and a demonstrable understanding of UK natural history, ecology and nature conservation are desirable.
Kent Wildlife Trust is the leading wildlife charity for Kent and Medway, supported by its members and staffed by committed professionals. We are all working to protect wildlife and to find better ways to run an efficient and effective organisation.
Contact details:
For an application pack and to apply, visit our website at www.kentwildlifetrust.org.uk.
For an informal chat about this role please contact the Digital Development Manager (Robbie.still@kentwildlife.org.uk)
The Kent Wildlife Trust Group is Wild About Inclusion. To us, this means inspiring, empowering and engaging people from all backgrounds, cultures, identities and abilities, to change the natural world for the better.
It also means cultivating inclusive workspaces that are free from discrimination, where differences are celebrated, everyone can be themselves and flourish, just like nature!
