Interdisciplinary Scientist

A LITTLE ABOUT US

Since 1951, The Nature Conservancy has been doing work you can believe in protecting the lands and waters that all life depends on. As a science-based organization, we create innovative, on-the-ground solutions to our world’s toughest challenges so that we can create a world in which people and nature thrive. 

We’re rooted in our Mission and guided by our Values, which includes a Commitment to Diversity and Respect for People, Communities, and Cultures. We know we’ll only achieve our Mission by hiring and engaging a diverse workforce that reflects the communities in which we work. Whether it’s career development, work/life balance, or a rewarding mission, there’s lots of reasons to love life #insideTNC. Our goal is to cultivate an inclusive work environment so that all of our colleagues around the globe feel a sense of belonging, and that their unique contributions to our mission are valued.

YOUR POSITION WITH TNC

The Cities Program in New York State builds strategies and initiatives to create a healthy, resilient and sustainable urban environment in cities across New York, with a significant focus on New York City. We work with government and non-government partners on key programmatic areas to tackle climate change, improve water quality in and around cities, promote nature and environmental solutions to enhance the quality of life, and reduce urban heat island and air pollution.

The Interdisciplinary Scientist provides technical and scientific support as a subject matter professional on interdisciplinary issues related to conservation in cities. They work as part of the NY division Cities Team throughout NYS, with an immediate focus on New York City and potential for future work to touch down in other cities across NYS.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

The Interdisciplinary Scientist employs qualitative and quantitative methods to help characterize various aspects of nature in cities, with an emphasis on human dimensions (e.g., how people experience, relate to, or benefit from nature, and what socioeconomic disparities exist in nature within cities). The Interdisciplinary Scientist leads and collaborates on design of scientific data collection, analysis, and writing to support our understanding cities as social-ecological systems to inform on-the-ground conservation efforts and policy interventions that can benefit both people and nature. This work will involve developing and conducting scientific surveys, recording and managing scientific data, writing reports, communicating results to multiple audiences, and developing proposals to advance research and application of it. The Interdisciplinary Scientist may also coordinate and contribute to efforts with others within The Nature Conservancy, and external project partners. They provide technical and scientific support and leadership related to the social-ecological systems of cities, in an applied context. Some examples of near-term initiatives that the Scientist may work on include: efforts to protect, maintain, and grow NYC’s urban forest; green roof analyses and legislation; and climate adaptation. This role will also have opportunities to work with other natural and social scientists at The Nature Conservancy in NY and contribute to relevant projects as appropriate.

RESPONSIBILITIES AND SCOPE

• Leads and collaborates on applied research, including development of questions and proposals, data collection, analysis, and writing, with an emphasis on social and human dimensions of nature in cities.
• Leads and collaborate on analysis of available data related to people and environmental attributes of cities in New York.
• Interprets scientific research and communicates relevance to policy and other applications for conservation in cities in New York.
• Communicates about complex relevant topics, including new research, in various forms to diverse audiences (e.g., written reports and spoken presentations for both technical and lay audiences).
• Interfaces with colleagues, both internal and external partners in person and via a variety of digital formats including Email, Microsoft Teams, and Zoom.
• Prepares data and metadata for sharing with partners.
• May provide fieldwork and logistical support for applied research and project development.
• May lead staff, interns or volunteers on a project basis.            
• May manage a grant, contract or request for proposal.            
• May work outdoors in variable weather conditions.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

• Master's Degree in relevant field and 2 years of experience or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Experience with applied research in social-ecological systems.          
• Experience leading and working with cross functional, interdisciplinary teams.                    
• Experience synthesizing, interpreting and communicating scientific information across disciplines.     
• Experience preparing reports of findings. 
• Record of peer reviewed publications in scientific journals.
• Experience working and communicating with a wide range of people.
•  

DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Multi-language skills and multi-cultural or cross-cultural experience appreciated.
• Ability to synthesize and communicate concepts and ideas across natural and social science disciplines.
• Experience conducting research and analysis related to human dimensions of natural resources.
• Experience with and/or training in common GIS and other data analysis/visualization tools (may include proprietary tools such as ArcGIS and SPSS, and free and open-source tools such as QGIS and R).
• Experience with code-based data analysis and visualization workflow.
• Experience in working with environmental equity and justice issues.
• Familiarity with landscape of social and environmental data of NYC.
• Familiarity with environmental and conservation issues in NYC.
• Willingness to learn new tools and skills to advance applied research.
• Experience preparing clear and compelling products to communicate findings to a variety of audiences (e.g., technical reports, non-technical summaries, PowerPoint presentations, data visualizations).
• Experience with community-based action research and/or community science.
• Experience collaborating with a wide variety of sectors and organizations.
• Ability to start and complete projects in a timely fashion.
• Experience juggling multiple projects, tasks and deadlines in a fast-paced environment.
• Attention to detail.
• Comfortable and fluent in navigating city landscapes.

SALARY INFORMATION

The target salary for a work location in NYC is $86,000 - $91,000. The actual salary will vary, depending upon work location.