Introduction 

RSPB Scotland recently secured funding from a variety of partners to explore how it might deliver a ‘gold standard’ ethical investment model for biodiversity enhancement in Scotland.  

We need a Project Manager who can take us on the first part of the journey so that, in time, we may be able to offer biodiversity credits to what will be a new market, potentially comparable to the emerging climate / carbon credits market.

Whether RSPB ultimately gets involved or not, we want to shape the market so that nature is the principal beneficiary.

What's the role about?

The nature crisis is increasingly recognised as being comparable to the climate crisis.  Scotland’s recently published Revised Draft National Planning Framework 4 explicitly recognises that there are dual crises, and will introduce a requirement for development to contribute to the enhancement of biodiversity.  Along with other legislative and fiscal initiatives to protect and boost nature, this is likely to result in significant private investment into nature conservation and biodiversity enhancement. 

This job will seek to take advantage of the growing acknowledgment of the nature crisis by leading the development of a model for private finance investment in enhancing biodiversity, primarily on behalf of the RSPB, but which can be transferable to other ENGOs.

The RSPB owns and / or manages 77,000 hectares of land in Scotland, so there are plenty of opportunities to invest in helping nature to recover.  Prioritising investment is likely to be part of the challenge and, looking to the future, there will be a need to positively influence the market for biodiversity credits, so that nature continues to benefit over the long term, rather than speculators who might trade those credits.

The job will largely involve working with internal colleagues to determine how best to go about offering opportunities for private investment in biodiversity enhancement, and would suit someone who is comfortable working to deliver practical initiatives in rapidly changing and sometimes uncertain contexts and circumstances.

Essential skills, knowledge and experience: 

• Good communication skills, ability to quickly develop and sustain positive working relationships with internal and external colleagues and partners to achieve beneficial outcomes.
• Ability to adapt to changing circumstances and capacity to lead without line management.
• Confident and persuasive when working in uncertain policy environments and with a range of people.
• Ability to quickly assimilate information, understand and take opportunities, and to take the initiative.
• Ability to see the big picture, and to cut through but at the same time understand and appreciate the detail.
• Creative thinker, able to find innovative solutions to problems.
• Good written, verbal, and presentation skills, including report writing.
• Understanding of the practical and policy challenges inherent in delivering biodiversity enhancements.
• Time management and organisational skills.
• Competent IT user (e.g. Word, Outlook, Excel, etc).

Desirable skills, knowledge and experience:

• Experience of working to a standard project management approach, e.g. RSPB Project Management Framework, Prince II.
• Appreciation of what constitutes ethical investment.
• Appreciation of private finance investment models and mechanisms.
• Experience of working with and giving direction to contractors.
• Experience of organising and facilitating meetings and discussions, including with community organisations and social enterprises.
• Experience of delivering projects.

This role is available as a Fixed-Term contract for 12-14 months, or as a secondment for 12-14 months.  The job can be done full-time or part-time, with flexible hours being available for the right candidate.  The job can be done from anywhere in the UK, but there is likely to be a need to be in Edinburgh on an ad hoc but, potentially, reasonably recurrent basis.

The RSPB reserves the right to extend or make this role permanent without further advertising dependent on business needs at the end of the contract term.

We are looking to conduct interviews for this position from Monday 13th February 2023. For further information please contact peter.hearn@rspb.org.uk 

As part of this application you will be asked to provide a copy of your CV and complete a short form. If you wish to provide a cover letter with your application, please include this at the end of your CV document upload.

The RSPB is an equal opportunities employer. This role is covered by the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974.

Before applying for this role, we recommend reading through the candidate guidance notes attached to the top of this advert.