Climate Risk and Adaptation Specialist

Climate Risk and Adaptation Specialist
Intermediate
Vancouver, BC or Ottawa, ON
Full-Time

The Opportunity
Climate change is fast becoming part of everything we do at ESSA. If you are a quantitative-minded individual interested in applying and growing your advanced knowledge of climate analytics, environmental, or earth sciences to increase the speed, scale, and thoughtfulness of adaptation then this posting is for you!

As a climate risk and adaptation specialist, you will work on projects at the nexus of climate change adaptation and fisheries/aquatic resource management, ecosystem conservation/restoration, cumulative effects assessment, adaptive management, nature-based solutions, and decision support system development.

To be considered, your training and skills will include analysis and interpretation of statistical models, analysis and modelling of climate change impacts, vulnerabilities, and risks (including programming/coding), and geospatial analysis blended with strong written and verbal science communication. We are particularly interested in someone with experience in at least two of the following: (1) indicator and modelling-based analysis of interactions between climate hazards and valued components (e.g., fish and/or wildlife and their habitats), (2) climate change vulnerability and risk assessment to inform adaptation planning, (3) nature-based approaches to climate adaptation, and (4) outreach and training delivery on 1-3. Experience developing (coding/programming) related decision support tools, including spatial user interfaces for these tools is a significant asset (e.g., R/Shiny, and preferably others).

This is a full-time opportunity based in either Vancouver or Ottawa. You will have access to our staff benefits, which offer competitive compensation, medical benefits, flexible working arrangements (hybrid workplace and opportunities for future home office placement), support for professional development, interoffice travel support to visit colleagues outside of Vancouver and Ottawa, and three weeks of paid vacation plus paid time off between Christmas and New Year’s Day.

About Us
ESSA Technologies Ltd. (ESSA) is an employee-owned Canadian environmental consulting company with offices in British Columbia and Ontario. We envision a world where creativity, a focus on learning, and systems thinking are the foundation of innovative solutions to environmental challenges. Our corporate mission is to “bring together people, science and analytical tools to sustain healthy ecosystems and human communities”. We achieve this mission by helping clients deal with tough, emerging problems, applying a neutral, thorough evaluation of evidence, encouraging diverse participatory processes, and collaboratively guiding our clients to make informed decisions that are designed to learn over time. Learn more about us at www.essa.com.

At ESSA, we are passionate about what we do and enjoy working with professionals who share our values and mission. ESSA’s staff are purpose-driven problem solvers, big-picture critical thinkers, evidence-driven and motivated by an aspiration to become trusted advisors to our clients and make a difference in the world. In pursuing our corporate mission, we are inclusive of a diversity of perspectives and ways of knowing that may vary depending on experience, race, gender identity, age, disability status, sexual orientation, and religion amongst others.

You will be surrounded by a rich intellectual inheritance, and colleagues committed to collaboration and team-building that are:

·         Working on wide-ranging interdisciplinary problems focused on complex interactions in socio-ecological systems, taking a holistic rather than reductionist perspective in organizing and understanding knowledge and data,

·         Delivering rigorous and clear advice to our clients and internally to our own staff, and

·         Resolving scientific uncertainty by combining analytical methods and technical facilitation, often with an Adaptive Management mindset.

Your Responsibilities
This position will involve playing supporting roles in both project work and business development. We outline some example responsibilities below:

Project support:

o    Working on projects spanning a range of human contexts and ecosystems.

o    Collaborating with clients and project contributors to understand, develop, and apply models, tools, and approaches to support climate resilient outcomes.

o    Processing and analyzing statistically sound climate change projections across a wide range of climate indicators using large climate data sets, with the ability to downscale climate data and generate spatially explicit results.

o    Integrating climate change indicators into other models of biophysical and/or socio-ecological systems (e.g., bioclimatic envelopes, stream temperature/hydroclimatic models, etc.).

o    Conducting climate change vulnerability and risk assessments, with an emphasis on aspects of the natural environment (e.g., biodiversity, landscapes, waterways, natural assets, natural resources, and ecosystem services).

o    Undertaking assessments of adaptation options for public and private-sector audiences that emphasize nature-based approaches.

o    Developing, implementing, and presenting climate-informed geospatial analysis, across broad spatial scales from landscape to local scale (e.g., for predictions of habitat suitability, assessment of cumulative effects, or risk assessments, among many others).

o    Providing technical leadership and direction in project design, including scoping and defining methods.

o    Reporting on project progress and results during workshops and client meetings using strong written and verbal science communication.

o    Mentoring other ESSA staff working on complex technical projects, enabling other individuals to do their best and grow.

o    Occasionally travelling to attend and participate in client meetings, workshops, and site visits in Canada and abroad (no environmental fieldwork).

Business development support:

o    Contributing to business development efforts and proposal writing (e.g., developing the approach for a proposed project).

o    Contributing to the development of training materials.

o    Developing business opportunities through networking (e.g., by attending conferences) as you advance.

Requirements
·         You possess or are about to complete a Master’s or Ph.D. degree in environmental sciences, climate sciences, earth science, ecology, biology, resource management.

·         You have real-world experience (i.e., non-course-based) applying quantitative methods and frameworks in natural resource and environmental stewardship.

·         We envision that these responsibilities can be handled by and will be rewarding to an intermediate climate risk and adaptation specialist (i.e., 3-5 years of prior relevant work experience following a Master’s degree and/or a PhD). In light of our teaming needs (successful candidate will be reporting to other project leads and assigned intermediate level tasks), we are unlikely to consider candidates with more than 12 years’ experience following obtaining their Master’s or Ph.D.

Your differentiating skills may include the following:

·         Prior experience (at least 3-5 years) in a private consulting environment or research institute.

·         Registration or eligibility for registration with the College of Applied Biologists or other equivalent professional designation within six months.

·         Work experience on climate change risk assessment, adaptation planning, vulnerability reduction, and capacity strengthening in developing nations.

·         Software development / coding knowledge beyond R/Shiny.

·         Proficiency in Spanish or French.

Applying
We offer a welcoming, inclusive workplace and commit to working with staff to help them thrive and prosper. Our total rewards program for employees provides competitive compensation, medical benefits, flexible working arrangements, and vacation, plus support for ongoing professional development.

Please email a cover letter and résumé to careers@essa.com by February 23, 2024 with “Climate Risk and Adaptation Specialist” in the subject line. We will review applications and contact selected candidates by February 27, 2023. Interviews will be conducted between March 4-7, 2024. The target start is March 25, 2024.

All applicants must be eligible to legally work in British Columbia and/or Ontario at the time of applying.

Salary range: $75,000-$110,000.