With the growing consensus among scientists and businesses that protection, restoration and improved management of ecosystems can provide more than 30% of the climate mitigation needed to limit warming to 1.5⁰ C, TNC has ambitious goals to expand natural climate solutions (NCS), particularly related to forests. The NCS Forester is a member of TNC’s NatureVest team focused on financing forest conservation, sustainable working forests and forest carbon projects that contribute to TNC’s protection and climate change goals through NCS. The NCS Forester will work with TNC colleagues, governments, non-governmental organizations, businesses, and private landowners to implement climate-smart forestry strategies.
Due to Covid-19 office closures, this position will initially be based remotely. Post-Covid closures, this position can be based out of any TNC office in the U.S. with a preference for Arlington, Virginia, or Chicago, Illinois.
ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS
The NCS Forester will serve as a technical resource and thought leader for NatureVest’s work related to forest management, forest operations and associated conservation outcomes. The position will provide quantitative and qualitative analysis and recommendations of forest management strategies considering both conservation and economic outcomes. The NCS Forester will work with NatureVest staff, local TNC staff, partners, and contractors to evaluate the relative value of forest conservation opportunities, forest carbon projects, permanent conservation strategies, and contributions to high priority conservation targets. They will evaluate properties for forest certification and review and/or prepare forest management plans. The NCS Forester will supervise a Forest Spatial Analyst, who will support spatial analysis of forest conservation opportunities. The position will initially focus on a new NatureVest collaboration with a private landowner with an initial portfolio of over 500,000 acres of forestland in the United States. The NCS Forester will contribute to forest management strategy development, lead cross-disciplinary work with NatureVest, regional TNC, and external teams, and develop innovative strategies through forest management plans, forest carbon projects, conservation easement sales, and other tools and methods to enhance forest carbon sequestration, forest restoration, and long-term forest protection. They will work closely with the private landowner’s team to evaluate the conservation strategy and attributes of potential new acquisitions, with the goal of significantly growing the conservation impact of the portfolio and setting an example for large-scale climate smart forestry investment in the U.S. and globally. On an ongoing basis, the NCS Forester will track and report on the impact of forestry impact investments. The NCS Forester will also support grant proposals, communications and marketing for specific forest conservation projects and general NatureVest Forestry program support.
RESPONSIBILITIES AND SCOPE
- Leads and supports sustainable forestry projects across the United States in support of conservation and carbon sequestration objectives.
- Supports review of investments and asset management strategies to ensure compliance with conservation criteria and maximize conservation outcomes.
- Recommends strategies to forest managers to maximize conservation outcomes by working with cross-disciplinary teams to identify and implement conservation strategies.
- Leads and manages geospatial projects, including the development of a database for tracking the conservation outcomes and creation of spatial tools for prioritizing investments with high conservation potential.
- Contributes to strategy development for climate smart forestry and leads in the creation, implementation, and development of reports designed to influence the investment community.
- Reviews and reports on the conservation potential of forestry investments through analysis of spatial data, forest inventory and forest carbon analysis, in collaboration with regional and global conservation experts.
- Engages in effective partner outreach and engagement, managing relationships with for-profit partner, investors, contractors, TNC State Chapters, state and federal agencies, technical service providers and non-governmental organizations.
- Supervises Forest Spatial Analyst with responsibility for performance management, training and career development. Establishes clear direction and sets stretch objectives.
- Develops and presents reports, presentations and assessments to internal TNC and external stakeholders to support scaling Natural Climate Solutions and Climate Smart Forestry.
- Collaborates effectively with NatureVest’s external partners to accomplish program goals.
- Works within a budget to complete projects, negotiates and contracts with vendors and assists with budget development.
- May involve travel within the U.S. of 25% or more once safe to do so.