Conservation Officer - Indonesia (Fixed-Term)

Job Description

Hutan Harapan consists of c. 100,000ha of ex-logging concessions located in Sumatra, Indonesia. The company, PT REKI, was established to help restore Hutan Harapan’s ecosystem and is governed by a not-for-profit foundation Yayasan Konservasi Hutan Indonesia (YAKEHI); the main shareholders are Burung Indonesia (BI), the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB), and BirdLife International (BLI).

About the role

The RSPB Global Land Department is seeking a Conservation Finance and Business Officer for the Hutan Harapan Programme. The position will be based in the UK with regular travel to Indonesia. You will work with the Head of Sustainable Financing & Conservation Enterprise, and Technical Advisor (Hutan Harapan Programme) and other RSPB staff working on Hutan Harapan to support Burung Indonesia and PT REKI to fund, plan, analyse and monitor the implementation of pilot activities relating to sustainable financing and business activities at Hutan Harapan, in line with the multi-million Euros IKI/ KfW grant “Hutan Harapan: Supporting the sustainability of the first Ecosystem Restoration Concession (ERC) in Indonesia”.

The role will involve preparing & analysing proposals related to business pilots, developing a business plan, implementation planning and monitoring, budgeting and providing mentoring and training of staff in the activities related to the business enterprises. The main conservation enterprises at Harapan currently are vanilla, patchouli and rubber production.

You will need to provide support for activities related to financing of Hutan Harapan, for e.g. carbon financing and development of other non-timber forest products. The role will also include proposal and report writing and fundraising, to secure the long-term financial sustainability of Hutan Harapan. You will also support the Board of Management and work with senior staff of the Hutan Harapan implementation team (at Burung Indonesia and PT REKI) to ensure solid management structures, policies and procedures are in place relating to financing and business enterprises.

Main Responsibilities:

• To help the RSPB Head of Sustainable Financing & Conservation Enterprise, Technical Advisor (Hutan Harapan Programme), the Board of Management and the senior staff of the Hutan Harapan implementation team (Burung Indonesia and PT REKI) deliver on the objectives of the IKI/ KfW Project relating to sustainable financing and business.
• Help ensure the taskforces for project deliverables relating to financing and businesses are on track.
• Support the team in country to deliver the project outputs and objectives in accordance with the project workplan relating to financing and business, in particular in the vanilla and patchouli enterprise.
• Work with staff, partners, external contractors and volunteers as necessary to ensure that actions are delivered to agreed standards of cost, quality and time.
• Provide technical assistance and capacity building to Hutan Harapan staff in analyzing data, creating and implementing corporate business plans.
• Produce relevant project documentation as directed by the Head of Sustainable Financing and Conservation Enterprise and the Technical Advisor (Hutan Harapan Programme).
• Support the development of appropriate communication activities, such as briefings and production of materials in association with communications colleagues to support the delivery of the activities relating to financing and business.
• Co-ordinate meetings and preparation of reports on behalf of the Head of Sustainable Financing and Conservation Enterprise and the Technical Advisor (Hutan Harapan Programme).

Essential skills, knowledge and experience:

• Master's Degree in a related discipline (Rural or Enterprise Development, Agriculture or Business Development).
• At least 5 years work experience in business management in tropical forest in Southeast Asia, preferably in Indonesia.
• Thorough knowledge of international conservation issues, especially regarding tropical forests.
• Experience in business project implementation planning, management, budgeting, financial management, monitoring and reporting.
• Experience in supporting and coaching partners in business project planning, governance, financial management, report and proposal writing as well as fundraising.
• Business acumen to inform pilot-testing of business ideas to generate sustainable income for Hutan Harapan.
• Experience in analysing and improving business plans, business staffing structures and systems.
• Ability to work in a team, manage people and motivate colleagues.
• Written and spoken communication skills (English and Bahasa Indonesia) to ensure mutual understanding of objectives and promote business projects as appropriate.
• Diplomacy and negotiation skills to negotiate contracts, solve problems and avoid and overcome conflict.
• Experience in working on developing communications materials, especially related to businesses.
• Able to work under pressure and adapt to changing circumstances, proven time management and organisational skills and attention to detail.

The position will be for two years to start as soon as possible and will be based in the UK (flexi-location) with regular travel to Indonesia. You will be part of the Sustainable Financing and Conservation Enterprise Unit in the Global Land Department, line managed by Head of the Unit. Please consult the attached document for more details on the role.

This is a Fixed-Term, Full-Time role for 2 years. The RSPB reserves the right to extend or make this role permanent without further advertising dependent on business needs

We are looking to conduct interviews for this position from 3rd July 2023. For further information please contact shashi.kumaran@rspb.org.uk

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

The RSPB is a licenced sponsor. This role is eligible for UK Visa Sponsorship.

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