Land Use Scientist

The Land Use Scientist's primary role is to provide spatial planning and land use decision support within a landscape of overlapping ecological, social, and economic priorities. The Land Use scientist provides professional scientific decision support to pertinent stakeholders to enhance ecological resilience and achieve and maintain biodiversity targets towards the maintenance of ecological infrastructure, avoidance of ecosystem fragmentation and loss and strengthening climate change resilience. The Land Use Scientist provides biodiversity insights for land use and development planning, environmental assessment and authorization, natural resource management, and various multi-sectoral planning initiatives. Additionally, the role entails implementing innovative strategies to cultivate human and knowledge capital, aligning with CapeNature's strategic objectives and the Western Cape Biodiversity Spatial Plan.

**RESPONSIBILITIES**:
**KRA 1**:Manage data, knowledge, and information for the production of quality data, information and intelligence to inform and facilitate strategic adaptive management.**
- Maintain landscape datasets for all priority projects.
- Conduct and/or facilitate ground truthing, monitoring and biodiversity assessment of critical biodiversity areas, threatened ecosystems and other priority biodiversity areas, inclusive of protected and conserved areas.
- Maintain and update the Land Use Advice database, including spatial recording of development footprints.
- Monitor and track priority tasks relating to land use advice cases and guide landscape management in its conservation management response.

**KRA 2: Provide ecological decision support for effective landscape conservation and ensure sound scientific analysis of data to guide management planning and assessment**.
- Contribute to the development of biodiversity informants such as the Western Cape Biodiversity Spatial Plan, the Western Cape State of Biodiversity, and the Western Cape Protected Areas Expansion Strategy.
- Participate in protected areas expansion review committee meetings and contribute decision support for protected area expansion initiatives.

**KRA 3: Facilitate and lead integrated landscape and protected area planning and review.**
- Contribute to the development and review of protected area management plans.
- Provide decision support to ensure environmentally responsible development is conducted on protected areas in respect of biodiversity impacts and legislation.

**KRA 4**:Build landscape intelligence knowledge and capacity and engage stakeholders and partners to support conservation management and achieve ecosystem resilience through coordination and networking.**
- Maintain active landscape partnerships with _inter alia_ Municipalities, Biosphere reserves, relevant Western Cape Government Departments, academic institutes, specialists, NGOs, etc. inclusive of developing Memoranda of Understanding or Agreement as required.
- Develop and/or contribute to the development of biodiversity legislative tools such as biodiversity management plans, spatial biodiversity plans, invasive alien species management plans, standard operating procedures and guidelines.
- Contribute to the review of policies and regulations that guide land use.
- Attend, make presentations and represent CapeNature’s mandate and interests at appropriate forums and platforms relevant to land use and conservation planning and contribute to the promotion of public awareness about healthy natural ecosystems, habitats, landscapes, and ecosystem services.
- Provide and support capacity building interventions on conservation planning and land use to relevant authorities and other stakeholders.

**KRA 5**:Assume accountability for ensuring performance, governance, and risk management as it relates to the Landscape Conservation Intelligence Unit.**
- Adhere to and implement policy and procedures that govern data management.
- Identify and support the acquisition and maintenance of assets.
- Participate in and contribute to Landscape Intelligence team meetings and contribute to strategic management decision making.
- Actively engage with fellow Landscape Conservation Intelligence Units and Biodiversity Capabilities to facilitate peer learning, sharing of lessons learnt and organisational consistency.

**REQUIREMENTS**:

- A Natural Science MSc. Degree, plus 5 years relevant work experience, which meets the requirements for SACNASP registration as a Professional Scientist in the appropriate field of practice (Botanical Science, Ecological Science, Biological Science, Environmental Science).
- Exemplary botanical knowledge of Fynbos and Renosterveld ecosystems and species.
- Experience writing and reviewing botanical and ecological specialist reports.
- A good understanding of freshwater and coastal ecosystems in the Western Cape.
- Detailed knowledge of applicable current environmental and land use legislation such as the National Environmental Management