Post-Doctoral Research Officer (Conservation Social Science)

Applications are invited for a fixed-term, full-time Post-doctoral Research Officer position on the European Research Council funded project ‘National Parks and people: Resolving the links between poverty and rule-breaking‘, based in the School of Natural Sciences at Bangor University.
The successful candidate will be a highly motivated conservation scientist with a strong commitment to collaborative, interdisciplinary research initiatives and up-to-date expertise in social science research methods. The candidate will join a dynamic team passionate about national and international conservation and will be involved in the analysis and dissemination of social science research investigating the poaching-poverty nexus in Indonesia and east Africa. 
Applicants should have a track-record of applying social science methods in the field, preferable internationally, and have a PhD in conservation or other relevant area of the natural or social sciences (or be near completion). To match our vision for the project, we particularly welcome candidates working in the areas of conservation compliance, including developing methods for examining rule-breaking behaviour. The successful candidate will be expected to complement and enhance existing areas of expertise. 
The successful candidate will be expected to commence by February 2023 and the post is available for a period of 12 months.
This role will be located on campus at Bangor. Through our Dynamic Working framework , there will also be the option to spend some time working remotely (although remaining in the UK) to support work life balance, which will be discussed further with candidates at interview. 

Applications will also be considered to carry out this role on a part-time or job share basis.

Applications will only be accepted via our on-line recruitment website, jobs.bangor.ac.uk. However, in cases of access issues due to disability, paper application forms are available by telephoning 01248 383865.

Informal enquiries can be made by contacting Dr Freya St. John (tel: +44 (0) 1248 388295, e-mail: [email protected]  
Closing date for applications: 30 September 2022
Committed To Equal Opportunities

Overview

Bangor University was established in 1884, and currently has over 11,000 students. It comprises 9 Academic Schools grouped into 3 colleges. The College of Environmental Sciences and Engineering has over 2300 students and 350 teaching and support staff.  It comprises the Schools of Natural Sciences, Ocean Sciences and Computer Science and Electronic Engineering, and the BioComposites Centre. 

The School of Natural Sciences is one of the leading centres in the UK for teaching and research in environmental sciences, natural resources, soil science, molecular ecology, conservation and zoology, and forestry. We offer a suite of Conservation degrees at undergraduate level (including Environmental Conservation, Wildlife Conservation, Zoology with Conservation, and Forestry with Conservation) and a taught Master’s programme in Conservation and Land Management.   

The research of conservation scientists and students at Bangor University span the breadth of the discipline from the ecology of threatened species to the institutional and economic aspects of conservation. We work globally from the forests of Indonesia, Madagascar and Croatia to the mountains of Snowdonia and study a diverse range of taxa from primates to insect pollinators. We also have a strong interest in the effectiveness of conservation interventions, such as Payments for Ecosystem Services, at delivering outcomes of interest; conservation conflicts; and in understanding the links between human behaviour, well-being and conservation, including designing effective solutions to threats such as illegal hunting. 

The Project

A high-calibre interdisciplinary conservation scientist is required to undertake world-leading research as a Post-doctoral Research Officer on a European Research Council Starting Grant entitled ‘National Parks and people: Resolving the links between poverty and rule-breaking’. The successful candidate will be based at Bangor University with Drs Freya St. John and Leejiah Dorward and working closely with project partners in the UK, Indonesia and east Africa. 
Poverty is frequently perceived to be the root cause of illegal natural resource use – the hunting or extraction of wildlife not sanctioned by the state. When unsustainable, such activities threaten conservation of ecosystems and endangered species. However, understanding what motivates individuals involved is a major challenge; understandably few are willing to discuss their motives for fear of punishment. Furthermore, severe, multifaceted poverty overlaps with regions prioritised for their globally important biodiversity. This association exacerbates the problem that illegal activities pose for policy-makers responsible for managing and policing the use of nature. The dominant approach to conserving biodiversity is to establish protected areas which typically restrict resource use and manage infractions through law enforcement. However, the designation of such areas does not guarantee compliance, as demonstrated by ongoing infractions and its conspicuous profile on global policy agendas. This includes the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development which calls for urgent action to halt biodiversity loss and hunting of protected species. Solving this problematic cocktail of poverty, exclusion from resources and drivers of illegal resource use requires a new approach to understanding why people break rules and to what extent poverty underpins behaviour. Recent advances in cutting-edge techniques for asking sensitive questions are paving the way towards a more accurate understanding of the prevalence and drivers of illegal acts. Combining conservation social science with development studies, criminology and social psychology, this interdisciplinary project will examine, for the first time, the relative importance of multidimensional poverty and socio-psychological characteristics in dictating people’s involvement in illegal resource use which will be contextualised by histories of national park establishment and how the idea of illegality shifts through time.

To advance research into the links between poverty and illegal resource extraction, working in Indonesia and east Africa, this project will:
Investigate the historic and contemporary context of illegality and national parks including links to past injustices associated with access to natural resources; 

Purpose of the Job

The successful candidate will work on the European Research Council Funded project, ‘National Parks and people: Resolving the links between poverty and rule-breaking’ awarded to Dr Freya St John whose research focuses on understanding the links between human behaviour, well-being and conservation, including the prevalence and drivers of peoples’ involvement in unlawful resource extraction.

Main Duties and Responsibilities

Delivering research outcomes:

• Write high impact peer-reviewed papers and give presentations at academic conferences.

• Contribute to the dissemination of research outputs in a manner complimenting the project’s publication portfolio and impact aspirations (e.g., media coverage, stakeholder workshops, policy briefs, booklets).
• Collaborate with project partners from within and external to academia (e.g., government agencies and non-governmental organisations).

Administration of the research project:

• Participate in planning meetings.
• Contribute to the administration of the grant as appropriate. This might include contributing to project reports and towards the monitoring and management of project finances.

Other duties and responsibilities specific to the role include:

• Willingness to travel, potentially to Tanzania and Indonesia, as well as within the UK.
• Actively participate in Conservation@Bangor research meetings and the School of Natural Sciences Conservation Science lab group. 

Other Duties and Responsibilities

• The post holder will be expected to participate in performance review and developmental activities.
• The post holder will be expected to comply with the University’s equality policies and statements, Dignity at Work and Study Policy and the University’s Welsh Language Scheme.
• The post holder has a general and legal duty of care in relation to health, safety and wellbeing and must take all reasonable steps to ensure a safe and healthy working environment for themselves and for other members of staff, students and visitors affected by their actions or inactions.  The post holder is also required to comply with all applicable health and safety policies, procedures and risk assessments.
• The post holder must comply with relevant legal and financial policies and procedures and be aware of their responsibilities in terms of the legal requirements of their post.

Person Specification

Qualifications/Training  

Essential

• A PhD in conservation science or other relevant area of the natural or social sciences (or be near completion).

Experience/Knowledge  

Essential

• Strong up-to-date expertise in quantitative and/or qualitative social science research methods (e.g., participatory workshops, focus group discussions and questionnaire-based studies).
• Evidence of high-quality research activity (e.g., publication in quality peer-reviewed journals, giving presentations at international or national conferences), or an early career researcher demonstrating high potential.
• Ability and commitment to undertaking international travel to Indonesia and Tanzania for short (less than two-week) if/when required.
• A strong commitment to collaborative, interdisciplinary research initiatives.
• An ability and flexibility to work in teams across a range of disciplines and countries.
• A high level of interpersonal skills, so as to be able to engage effectively with project partners from within and external to academia (e.g., government agencies and non-governmental organisations).
• Experience of working/conducting research in Indonesia and/or Tanzania.
• An appreciation of the bilingual and bicultural character of modern Wales.

Desirable

• Knowledge in the areas of conservation compliance including application of methods for estimating rule-breaking.
• Publications in leading peer-reviewed journals.
• Presentations at national or international conferences.
• Prizes, awards, or other forms of external recognition.

Skills/Abilities  

Essential

• Skilled in statistical analysis using R.
• A high level of communication and interpersonal skills and capacity to work within a team.
• Strong analytical skills with a proven ability to analyse qualitative and quantitative data and present results appropriately.
• An ability to prioritise workload and work to deadlines.
• Bangor University is a bilingual organisation and all members of staff are expected to work positively in this bilingual environment.

Desirable

• Good level of capacity in data visualisation and presentation.
• Experience in communicating science beyond academic audiences/journal papers.

General

The University is committed to supporting and promoting equality and diversity and to creating an inclusive working environment. We believe this can be achieved through attracting, developing, and retaining a diverse range of staff from many different backgrounds.  We strive to develop a workforce from all sections of the community regardless of sex, gender identity, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, trans identity, relationship status, religion or belief, caring responsibilities, or age. We promote and facilitate the use of the Welsh language through our progressive Welsh Language Policy. We comply with the Welsh Language Standards and are committed to equality of opportunity. You are welcome to apply for any job in English or Welsh and all applications submitted will be treated equally. 

We are a member of Advance HE’s Athena SWAN Gender Equality charter and hold a Bronze award in recognition of our commitment to and progress towards gender equality within the University’s policies, practices, and culture. We are proud to be a Disability Confident employer. 

All members of staff have a duty to ensure their actions are in line with the overall environmental aims of the University and minimise their environmental impact. 

All offers are made subject to proof of eligibility to work in the UK and receipt of satisfactory references.  

All candidates must meet the requirements of UK ‘right to work’ requirements *** If you require Home Office permission to work in the UK, or need to switch your visa status in order to take this job  we recommend you use the following link to information about the routes into employment and to check eligibility requirements:  https://www.gov.uk/browse/visas-immigration/work-visas

 Please note that we are unable to employ anyone who does not have the right to live and work in the UK legally.   When applying for this post you will be required to explain the basis upon which you believe you will be able to live and work in the UK legally on the commencement date of the role should your application be successful.

Candidates should also note that they may be required to apply for an ATAS certificate (Academic Approval Technology Scheme)  from the Counter-Proliferation and Arms Control Centre of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office before being able to apply for a visa – https://www.gov.uk/guidance/academic-technology-approval-scheme

Please note that, in the event of applications being received from candidates on the University’s Redeployment Register with a reasonable skills match to the post specification, these applicants will be given prior consideration.