The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Regional Office for Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean is inviting applications for the post of Technical Assistant with the Biodiversity and Protected Areas Management programme. The position is based in Barbados.

The Biodiversity and Protected Areas Management (BIOPAMA) programme aims to contribute to improving the long-term conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity and natural resources in African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries, in protected areas and surrounding communities through better use and monitoring of information and capacity development on management and governance. The programme continues from the first phase (2011-2017) to build and reinforce institutional and technical capacity at the regional, national and site levels for improved protected area (PA) and biodiversity management; with access to and application of data and information related to biodiversity and PA management and governance being used to inform and strengthen policy decisions and management actions; and the implementation of a substantially funded, high profile grants program, comprising small to medium sized grants, to support specific actions on the ground in priority conservation landscapes that are aimed at strengthening PA and natural resource management effectiveness and governance.

This second phase (2017-2023) is an initiative of the ACP Group financially supported by the European Union’s 11th European Development Fund (EDF) and jointly implemented by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission (JRC). The Biodiversity and Rights Unit within the IUCN Regional Office for Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean (IUCN-ORMACC) is responsible for implementing BIOPAMA in the Caribbean, alongside the University of the West Indies (UWI). The UWI is the host of the regional Observatory for Biodiversity and PA management, called the “Caribbean Protected Areas Gateway” (Caribbean Gateway).

The Caribbean Gateway is part of a series of interlinked but regionally centred Observatories established under phase I, and is operated at the Centre for Resource Management and Environmental Studies (CERMES) a department within the Faculty of Science and Technology at the Cave Hill Campus in Barbados. The Caribbean Gateway (http://caribbean-rris.biopama.org) is a resource hub for facilitating and promoting viable decisions and policies by decision makers and resource managers for effective and sustainable management of protected areas and biodiversity. It is building on global efforts for collecting data directly from the ground, from national services, and from regional and international institutions holding relevant information inter alia on biodiversity, pressures, and threats.

The Technical Assistant will provide administrative and technical support to the BIOPAMA staff in general and in particular to the BIOPAMA Regional Coordinator, responsible for ensuring and overseeing timely and effective implementation of BIOPAMA in the Caribbean. The Technical Assistant will also work alongside the staff of the Caribbean Gateway, including the Technical Officer and the Communications Officer who have responsibility for overseeing the operation and management of the Caribbean Gateway and for coordinating the communications efforts of the BIOPAMA programme in the Caribbean, respectively.

For more information see the vacancy notice at the IUCN careers portal.  The deadline for applications is September 13, 2018.