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30 Oct 2017

Part-Time Maui Research Officer

CORAL REEF ALLIANCE – Posted by [email protected] Kula, Hawaii, United States

Job Description

Research Officer: *Maui, Hawaiʻi. *The successful candidate must be located on Maui, or on another Hawaiian island and able to travel to Maui intermittently.

Job Type: Temporary, Independent Contractor. Estimated between 5 and 10 hours per week. There may be a possibility for employee-status work beyond 10 hours per week depending on the candidate’s interest and skills.

PURPOSE OF THE ROLE

CORAL is seeking a motivated and resourceful individual to support our work on Maui. This is a part time role that will include between 5-10 hours/week of work as needed. This role will support our stream restoration project that is currently planned to finish on January 31, 2020.

This role will ensure the development and successful execution of a monitoring plan that measures the impact of restoration activities designed to reduce sediment and nutrient pollution in Wahikuli and Honokōwai streams in West Maui. Execution of the monitoring protocols will be conducted in part by researchers, government agencies, CORAL staff and local contractors. The Research Officer will coordinate data collection activities by various parties and ensure protocols are followed to ensure data quality. They will work with the Technical Operations Manager who is based in Maui and the Associate Program Director, who is based in Oakland, California.

 PRIMARY DUTIES AND RESPONSIBITIES

  1. Collaborate with CORAL and partners to finalize monitoring protocols designed to measure levels of nutrients and sedimentation reaching streams before and after implementing a suite of best management practices designed to reduce high stream flow, absorb nutrients and stabilize fine grained sediment (November-December 2017).
  2. Finalize a monitoring plan that outlines roles and responsibilities and a budget for implementing monitoring activities (December 2017).
  3. **Execute or coordinate execution of data collection for identified components of the monitoring plan. These are anticipated to include:
    • Monitoring sediment pins to measure sediment accumulation or loss from stream banks
    • Measuring in stream volume (stage), turbidity, and total suspended solids (TSS)
    • Photographic documentation of before and after pictures of installed restoration BMPs and monitoring of their performance over time
    • Recording survivorship of plants
    • Collecting and analyzing video footage of streams following during storm events
    • Collection of rain gauge data.
  4. Collect and collate data from partners and lead data analysis.
  5. Develop periodic reports for CORAL and stakeholders as needed
  6. Develop a final report (December 2019)
  7. Publish project results in a peer-reviewed journal (draft complete by Spring 2020).

 ** If the Research Officer is not based on Maui, they must be able to make regular visits to Maui (every 2-3 months) to ensure data collection is being implemented in line with protocols and data quality standards.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS AND SKILLS

The minimum required qualifications include BA/BS degree in physical science-related field, such as geology, environmental science, fluvial geomorphology and hydrology.

Additionally, the Research Officer must have:

  • Experience with installing, monitoring, and troubleshooting water quality monitoring instruments
    • Field experience with HOBO pressure transducers, turbidity probes, telemetric instrument installation, data loggers, and ISCO sampler units.
    • Experience collecting, preparing, and analyzing water quality data
  • Excellent organizational and prioritization skills, including developing and maintaining research plans and coordinating with multiple collaborators.
  • Resourcefulness and ability to work proactively; ability to complete tasks independently, efficiently, and in a timely manner; and the ability to work effectively with a remote team
  • Strong verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to effectively communicate with individuals from a variety of disciplines, cultures and backgrounds
  • Ability to work in hazardous steep terrain, hiking over several miles to project sites in all types of weather ranging from very hot and dry, to cold and rainy
  • ***Ability to mobilize on short notice in order to document and capture storm events
  • Ability to safely drive a 4-wheel drive vehicle over steep unimproved roads
  • Flexibility and willingness to work in situations of flux; ability to work in a fast turn-around environment
  • Strong work ethic and willingness to take ownership for wide-ranging responsibilities while exhibiting the utmost professionalism and discretion
  • Willingness to adjust hours to accommodate the needs of the job
  • Experience managing a budget
  • Willingness to work in a home office
  • Someone based in West Maui preferred. Must be based in Hawaiʻ
  • Authorized to work in the USA

***If based on Maui, the Research Officer will support data collection. Otherwise the Research Officer will work with the CORAL team to ensure adequate storm response data collection is implemented by a local partner or contractor.

PERSONAL CHARACTERISTICS

  • Ability to think analytically and problem solve and a willingness to ask questions
  • Commitment to process excellence, efficiency and accountability
  • A sense of humor, commitment to candor and desire to be a part of a collaborative team
  • Patience and exceptional listening skills
  • Energetic, hard-working, and a team player
  • Presents a positive, enthusiastic, professional image both internally and externally
  • Discretion with confidential information

 COMPENSATION: TBD. Estimated between 5 and 10 hours per week. There may be a possibility for work beyond 10 hours per week depending on the candidate’s interest and skills.

How to Apply

To apply for this position, please submit in one document to [email protected] with Maui Research Officer in the email subject line:
  1. A cover letter describing your qualifications and interest in the position. If you are a current graduate student, please state how this position can be integrated into your research and list your main supervisor(s)
  2. Resume
  3. A writing sample that you wrote within the past two years. This can be a report, a university assignment or journal article.
Please note that due to the volume of applications expected, we are not able to respond to each individual applicant. The position will be open until filled, an immediate start date is preferred.

Job Categories: Conservation. Job Types: Part-Time.

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