Conservation Finance Associate

The World Resources Institute (WRI) seeks a qualified candidate with experience and expertise in protecting forests, farmland, wetlands, and other critical ecosystems through innovative conservation finance programs. We seek a results-oriented, self-motivated individual with excellent analytical, writing, communication, and people-engagement skills for a full-time position within our People and Ecosystems Program (PEP). The position will initially focus on evaluating and scaling up conservation finance options for forests of the southern United States. The position falls under the auspices of Southern Forests for the Future (SFF), a three year project that began in 2009. Key activities for SFF in 2010 include: • Evaluate a portfolio of conservation finance options (existing and new) available to industrial and small scale forestland owners in the Southern United States to identify those with the greatest promise for conserving or encouraging sustainable management of the most acres at the lowest cost. The evaluation will consider payments for ecosystem services (e.g., carbon sequestration, watershed protection, recreation), ecosystem protection/restoration funds, trust funds, bonds, user fees, fiscal measures, cost-share programs, green mortgages, and others. Work with land trust organizations, private landowners, and other entities to adopt these incentives and; • Help partners begin to pilot test these incentives and research ways to maximize uptake of the most promising ones by industrial and non-industrial forestland owners.

As the project progresses, the Conservation Finance Associate will have the opportunity to contribute expertise to other PEP projects aimed at sustaining ecosystems and the services they provide.

The Associate will be part of WRI’s Mainstreaming Ecosystem Services Initiative, which seeks to reduce ecosystem degradation by helping governments, businesses, and development agencies integrate ecosystem services into their policies, strategies, and investments. The initiative’s strategy is two-fold:

1) Provide decision-makers with information and assessment tools that link ecosystem health with the attainment of economic and social goals; and

2) Develop new markets, economic incentives, and public policies that restore and sustain ecosystems.

Responsibilities
• Assist the PEP Senior Economist in conducting research to identify, design, and analyze conservation finance programs designed to conserve/sustainably manage forests of the southern United States.

• Work with private and non-profit partners to adopt and pilot test conservation finance programs and maximize their uptake by industrial and non-industrial private forestland owners.

• Engage regional stakeholders via WRI-led workshops and one-on-one dialogue when developing and pilot testing the portfolio of incentives. Stakeholders could include other non-governmental organizations, forest owners, government forest agencies, and academics, among others.

• Help with the process of pilot testing conservation finance options, including:

– Design the parameters of each pilot test;

– Secure participation of regional stakeholders;

– Conduct supporting analyses;

– Facilitate transactions; and

– Adjust design parameters based on lessons learned.

• Write and publish reports summarizing the portfolio of finance programs and results of pilot tests.

• Help implement an influence strategy to roll out the most promising finance programs so they trigger greater conservation or sustainable management of southern forests.

• Assist with outreach and communication efforts—with support of WRI’s External Relations department—to promote research findings, project activities, and on-the-ground results through briefings to target audiences such as private landowners, corporate leaders, peer organizations, and other stakeholders.

• Help complete requested reports by management or funders.

Qualifications
• Advanced degree with a focus on conservation finance or policy, environmental economics, natural resource economics, or other relevant field.

• Minimum 3 years of relevant work experience developing and implementing financing approaches to conserve/sustain healthy ecosystems; 5 years is a plus. Examples could include payments for ecosystem services (e.g., carbon sequestration, watershed protection, recreation), ecosystem protection/restoration funds financed by extraction royalties, trust funds, bonds, and user fees, among others.

• Very solid analytical and research skills.

• Very strong English oral and writing skills. Proficiency in at least one other language is a plus.

• Experience with forest ecosystems, especially those in the southern United States, preferred.

• Experience working with non-governmental organizations, private sector entities, and government agencies in designing and implementing forest conservation strategies.

• Commitment to conservation or sustainable management of ecosystems for the sake of human well being as well as biodiversity.

• Excellent computer skills in Microsoft Office and internet research.

• Willingness to travel from time to time within the United States and abroad.

Salary & Benefits
Salary is commensurate with experience.

WRI offers a comprehensive benefits package.

Contact
Send resume or CV and cover letter to:

Logan Yonavjak, Research Assistant
lyonavjak@wri.org+1 (202) 729-7701
Send email with subject line of “Associate: Southern Forests”

No phone calls please. Qualified applicants only. WRI only accepts applications for current job openings