Conserved Lands Manager

The Couchiching Conservancy (CC) is a non-profit charitable land trust that has helped to protect over 14,400 acres in the Couchiching Region. The CC’s mandate is to protect the special natural features of the Couchiching region for present and future generations, and we achieve this goal through land acquisition and stewardship projects on both private and public land. We are currently responsible for the stewardship and management of 45 Nature Reserves under our protection.

With a strong emphasis on volunteer engagement, The Conserved Lands Manager is responsible for stewardship, planning, and administrative activities related to properties under our management. This includes leading a team of stewardship staff and volunteers all working to achieve the CC’s conservation targets, developing grant proposals, managing the resulting projects, and ensuring all reporting requirements are met.

Key Responsibilities:
1. Conservation Management
- Ensure the ecological integrity of all lands under CC protection through oversight of long-term scientific monitoring, stewardship & management, and volunteer engagement
- Coordinate drafting of Property Management Plans and Baseline Data Reports
- Achieve conservation targets on fee simple, easement, and managed properties
- Hire, train, and guide the stewardship team in the development of projects and workplans such as the Community Science program
- Develop systems for handling, storing, and analysing scientific monitoring data.
- Oversee, monitor and report on project activities, resources and budgets; identify solutions for emerging problems and issues related to projects. Report on achievements & recommendations
- Oversee and participate in easement monitoring and reporting, work to resolve issues as they arise and foster good relations with land owners
- Manage leases, contracts, and the Habitat Offset program

2. Fund Raising and Grant Administration
- Identify sources of funding to support the stewardship program
- Develop, submit, and administer stewardship funding proposals including scope, activities, timeframes, required resources, budget, desired outcomes and measures of success.

3. Volunteer Engagement and Public Outreach
- Champion an engaging and rewarding stewardship volunteer program that delivers mission-critical results
- Provide leadership to the staff Stewardship Team to successfully recruit, train, and orient volunteers in the field
- Develop and coordinate volunteer appreciation events and merchandise
- Coordinate community discussion forums, workshops, training sessions and other activities for stakeholders and volunteers in order to provide information about and gain support for CC projects

4. Community Partnerships & Neighbour relations
- Develop and maintain relationships with key stakeholders including landowners, neighbours, other conservation organizations, businesses, clubs, and government agencies

5. Publicity and Communication
- Identify opportunities for publicity related to projects
- Draft communications and press releases related to projects
- Generate content for the CC website, newsletter, media and information packages related to projects

Qualifications:

- Knowledge of current conservation issues gained through a combination of formal education and work experience
- A post-secondary degree in a relevant field (examples: Environmental Studies, Community Development, Biology)
- At least five years experience in Project Management including grant-writing, administration, and reporting
- Strong communication skills
- An entrepreneurial and collaborative spirit
- Demonstrated ability to:

- Lead, mentor, and delegate
- Establish and maintain relationships with community stakeholders
- Demonstrated competency in:

- Planning, Organizing and Coordinating - proactively plan, establish priorities and allocate resources; develop and implement increasingly complex project plans; identify contingency plans; recognize problems and take corrective action; keep others informed of decisions and progress; monitor and adapt work to accomplish goals and deliver CC mandate; coordinate own and others’ work
- Teamwork - work cooperatively with other staff, stakeholders, volunteers and partners to achieve common goals; seek input from others and recognize when compromise may be necessary
- Conflict Resolution - recognize potential sources of conflict; handle disagreements promptly; facilitate discussions and seek appropriate solutions; build rapport
- Communication - communicate complex information and issues; presents the CC and self in a positive light when communicating with others; share information and maintain open communication
- Relationship Management - identify and initiate partnership opportunities for mutual benefit; effectively monitor and manage relationships to ensure ongoing support and achievement of objectives
- Adaptability - adjust activities and behaviour to meet new or changing demands; maintain a positive attitude when