Tailings EPA Advisor

About Pathways Alliance  

Pathways Alliance (Pathways) represents Canada’s largest oil sands producers working together to reduce their environmental footprint on land, air, and water and who share an ambitious goal of achieving net zero greenhouse gas emissions from operations by 2050. Our six member companies operate about 95% of Canada’s oil sands production. 

About the Opportunity 

The Tailings Environmental Priority Area (EPA) Advisor is a member of the Pathways Technology Development team. The Tailings EPA works to enhance oil sands tailings management through the development of new and improved sustainable technologies. That means developing approaches to reduce tailings volumes, mitigate the environmental impact of tailings production and accelerate tailings reclamation. Efficient management of tailings is key to reducing the environmental impact of oil sands operations and enhancing the overall sustainability of the oil sands industry. 

The Tailings EPA Advisor works closely with the Director, Tailings EPA to support the operations of the priority area, its industry member representatives and a regular series of steering committee meetings. The advisor manages technology submissions received from external innovators and the repository of technologies contributed by member companies.  

About the Role 

The Tailings EPA team is part of the Technology Development function within Pathways, which is led by the Vice President, Technology Development & COSIA. The Tailings EPA Advisor will report to the Director, Tailings EPA, who leads the priority area and contributes to the leadership of the Technology Development function.  

The Tailings EPA Advisor will work closely with a dynamic group of fellow advisors and other colleagues in the Technology Development team and engage directly with the Tailings EPA Steering Committee, which is comprised of member company representatives selected for their expertise in technology development and operational deployment. The Tailings EPA Advisor will also interface with other teams within Pathways, such as the Communications and Policy groups.  

Key Responsibilities  

Priority Area Operations 

• Actively participate in priority area meetings and ensure that succinct and accurate meeting summaries are generated. 
• Assist in the creation of agendas and pre-read materials and be the focal for distribution of meeting packages to participants (both internal and external).  
• Ensure arrangements for priority area meetings and events are made - e.g., virtual or in-person meeting room bookings, invitations, catering, conferencing, logistics. 
• Track, monitor and report on EPA projects and budgets 

Coordination and Liaison 

• Manage, track and coordinate external innovation submissions from the Environmental Technology Assessment Portal. 
• Serve as the COSIA liaison and contact point for priority area members and external innovators. 
• Collect and collate EPA steering committee and working group input on completed studies. 
• As required, provide additional coordination, liaison and administrative support for COSIA governance meetings 

Strategic Planning & Support 

• Support the EPA Director in the development, updating, execution and monitoring of the EPA Strategy and annual Action Plans 
• Support the EPA Director in the delivery and management of issues pertaining to the EPA Steering Committee and Working Groups 
• Track progress against priority area and COSIA objectives and inform priority area planning. 

Information management 

• Gather and consolidate technical information from member companies. 
• Manage the priority area document library and technology portfolio in SharePoint and extract and analyze information from that library. 
• Consolidate information required for communications requests, such as feature stories and media responses. 

Skills  

• Strong relationship builder who embraces collaboration with members and other stakeholders. 
• Strong interpersonal, written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to identify and respond to a diverse member group and their priorities with a professional approach. 
• Demonstrated teamwork, planning and organization skills. 
• Ability to multi-task multiple priorities and work both independently and as part of a team to achieve outcomes. 
• Excellent critical thinking and problem-solving skills. 
• Demonstrated ability to be successful in a dynamic environment. 
• Highly organized and detail-oriented.. 

Education and Experience  

Required 

• Bachelor’s degree from a recognized university, preferably in engineering or natural sciences with an environmental focus.  
• Five years of experience in program or project coordination/management, preferably in a research or technology development environment. 
• Natural resources sector experience preferred, oil sands operations in particular. 
• Microsoft Office proficiency, including SharePoint, Dynamics, Word, OneNote and Excel. 

Other Considerations 

• Occasional travel may be required. 
• Pathways currently offers a hybrid work option. 

How to Apply  

This posting will remain open until May 10, 2024, at 4:00pm MT. 

Interested candidates should submit their resume and cover letter to recruitment@pathwaysalliance.ca with “Tailings EPA Advisor” in the subject line. We thank all applicants for their interest; however, only those selected for interview will be contacted.