Director, International Cooperation & Conservation

Are you looking to channel your skills into meaningful, energizing work that will directly contribute to protecting our natural world? Do you want to work with an exceptional group of passionate and caring colleagues?

Birds Canada is the country’s premier national organization dedicated to bird conservation. Every day, our thousands of caring donors, 80+ dedicated staff, and 70,000+ outstanding volunteers are taking action to help us better understand, appreciate, and conserve birds and their habitats. Together, we are Canada’s Voice for Birds – will you join us?

This position is all about bringing people together to address the complex and overlapping crises that nature and communities in Latin America face today. With our partners, you will be doing something new – working at the intersection of biodiversity conservation for birds, gender equality and inclusion among conservation actors and community-led sustainable economic development. To fit seamlessly into the flock, you must feel inspired by other conservation and social justice actors, be willing to learn from them and play the role of a partner committed to collective results. Sound like your jam? Keep reading…

 

POSITION OVERVIEW

The key role of the Director, International Cooperation & Conservation is to facilitate and coordinate the efforts of teams from multiple partners implementing the Conserva Aves approach in South and Central America and Mexico. Your flyway will see you move in close collaboration with the Senior Director, International Cooperation & Conservation to co-create the project vision, build trust-based partner and donor relationship. You will work together to lead and oversee Birds Canada’s Conserva Aves project implementation, monitoring, impact-driven storytelling and learning and accountability mechanisms (including reporting). This includes collaboration with grants and finance team members to develop and monitor budgets and maximize effectiveness via adaptive management.  You will also serve as a trusted thinking and decision-making partner in the International Cooperation & Conservation unit, supporting the scaling up and scaling out of project results, processes and practices via knowledge sharing, communications & advocacy, and program development. The role also serves as a wellness-focused leader and supports psychological safety and people-focused performance management for at least two direct reports, building a culture of psychological safety and collective responsibility for achievement of results.

Professional written and spoken Spanish and English fluency are essential.

The Conserva Aves project at Birds Canada is an innovative biodiversity and climate change initiative supporting locally led and gender equitable change to benefit birds, biodiversity and communities in eight countries: Peru, Mexico, Ecuador, Panama, El Salvador, Honduras, Costa Rica, and Colombia. This $15-million project (funding anticipated from April 2024 to March 2027) scales up and scales out the already proven Conserva Aves initiative operating in Colombia, Bolivia, Peru and Ecuador. It  will help drive sustainable conservation through: 1) Strengthened community-led conservation practices by local communities, especially women, Indigenous and Afro-descendant groups, in priority areas for bird conservation in selected countries, 2) Reduced barriers to equitable decision-making for conservation ecosystem actors, especially women, Indigenous and Afro-descendant groups, in favour of community-led conservation in Latin America, and 3) Increased collaboration between communities, especially Indigenous communities, along flyways of migratory birds breeding in Canada and overwintering in Latin America.

 

EMPLOYMENT DETAILS

This full-time role reports to the Senior Director, International Cooperation & Conservation and is either fully remote (in the incumbent’s home office) or a hybrid or in-person arrangement at one of Birds Canada’s offices in Ontario, British Columbia, or New Brunswick. Offsite and in-person meeting will be required periodically. This role will also require international travel (up to 20%), especially to Latin America, and could include travel to higher risk or remote locations with basic amenities only.

Anticipated start date for this role is ASAP.

This role is part of a highly interdependent team where individuals work collaboratively towards the achievement of the overall vision of Conserva Aves and Birds Canada’s International Cooperation & Conservation unit. As such, we are guided by the achievement of the goals outlined in the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework as well as the Sustainable Development Goals.

 

TOTAL COMPENSATION

Birds Canada is proud to offer an exceptional Total Compensation Package, including a competitive starting salary and 5% RRSP matching after 12 months of service.  In addition, staff enjoy a primarily employer-paid extended benefits package including health and dental coverage, Basic Group Life Insurance, Group out-of-province travel insurance, Vision, ADD&D and short- and long-term disability coverage.  We offer all staff 4 weeks’ vacation per year to start along with 12 personal health days and additional paid vacation days between Boxing Day and New Year’s Day.

STARTING SALARY: $83,846 – $92,231 commensurate with your previous experience.

 

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

• Build relationships and oversee the management of the Conserva Aves (2024-2027) project in Latin America, including overseeing and collaborating with teams in Canada and Latin America to ensure all aspects of project planning, monitoring and reporting meet Government of Canada’s expectations, timelines and accountability needs.
• Co-lead, alongside the Senior Director, International Cooperation & Conservation, the development and implementation of a project vision where a culture of collaboration, learning and accountability supports the integration of gender equality and social inclusion and feminist approaches.
• Provide and oversee technical and/or process leadership and technical assistance to implementing partners and Birds Canada staff.
• Lead and collaborate with partners to ensure project learning feeds into adaptive project management by capturing and sharing effective gender transformative conservation action and collaborating with Regional M&E Specialist on developing tools and processes for monitoring of results, impact and unintended consequences.
• Oversee and guide project narrative reporting processes in collaboration with Project Leads in Latin America, ensuring timely and accurate reporting to the donor.
• Collaborate with the Senior Director, the Director of Grants Management and Project Leads in Latin America on budget development/revision and financial management processes, including supporting the analysis of project financial trends, forecasts and variances as well as ensuring complementarity between financial and narrative reports.
• Support and actively participate in thought leadership and visibility related to key project themes, including at external and/or public-facing events.
• Mobilize Conserva Aves partners to scale up and scale out of project results via knowledge sharing, communications & advocacy, new program development and public-facing events.
• Ensuring wellness-focused leadership and people-driven performance management for at least two direct reports.

 

 

REQUIRED KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE

Required:

• Professional Spanish language skills (spoken & written) are essential.
• Significant knowledge and/or experience (5+years) designing or managing a portfolio of projects ($5million+) including large conservation or international cooperation programs, preferably in Latin America.
• Significant experience and knowledge using RBM approaches and tools for conservation or international cooperation programs and ensuring adherence to donor requirements (especially Global Affairs Canada).
• Strong experience in leading or collaborating closely with finance teams to develop, oversee and revise budgets for conservation or international cooperation programs. Includes experience and comfort collaborating on financial reporting, variance analyses and forecasts and other processes supporting effective and results-focused use of funds.
• Experience using or designing quantitative and qualitative tools for learning and measuring impact as well as ensuring accountability and learning-focused monitoring and evaluation.
• Strong understanding of barriers to inclusive and community-led conservation and/or economic development.

 

Professional Competencies:

• Thoughtful and respectful communication style and attention to relationship building with partners, donors and other stakeholders and an ability to adapt communication style to audience preferences and needs.
• Recognition of the ways in which power, privilege and the legacy of colonialism can shape relationships and ways of knowing.
• A strong interest in learning about bird and biodiversity conservation, science, nature-based solutions, gender equality and/or community engagement.
• Prior experience leading the wellness of results-focused teams or promoting a culture of psychological safety and collective accountability.

 

Assets:

• Experience with other institutional donors (e.g. USAID or EU) or Foundations.
• Experience collaborating with colleagues and/or partners on results-focused or advocacy-related communications.
• Prior experience supporting the leadership of women and/or Indigenous and Afro-Descendant Peoples or other equity-seeking and marginalized groups.
• Experience working with Indigenous Peoples and/or supporting Indigenous knowledge systems.
• Language skills in French or Portuguese.

 

This position is also open to those who can demonstrate a depth of experience that may not solely stem from traditional years in the field, but rather from alternative pathways or unique contexts.

 

EDUCATION

A Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in a field relevant to strategic or science communications or relevant to the Conserva Aves initiative, including biodiversity conservation, environmental management, environmental education, climate change adaptation, international development, community development, gender studies, sociology, etc.

And/or

Lived-experience in supporting conservation or community development actions in Latin America, especially with women-led or Indigenous or Afro-Descendant Organizations.

And/or

Additional training and/or certification in relevant fields, technical approaches and software – Project Management Professional designation (or similar) is an asset.

 

TO APPLY:

Please submit your resume along with a covering letter outlining how your professional experience makes you the perfect candidate for this role via the Birds Canada Online Hiring Portal by Friday April 12th. Note that applications will be considered as they are received and we anticipate the interview process will start before the closing date, so it is in your best interest to apply ASAP.  Birds Canada will provide accommodation throughout the recruitment, selection, and/or assessment process to applicants with disabilities.

Birds Canada is committed to improving levels of diversity among its volunteers, membership, staff, and board that reflects the diversity of communities across the country. In an effort to do so, we are actively seeking to improve our ability to reach all candidates with our job postings. Applicants belonging to racialized groups, who identify as Indigenous, 2SLGBTQIA+, or who have differing abilities are therefore welcome to self-identify in their cover letter, if they feel comfortable, although this is not a requirement.