ECOLOGY & CONSERVATION BIOLOGY FIELDWORK

Hiring: Species at Risk Technicians
Organization: Blazing Star Environmental
Location: Office work is primarily virtual with occasional travel required to our office, 104 McLaughlin Blvd, Oshawa, ON. Primary field sites are in central and southwestern Ontario and field work at these sites occurs from mid-April to mid-Oct.

Eligibility: 30 years of age or younger (see below)
(1-2 positions available, conditional on funding)

About Blazing Star Environmental

We are a small and growing social enterprise. Our core values are to take part in creating a sustainable society where we live in balance with our fellow animals and plants. We support conservation organizations, governments and corporations that share this goal. Our primary focus is on plants and animals, but we partner with many other organizations to offer full-service solutions to your needs.

Working with us, you will feel empowered to make a difference, supported by your work family, and challenged to learn and develop new skills to further your career.

Employment Equity

Blazing Star Environmental is committed to being an inclusive, equitable employer. We welcome all humans to our team and make every effort to identify and remove barriers to their success.

To this end, Blazing Star Environmental has submitted applications for funding to support hiring employment equity groups including: women, visible minority youth, indigenous youth, youth living with disabilities, youth from official language minority communities, and youth residing in a rural or remote location. See employee checklist for additional details.

Anticipated Start Date

~August 28, 2022 preferred

Term of Employment

6 month full-time (37.5 hours/week), with possibility of extension, subject to the availability of funds and performance of the successful candidate.

Rate of Pay

$19-$24/hr commensurate with experience

Interview Dates

August 22-23, 2022

Location

Office work is primarily virtual with occasional travel required to the Blazing Star Environmental office – 104 McLaughlin Blvd, Oshawa, ON. Primary field sites are in central and southwestern Ontario and field work at these sites occurs from mid-April to mid-Oct.

Job Description

The Species at Risk Technician will support a variety of Blazing Star Environmental projects with a focus on fieldwork until mid-October and then office work until early April.

Office work will include assisting on one or more of the following:

• GIS mapping, data entry and analysis, and the associated report writing for a long-term study of the impacts of forest fire and wind energy on SAR reptiles
• Program support for our Ontario-wide long-term western chorus frog community science monitoring program
• Fieldwork that consists of post-construction reptile and vegetation monitoring, species inventories and environmental impact studies, biological research, and species inventories, interacting with clients, and working as part of a team.

Specific Responsibilities

• Assist with post-construction reptile monitoring surrounding a wind energy facility
• Assist with environmental impact studies
• Assist with Ecological Land Classification
• Conduct biological surveys for species at risk (including breeding bird surveys)
• Conduct ecological monitoring for Blanding’s turtle and massasauga (including turtle capture)
• Lead a team to effectively complete fieldwork
• Assist with educational hikes and presentations to the public
• Input data recorded in the field into spreadsheets and databases
• Communicate with partner organizations and clients
• Gather data from various sources to input into mapping software and complete GIS analyses
• Compile results into final reports for clients

Required Skills

• Demonstrated ability to work independently, as part of a team and to collaborate with multiple partners
• A positive attitude, even when working in challenging conditions
• Willingness to work long days and weekends when conducting fieldwork or outreach activities
• Comfortable working in remote wilderness areas
• Willingness to regularly travel throughout southern Ontario for fieldwork and outreach
• Punctual and dependable
• Excellent written and verbal communications skills
• Attention to detail
• Knowledge of biology and ecology including conservation biology, biodiversity, and species at risk issues
• Knowledge of Ontario’s birds, plants and/or herpetofauna, including species identification and ecology
• Good organizational and problem-solving skills
• Proficiency with Microsoft PowerPoint, Excel and Word
• Willingness to safely work in cold water for extended periods when conducting herpetofauna surveys
• Have a valid G-class Ontario driver’s license
• Be legally entitled to work in Canada

Beneficial Attributes

• Certification in Ontario Wetland Evaluation System
• Experience capturing and handling animals
• Experience working with venomous snakes
• Ability to complete environmental impact studies
• Certification or experience in Ecological Land Classification
• Knowledge of GIS mapping software (QGIS preferred), Microsoft Access, and Microsoft Teams
• Knowledge of fish, bats, or invertebrates

Potential Learning Opportunities

• Experience conducting a reptile mark-recapture study
• Experience conducting Ecological Land Classification
• Experience writing a property management plan
• Experience creating formal bids for environmental consulting projects
• Experience writing government grants

The successful candidate must be eligible for:

• ECO Canada wage funding program (https://www.eco.ca/internship/internquiz)

Please apply on our website (https://www.blazingstar.ca/join-our-team) or by e-mailing your resume, eligibility checklist and 1-page cover letter to Kaitlyn Hall, info@blazingstar.ca , by 11:59 pm on August 17, 2022. Please include Species at Risk Technician in the subject line. Please indicate you saw this posting at GoodWork.

Kaitlyn Hall
Species at Risk Ecologist
Blazing Star Environmental
104 McLaughlin Blvd.
Oshawa, ON, L1G 2P3
info@blazingstar.ca
http://www.blazingstar.ca

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Species at Risk Technician Eligibility Checklist

Section 1 – ECO Canada Criteria

Are you:

• 30 years of age or younger?
• Unemployed, under employed, or a student/recent graduate?
• Already a Canadian citizen, permanent resident or have refugee status?
• A post-secondary graduate?

I [insert applicant’s name] am eligible for this position because I checked the box for ALL questions in Section 1 above. I further understand that misrepresenting my eligibility for this position will not only make me ineligible for this position but will negatively affect all future employment opportunities with Blazing Star Environmental.

Section 2 – Employee equity groups

Blazing Star Environmental is committed to being an inclusive, equitable employer. We welcome all humans to our team and make every effort to identify and remove barriers to their success. To this end, Blazing Star Environmental has submitted applications for funding to support hiring employment equity groups. Please check all the following groups with which you identify with:

• Women
• Visible minority youth
• Indigenous youth
• Youth living with disabilities
• Youth from official language minority communities
• Youth residing in a rural or remote location

Section 3 – Past participation in federal youth employment programs

I have participated in the following federal youth employment programs [select all that apply]:

• Youth Employment in Natural Resources
• Science Horizons Youth Internship Program
• Canada Summer Jobs
• None
• Other (specify)

[If you have participated in one of these internships, please list the details of which funder (e.g. ECO Canada, Career Launcher, etc.) and when you participated.]

Sincerely,

[sign and print name]

[insert date]