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Climate Change Advisor Seeds of Life (SoL)

4:57:00 PM
Climate Change Advisor, Seeds of Life program in Timor-Leste
Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, Timor-Leste
Location: Based in Dili with travel to the districts.
Duration: 2 years with possible extension of two years
Commencement date: 1 April, 2012
Closing date for applications: 24 February, 2012
Remuneration: A competitive package will be offered
Description of the organisation:
Seeds of Life (SoL) is a program within the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries (MAF) in Timor-Leste (East Timor). SoL aims to improve food security in Timor-Leste through increased productivity of food crops. The Governments of Timor-Leste and Australia collaboratively fund the program. Australian funding is provided through the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID) and the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) and is managed by ACIAR. The Centre for Legumes in Mediterranean Agriculture (CLIMA) within The University of Western Australia (UWA) coordinates the Australian funded activities.
The Climate Change Advisor (CCA) will work closely with MAF personnel to assist with the identification of varieties and technologies adaptable to climate change in Timor-Leste. He/she will report to the SoL Australian Team Leader (ATL).
Key tasks and responsibilities
The CCA will:
· Assess the current situation in measurement of climate variables (esp temperature and radiation) and climate variability across the agro-ecological zones in Timor-Leste.
· Develop policies for monitoring the climate of diverse AEZs in Timor.
· Characterize ago-ecological zones for major food crops in Timor-Leste.
· Assess the impact of temperature, radiation and rainfall changes on staple crop production.
· Assess appropriate adaptation strategies for farmers in response to climate change and variability in each of the agro-ecosystems in Timor-Leste.
· Assist in the recommendation of varieties and technologies of food crops adaptable to variable and changing climates in the agro-ecosystems of Timor-Leste.
· Promote an understanding of climate change within the MAF of Timor-Leste, especially targeting Suco extension officers, professional staff and policy makers.
· Assist MAF in responding to technical requests on climate change and climate science issues.
· Develop educational material at the sub district and suco level to extend the current information on climate and climate change.
· Produce climate fact sheets for each suco that can be used in climate change preparedness planning.
Skills and Experience
(Qualifications/Experience/Skills/Knowledge)
The successful candidate will have:
Essential
  • A graduate degree in environmental science or agricultural science.
  • Demonstrated understanding of and experience in analysing available data sets to assess the likely nature of climate change in a particular area.
  • Demonstrated understanding of and experience in assessing the possible impact of climate change on crop production and development of strategies responding to these impacts.
  • Strong communication and mentoring skills.
  • Strong analytical and report writing skills.
  • Advanced computer literacy.
  • Demonstrated ability to work as part of a team.
  • Fluency in English.
Desirable
  • Experience in SE Asia or Timor-Leste.
  • Training or capacity building experience.
  • Post-graduate qualifications in environmental science or agricultural science.
Apply:
Interested candidates can submit a short covering letter, CV, names of three referees and a document addressing the required skills and experience electronically to Dr Harry Nesbitt, Adjunct Professor, University of Western Australia (h.nesbit@bigpond.net.au). Further enquiries can be addressed to Professor William Erskine, tel. (+61 8) 6488 1903. For further information on the SOL 3 program see http://www.seedsoflifetimor.org/

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