Senior Technical Adviser Sea Alarm Foundation

SENIOR TECHNICAL ADVISER, OILED WILDLIFE PREPAREDNESS AND RESPONSE (May 2012)

The organisation

The Sea Alarm Foundation is a not-for-profit NGO, founded in 1999 and based in Brussels. Our vision is to establish coastal oiled wildlife response plans and professional wildlife response capabilities worldwide to deal with marine wildlife (seabirds, aquatic birds, sea turtles and marine mammals) which are affected by oil spills. We seek to achieve this vision by facilitating and encouraging strategic alliances among non-governmental organisations (NGOs), scientists, governmental authorities, and the oil and shipping industries in order to:

• Be prepared for an oiled wildlife emergency as part of oil spill contingency planning.
• Respond professionally and effectively to oiled wildlife incidents according to best practice and international standards.

Sea Alarm is a small organisation with a big network. We act as an independent and impartial facilitator in the midst of a large variety of stakeholders that may potentially be involved in an oiled wildlife incident. Before an incident happens, we aim to know the key players in every coastal country, to establish good working relationships with them and help them to develop capabilities to deal with oiled wildlife (through wildlife response planning, training and exercises). Sea Alarm is often engaged in organising exchange meetings, workshops, conferences and other events for these stakeholders. Another important part of our work is developing and advocating use of best practices in oiled wildlife response, through intergovernmental organisations such as the European Regional Agreements, European Commission and International Maritime Organisation, as well as industry bodies such as the Oil Spill Working Group of IPIECA (International Petroleum Industry International Environmental Conservation Association), the International Tanker Owners Pollution Federation (ITOPF) and the IOPC (International Oil Pollution Compensation) Funds. During an oil spill incident when requested, Sea Alarm assists the different parties to implement an effective wildlife response infrastructure which can be put into operation as quickly as possible. This is good for the animals in distress, good for the people that wish to reduce their suffering, good for scientists who wish to measure the impact and good for the authorities and industry that would like to deliver a safe and well organised response. All these activities are made possible through an ongoing cooperation agreement with the oil industry via Oil Spill Response (OSRL), project funding, donations and consultancies. For more information see www.sea-alarm.org

The position

We are looking to strengthen our team with a full-time Senior Technical Adviser, to be located in Brussels. We are offering a 1 year position to start with, which could be turned into a permanent position after a year.

The field of oiled wildlife preparedness and response, as a specialism of oil spill response, is still relatively new and in a stage of development in many countries around the world. This provides many exciting opportunities for your career development as you help our stakeholders be ready to deal with animals affected in a major oil spill. As a Senior Technical Adviser in Sea Alarm, you will have the opportunity to work with many different types of stakeholder from around the world and you will come into contact with senior staff from a range of international organisations. Working as part of a small team, you will be fully involved from the beginning.

The person

We are looking for bright, highly motivated candidates, capable of multi-tasking and with proven experience in one or more of the areas of expertise that we work in.

Tasks and responsibilities

• Provide expert technical services across the whole spectrum of Sea Alarm’s work in the field of oiled wildlife preparedness and response.
• Assist the different stakeholders to prepare for, and respond to, an oiled wildlife incident, including governmental authorities, international oil spill preparedness and response organisations, oil and shipping industry, wildlife rehabilitators, scientists, wildlife veterinarians and volunteers.
• Assist with development of relationships between Sea Alarm and its stakeholders, maintain and expand the contact database with these organisations around the world.
• Write wildlife response plans in close cooperation with the requesting party.
• Assist with development of guidelines, training modules, exercises and information on oiled wildlife preparedness and response and make these available to stakeholders.
• Represent Sea Alarm where required at international meetings, conferences and other events related to oil spill/oiled wildlife preparedness and response.
• Lecture and moderate meetings, training courses and exercises.
• Assist with liaison between Sea Alarm and Oil Spill Response, including maintaining emergency procedures and readiness.
• Assist with the organisation of events (workshops, conferences and training courses).
• Maintain and expand Sea Alarm’s series of Country Wildlife Response Profiles.
• Assist the General Manager to coordinate a response to an oil spill involving wildlife in those circumstances where Sea Alarm’s assistance is requested.
• Form part of a 24/7 duty system to respond to emergency oil spill alerts.
• Represent Sea Alarm in a response where required, following instructions of the General Manager.
• Contribute to the development of the EMPOWER network and its activities in Europe.
• Write articles for the Sea Alarm Newsletter, Websites and other media if requested.
• Extend and optimise Sea Alarm’s own contact database.
• Develop expert knowledge on oiled wildlife response and planning (internal training)
  -Attend meetings/exercises/training events of wildlife responders.
  - Read relevant literature, reports and documentation, attend relevant conferences and training courses.
  - Visit wildlife rehabilitation centres.

Qualifications and experience required

• Minimum 7 years of recent experience in at least one of the following fields of expertise:

- Oil spill preparedness and response (large oil spills).
- Emergency preparedness and response/disaster relief.
-Intergovernmental cooperation and environmental advocacy.
- International NGO cooperation in animal welfare/conservation.

• University degree in a related subject.
• Ability to communicate verbally and in writing to a very high standard in English (a written test may form part of the interview process).
• Additional language skills would be an advantage.

Qualities and skills

• Communicate orally (clearly and understandably) with oiled wildlife response stakeholders at all levels: politicians, senior government officials, oil/shipping industry managers (corporate and operational level), wildlife rehabilitators, scientists, veterinarians, environmental conservation organisations and volunteers.
• Lecture and present clearly to large audiences and handle visual aids.
• Project management skills – manage conflicting pressures and deliver on time.
• Command respect and credibility, gain trust with and influence the decisions of senior government personnel and others involved in oil spills.
• Handle stress and work under pressure, sometimes for long hours over extended periods.
• Remain level-headed and calm in a crisis situation.
• Recognise limitations in areas outside the organisation’s or your own competence.

Interested?

Please send your CV and a brief covering letter to secretariat@sea-alarm.org by Friday 1st June 2012. If you have any queries, please telephone Sea Alarm on +32 2278 8744.