Climate Change Scientist at eThekwini Municipality

Key Responsibility Areas:

CLIMATE CHANGE SCIENTIST

• Contributes to the preparation and implementation of the Ethekwini Municipality’s Climate Protection Programme (EMCPP) and strategic municipal plans.
• Liaises with stakeholders and officials concerned with climate change, climate protection, climate change adaptation and mitigation matters including National and Provincial Governments, Metropolitan and Local Authorities, non-governmental organisations and community based organisations.
• Ensures compliance with relevant climate change related legislation and policy.
• Oversees project implementation and identifies strategic projects or research that need to be undertaken.
• Conceptualizes and develops sustainable development indicators.
• Reviews municipal climate change data bases in order to help identify gaps and needs related to the development and monitoring of the EMCPP.
• Manipulates and manages information and develops appropriate policies, laws and implementation guidelines.
• Provides climate change input to development applications and plans of varying complexity and scales and prepares eThekwini Municipality’s environmental input into provincial environmental management and implementation plans.
• Undertakes negotiations with other stakeholders around complex or controversial issues.
• Reviews Government Gazettes for changes in legislation that have climate change/protection implications.
• Oversees, manages and directs the activities of more junior, technical staff and consultants.

Key Responsibility Areas:

SENIOR CLIMATE CHANGE SCIENTIST

• Contributes to the strategic planning, preparation and implementation of the EMCPP.
• Oversees and contributes to the preparation and implementation strategic municipal plans and leads certain projects in that regard.
• Liaises with stakeholders and officials concerned with climate change, climate protection, climate change adaptation and mitigation matters including National and Provincial Governments, Metropolitan and Local Authorities, non-governmental organisations and community-based organisations.
• Ensures compliance with relevant climate change related legislation and policy.
• Undertakes the preparation of climate change vulnerability assessment and climate mitigation and adaptation plans.
• Oversees project implementation.
• Identifies strategic projects or research that need to be undertaken by keeping abreast of local, national and international research and policy development and prepares appropriate budget and action plans to address these needs in order to ensure that the objectives of the IDP, the Environmental Management System and the National Climate Change Response Strategy are met.
• Conceptualises and develops sustainable development indicators by interrogating international and national best practice that are appropriate to monitoring the effectiveness of the EMCPP in order to ensure that the strategic climate protection objectives of EM are met.
• Reviews municipal climate change data bases.
• Advises standing committees in their deliberations where these may have an impact on climate change by attending the necessary meetings in order to ensure compliance with international, national, provincial and local laws and policies.
• Manages consultants appointed to undertake work of a routine nature for the Environmental Planning and Climate Protection Department.

Competencies:

Planning

• Attention to Detail
• Discipline Specific Skills
• Data Processing & Analysis
• Interpersonal Relationships
• Communication
• Service Delivery Orientation
• Action Orientation
• Resilience
• Cognitive Ability
• Impact & Influence
• Team Orientation
• Direction Setting

Qualifications
Essential Requirements:

CLIMATE CHANGE SCIENTIST 

• Post graduate qualification (NQF Level 8) in the Biological Environment or Ecology & Natural Sciences.
• Professional registration with the South African Council for Natural Scientific Professions (SACNASP) as a Candidate Scientist.
• Valid motor vehicle driving license.
• 4 Years relevant experience.

Preferred Requirements:

• Masters Degree (NQF Level 9) in the Biological or Environmental or Ecology or Conservation Sciences.
• 5 Years relevant experience.

Essential Requirements:

SENIOR CLIMATE CHANGE SCIENTIST 

• Post graduate qualification (NQF Level 8) in the Biological Environment or Ecology & Natural Sciences.
• Professional registration with the South African Council for Natural Scientific Professions (SACNASP) as a Professional Scientist.
• Valid motor vehicle driving license.
• 5 Years relevant experience.

Preferred Requirements:

• Masters Degree (NQF Level 9) in the Biological or Environmental or Ecology or Conservation Sciences.
• 6 Years relevant experience