Environmental Standards Coordinator - Seafood Certification Aquaculture
Ideally UK Based, but applications from any other countries may also be considered if skills and experience align. Full time (Mon-Fri), Flexi time, remote working, circa £40,000 - 50,000 per annum varying dependent on location, plus local benefits.
Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC) www.asc-aqua.org is an independent, not-for-profit organisation established in 2010 to set and operate global standards for responsible aquaculture. Certified farmed products are promoted to consumers through the use of its ASC-logo.
The aquaculture industry is growing strongly and is already supplying more than half of all seafood consumed worldwide, but this growing demand increases the environmental and social footprint associated with this expansion. The ASC certification and labelling programme incentivises improved farming practices by promoting the benefits of responsibly farmed seafood and encourages the industry towards achieving environmental sustainability and social responsibility.
We work across the globe with aquaculture producers, seafood processors, retail and foodservice companies, scientists, conservation groups and the public to make it very easy to recognize and buy farmed seafood that meets the highest environmental and social standards.
Overview
This role directly supports our ASC Standards Team, part of our wider Standards and Science (SAS) Department. We focus on our ASC core standards development and maintenance. Sounds simple enough, but there is a lot of work required to keep our certification standards to the highest level.
Our ASC Standards include criteria on impacts on biodiversity - farm siting in relation to Protected Areas, Human-wildlife conflict, Impacts from escaped animals, just to name a few! As global attention to biodiversity loss increases, dialogue on the potential role of aquaculture in these regions is expected to increase. Also, within the wider seafood and aquaculture certification landscape, ASC aspires to be a thought leader on this theme.
This role will be tasked with understanding and outlining this diverse and complex topic and developing specific content on this for the ASC Standards. It is expected that you will also coordinate a wider set of activities related to our Core Content Framework for the theme of biodiversity.
We need a knowledgeable expert on the topic, enabling you to interact with key stakeholders (producers, civil society organisations, and regulators) and facilitate information and knowledge sharing internally and externally.
Core Topics
Overall you will be acting as our internal expert to develop specific content for the theme of Biodiversity and apply this to our ASC Farm Standards. Your main focus will be to develop and integrate core environmental topics which will initially be aimed at:
1. Environmental Risk Assessment;
2. Ecologically of important habitats, including Protected Areas;
3. Wildlife interaction; and
4. Alien species interaction with native biodiversity.
Responsibilities
Standards Development:
* Manage the development and growth of environmental topics and requirements to integrate them to our ASC Farm standards.
* Facilitate technical work groups and develop programme content.
* Provide risk overview of impacts associated with potential changes in future versions of environmental requirements for our ASC standards.
Capacity and Knowledge Development:
* Facilitate cross-team working groups internally on the listed core topics as part of the wider ASC Core Content Framework (in relationship to Biodiversity).
* Act as main point of contact to provide technical knowledge and expertise on the core topics and the wider ASC standards requirements.
* Support stakeholders with the interpretation and implementation of environmental-related aspects of the ASC standards, and their requirements.
* Directly support the Standards and Science (SAS) Department with research, analysis of impacts and projects related to environmental topics.
* Proactively introduce updates on environmental-related workstreams to stakeholders, both internally and externally.
* Drive interactive, accessible and engaging stakeholder training on all environmental-related topics.
Engagement and Collaboration:
* Actively engage with the wider aquaculture industry, including producers, conformity assessment bodies (CABs), NGOs, Academia and others, to communicate and seek feedback on ASC's environmental topics and needs.
* Create high-quality and engaging written (and verbal) reports, papers, briefings, background documents, presentations and other updates, as needed.
* Represent ASC in multiple relevant forums, globally.
* Provide technical input on the ASC processes for managing requests for variation to standards content and interpretation of standards content.
Skills
* Degree qualified in a subject relevant to biodiversity / the environmental core topics.
* Extensive working experience in any (or all) of the core topics of focus for the role. Preferably in the Aquaculture sector (desirable).
* Strong moderation and influencing skills to lead stakeholder engagement as well as navigate differing/challenging opinions within technical working groups.
* Project coordination experience, with understanding of issues in overall seafood sustainability and the role of certification in it.
* Knowledge or curiosity of understanding the aquaculture industry, its production systems, and challenges.
* Excellent presentation, communication, engagement and reporting skills to adapt and shape these to suit a diverse range of audiences and stakeholders.
* Strong attention to detail with the ability to summarise and distil key points for briefings and formal advice.
* Fluent in spoken and written English. Any additional language skills will be seen as a great addition!
Profile
This role requires a proactive individual who can navigate challenges with creativity and determination while making a positive impact on both people and planet. We are seeking someone who;
* is an expert on these core environmental topics and is passionate about driving change to Impact both people and our planet for generations to come!
* enjoys working remotely as part of a global team with the resilience and self-motivation to work independently, with a high degree of trust
* can build and manage relationships with colleagues, stakeholders and others successfully, with a people-centered approach to work.
To Apply
Please send your CV and Cover letter application, in English, to recruitment@asc-aqua.org or one click apply to this advert. Please format your documents as: NAME.CV and NAME.Coverletter when applying.
Your application will be considered and we will make a shortlist of candidates to invite to interview. Sometimes you may be asked to prepare additional written materials, past work examples and / or a presentation. Interviews will generally be held via Teams.
ASC take data protection seriously. We will only use any personal information in connection with your application for this position. If your application is unsuccessful, we will keep your personal information for 6 months. For more information, please read our privacy policy which can be found here: https://www.asc-aqua.org/privacy/
We want to be an inclusive and diverse employer of choice, reflecting the global community and therefore particularly welcome applications from all underrepresented groups.