Senior Technical Manager, Nature Markets

About the role

Conservation International is seeking a Senior Technical Manager, Nature Markets, to lead the technical assessment, design and development of high-integrity nature-market projects across Africa. The preferred locations are Cape Town or Johannesburg, South Africa, or Nairobi, Kenya, but candidates from other CI Africa locations will also be considered. The role reports to the Director, Nature Markets and does not directly supervise staff.

Key responsibilities

• Evaluate proposed nature-market projects, including ecological baselines, additionality, durability, attribution and the credibility of claimed outcomes
• Review ecological assessments, biodiversity datasets, surveys, sampling designs, monitoring frameworks and verification approaches, and give evidence-based recommendations to strengthen project design
• Guide project development from scoping and feasibility through design and implementation, assessing the suitability of nature credits, payments for ecosystem services, biodiversity offsets and water markets
• Oversee feasibility studies, project documentation, ecological assessments and monitoring plans, including external consultants, and identify technical and implementation risks
• Contribute to technical guidance, assessment tools and quality assurance approaches, and support safeguards, governance and benefit-sharing arrangements
• Coordinate technical consultants, multidisciplinary teams, workplans, budgets, risks and reporting

Required profile

• Bachelor's degree in ecology, conservation science, biodiversity science, wildlife biology or a closely related field
• 5 to 7 years of experience in applied ecology, conservation management or ecological assessment
• Experience developing, assessing or implementing conservation, nature-market, carbon-market or conservation finance projects
• Experience with safeguard development and implementation
• Preferred: Master's degree and specialized expertise in biodiversity assessment, ecological monitoring, additionality, durability and leakage, and experience with nature credits, biodiversity offsets or PES
• Legal eligibility to work in one of the African countries where CI operates, without visa sponsorship

Required skills

• Ability to design and run conservation monitoring programs and to translate complex technical findings into practical recommendations
• Excellent analytical, problem-solving, written and verbal communication skills in English
• Preferred: quantitative ecological analysis, statistics, GIS or remote sensing

Working conditions: normal office environment, full-time, about 30% travel within Africa (often to remote locations), and flexibility for multiple time zones. Applications are submitted by resume and cover letter, with a deadline of 20 November 2026.