The training post

We are recruiting an ‘Oppenheimer Impact Scholar’, a training post that combines a full studentship to undertake a 12-month MSc Conservation and Biodiversity at the University of Exeter’s Penryn Campus in the UK, followed by a research associate post based with the African Wildlife Foundation (AWF) in either Kenya or Uganda for a further 12 months. This project focuses on supporting better practice in landscape management. The project is part of the Oppenheimer Programme in African Landscape Systems (OPALS, jointly funded by the University of Exeter and Oppenheimer Generations Research and Conservation).

OPALS seeks to: (i) Support a strong, credible, and connected voice for African communities, land managers and researchers in the global climate and ecological crisis; (ii) Co-produce science-based solutions to understand, mitigate and adapt to environmental change, growing sustainable and resilient socio-environmental systems in Africa; and (iii) Support leadership in environmentally sustainable management across Africa.

The post will commence in September 2024. The award will cover international tuition fees for the MSc programme and a tax-free stipend of £17,668 for one year, followed by a salary of USD $1,300-2,000 per month depending on experience, qualifications, and location while employed as a research associate. Additional funds are available to support the impact delivery of this project.

The challenge

As Africa’s population grows and the impacts of climate change are increasingly felt, it is increasingly urgent to develop and deploy robust models with scope to manage the ever-increasing and sometimes conflicting demands placed on nature in Africa’s biodiversity critical landscapes. Integrated landscape management approaches that put communities at the heart of conservation-driven development approaches to halt and ultimately reverse biodiversity decline seem central to more sustainable social-ecological systems. But many biodiverse landscapes in Africa have mixed land-use involving multiple stakeholders with varying priorities – from Government managing protected areas with limited finance, to community owned land with limited livelihood options, to large footprint agriculture or forestry private sector businesses that can seriously and very quickly destroy wildlife habitat.  Whilst all rely in one way or another on nature, different interests often present obstacles to or undo holistic nature resource management and governance solutions that protect the biodiversity that sustains life at all levels.

African Wildlife Foundation

The African Wildlife Foundation is a primary advocate for the protection of wildlife and wild lands as an essential part of a modern and prosperous Africa. Founded in 1961 to focus on Africa’s conservation needs, AWF articulates a uniquely African vision, bridges science and public policy, and demonstrates the benefits of conservation to ensure the survival of the continent’s wildlife and wild lands. AWF works in 17 biodiversity critical landscapes in ten countries in Africa and has strong partnerships with governments that support them to deliver international commitments on nature. Its 60+ years of experience in Africa have also informed an integrated landscape management approach that puts communities at the heart of conservation-driven development approaches that halt and ultimately reverse biodiversity decline. 

The project

This OPALS Impact Scholarship provides a two-year training programme to develop models of good practice in landscapes that address one of the following current challenges:

1) AWF is seeking to review and refine the co-production processes and outcomes for landscape governance models, to ensure that the needs of different stakeholders are better met and that relevant stakeholders take ownership of compromises that need to be made towards ecological viability of important large landscapes as a whole.

2) Against the backdrop of a significant gap in finance for nature, the private sector is increasingly engaging in the idea of investing in nature offering huge opportunities to protect natural ecosystems. Nowhere is investment more needed than in community livelihoods that incentivise the protection of wildlife and habitat. Community access to carbon markets and newer innovations such as models for nature/biodiversity credits potentially offer pathways for communities out of poverty in ways that are positive for the natural environment and that build resilience to climate change. AWF would like to explore ways to translate/adopt such innovations in one or more of their focal landscapes in East Africa: e.g., Kenya (Tsavo-Mkomazi National Park) or Uganda (Murchison Falls National Park).

3) There is growing recognition of the rights of indigenous peoples and local communities to own and manage the natural resources they rely on. AWF’s experience shows that when communities have both a stake in the management of natural resources and access to viable sustainable livelihoods, the incentives are in place for biodiversity and habitat conservation. But land under conservation management by communities/community conservancies is often not considered at national level to be under conservation management even though it plays a significant role in protecting wildlife and ecosystem stability. AWF would like to explore how to identify, assess the natural capital of and bring into national processes that monitor and resource commitments to the Global Biodiversity Framework Target 3 (30x30). 

The Supervisors

• Dr Tom Powell, Oppenheimer Impact Fellow, University of Exeter
• Dr Andrew Cunliffe, Oppenheimer Senior Research Fellow, University of Exeter
• Dr Philip Muruthi, Chief Scientist, African Wildlife Foundation

The person

The successful applicant should be passionate about promoting ‘futures literacy’ in society. They will be a member of a large team of 20 scholars through the wider programme of foundational and applied research activity, working with Oppenheimer Generations Research and Conservation and other partners across the Continent. They will be supported to engage with the broader OPALS activity, such as events at Exeter, presenting their findings at research conferences, contributing to reports on project activity, and ensuring that all outputs (data, models, publications etc.) are ultimately made available open access for wider benefit.

Entry requirements

Candidates must hold citizenship of an African Nation. The ability to legally work in Kenya and/or Uganda will be considered essential to this Scholarship.

Applicants for this studentship must have obtained qualifications equivalent to a First or Upper Second Class UK Honours degree, in an appropriate area of science or technology and have applied for a place on MSc Conservation and Biodiversity at Exeter for September 2024 entry.

The candidate should have a foundation in ecology, sustainable development, natural resource management, conservation, human or physical geography, environmental science, environmental social science, or a related subject. They should have basic numeracy and relevant skills to enable them to undertake basic quantitative analysis of environmental data. They should have an understanding of conservation challenges in African landscapes, a willingness to conduct fieldwork in remote locations, and a passion to inform adaptive management options to have a positive impact in society. Please refer to the person specification for additional information on the selection criteria.

You will need to meet our English language requirements. For details about the specific English language requirements for our Postgraduate programmes, please see here.

How to apply

Please apply using the online application form.

Please note that you will be required to provide your nine-digit student number as part of the application process, which will be provided to you when you submit an application for MSc Conservation and Biodiversity.

In the application process you will be asked to upload several documents: 

• Letter of application in English (2-page maximum, outlining your academic interests, prior research experience, and motivation to undertake this project, and explicitly confirming how you are legally entitled to work in the Republic of Kenya and/or the Republic of Uganda).
• CV (4-pages maximum, do not include photographs, ethnicity, date of birth, marital status, or religion etc as under UK law these protected characteristics will not be considered, and please refer to the person specification for the areas of assessment).
• Transcript(s) giving full details of subjects studied and grades/marks obtained (if you are still studying this should be an interim transcript).
• Names and contact details of two referees familiar with your academic/professional work. You are not required to obtain references yourself. We will request references directly from your referees if you are shortlisted.
• If you are not a national of a majority English-speaking country, you will need to submit evidence of your proficiency in English.

The closing date for applications is midnight GMT on 22nd of April 2024. Interviews are expected to be held virtually in late May 2024.

If you have general enquiries about the programme application process, please visit our Postgraduate study pages or submit your questions here or phone +44 (0) 1392 661000. Project-specific queries should be directed to Dr Tom Powell (t.powell@exeter.ac.uk) and/or Dr Andrew Cunliffe (a.cunliffe@exeter.ac.uk).

Summary