Job Postings

• Summer Assistants

  Job Description

  The Marine Education and Research Society (MERS) is a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting conservation and understanding of marine ecosystems through scientific research, environmental education, and marine wildlife response.  We are based in Port McNeill, on northeastern Vancouver Island, British Columbia in the Territory of the Kwakwala-speaking People. For more information about MERS’ research, education, and wildlife response efforts, see www.mersociety.org.
  
  The Summer Assistant will be a key part of the team for our marine conservation non-profit during busy summer months. The employee will actively participate in both the research and education sides of our work to ensure that we are not only collecting and managing an important, long-term dataset, but also engaging others in ways we can better protect the marine environment. 
  
  This person in this position will help collect, process and analyze data on marine mammals and other marine species for MERS research (~50% of time). This will include: 
  
  - Processing the large volume of Humpback Whale data collected year-round within our study area (Comox to Bella Bella and NW Vancouver Island). This includes identifying individual whales from photographic data, data entry, database management and communicating with data contributors.
  
  - Assisting the MERS Team with maintenance of the MERS Humpback Whale catalogue and the greater Canadian Pacific Humpback Collaboration’s coast-wide database.
  
  - Maintaining relationships and engagement with data contributors by providing near real-time feedback on the identifications of individual whales. 
  
  - Occasional fieldwork to assist the research team in collecting marine mammal data. 
  
  The position will also help MERS achieve our educational objectives and communicate our research findings for the purposes of marine conservation and boater safety (~35% of time). This will include: 
  
  - Targeted boater education through marina visits and community events to increase awareness of threats to whales posed by vessels, how to mitigate them, and how to reduce the risk of boater injury from collision and entanglement. 
  
  - Educating the high volume of boaters and visitors to the MERS office about the marine wildlife of the area, the threats to their populations, how these threats can be reduced, and MERS’ work. 
  
  -Liaising with residents of northern Vancouver Island and the local marine ecotourism community to solicit data and provide resources and information for conservation purposes.
  
  -Assisting with development of educational materials for displays in the office space and for both in-person and online outreach activities, as needed. 
  
  Finally, this position will help with the running of MERS’ Ocean Store that raises funds for our charitable activities (~15% of time). This will include: assisting customers, processing sales, maintaining stock and displays, and cleaning.
  
  The Research and Education Assistants will receive day-to-day supervision and support from the Outreach and Research Coordinators. As a small team, they will work closely with all MERS staff, data contributors, and volunteers with a culture of open communication and collaboration.
  
  Salary: $22.50/hour
  
  Work term:  12 to 14 week contract at 37.5 hours/week with anticipated start dates of May 22, 2025*. This position is based in Port McNeill, BC. Successful applicants will be required to attend the Marine Mammal Naturalist Course in Campbell River (May 30 - June 2).
  
  Application deadline: February 9, 2025 at 11:45 PM PDT
  
  Application:  Please send a resume with 3 references (name, position and email address) with a minimum of 2 references being employment contacts, and a cover letter outlining your suitability for the position via email to info@mersociety.org. Please label resume and cover letter firstname_lastname_resume and firstname_lastname_coverletter.
  
  Selection procedure:
  1) Online interview via Zoom: Shortlisted applicants will be contacted by February 17th  to schedule an online interview.
  2) Matching Exercise: Applicants will be further short-listed from the online interview and contacted to complete an exercise to assess their ability to match whale IDs.
  
  *This position, start date, and duration are pending approval of funding.

  Skills & Qualification

  Hiring priorities:
  The Marine Education and Research Society is committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion. Priority will be given to those candidates who have the necessary qualifications and self-identify as belonging to underrepresented groups e.g. BIPOC youth, women in STEM, and youth with disabilities.

  Successful candidates: 

  The ideal candidate is an early-career biologist or conservation-focused student who is interested in learning about the different aspects of the marine conservation sector. This position will obtain in-depth learning about marine mammals and other marine species in BC.

  Successful candidates will develop skills related to citizen science, scientific collaboration, data management, and field skills. They will learn how to use relevant biological knowledge and communication strategies in order to effectively communicate and engage the public in research and conservation issues to motivate positive change.

  Other assets include:

  • Strong attention to detail and organizational skills
  • Comfortable working in databases and diligence in entering data
  • Great communication, including some experience in public speaking and engaging audiences
  • Keen interest in marine biology and understanding and biological concepts; previous knowledge of BC’s marine mammal species an asset
  • Excellent teamwork and ability to work independently
  • Willingness to accept feedback and learn
  • Comfortable using, or learning to use, software including: Microsoft Office Suite, Google programs, Photo Mechanic, Filemaker, Adobe computer programs, Canva, and social media platforms
  • Ability to take on a variety of tasks with flexibility, adapting to the changing needs of the role
  • Access to a vehicle for outreach events; mileage will be compensated.

  As per anticipated funding requirements, candidates must also be:

  • 30 years or younger
  • Canadian citizens, permanent residents or have refugee protection under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act

  Apply