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Senior Ecologist - Nature Technology

Pioneer the next generation of nature software

Summary

  • UK-based, remote team with regular in-person meet-ups (candidates must be based in the UK)
  • £Competitive + share options
  • Help build tools to accelerate nature recovery globally

About Verna

We're building the global insight and management platform for nature programmes, enabling our customers to radically accelerate nature recovery worldwide.

Corporates, public bodies, and NGOs are allocating hundreds of $billions for nature recovery. But their work is held back by the unique challenges of nature programmes. Commitments made in the boardroom are hard to turn into reality on-site. Projects run for decades, involve dozens of organisations, and rely on data that is complex, scattered, and incomplete.

Software can make a revolutionary impact on this problem. Verna builds products that help users - including both ecologists and non-experts - to plan, deliver, and assure nature recovery. Our first product, Mycelia, has become the leading software solution for the Biodiversity Net Gain methodology, and is used by over 100 organisations across more than 10,000 nature projects. We are soon to launch our second product, which uses the latest AI to help multi-nationals achieve a global step-change in nature action.

We are backed by top investors and generating strong revenues, giving us a strong foundation from which to pursue our mission.

Role

We're looking for an exceptional ecologist to bring leading-edge ecological science and practice into the products we build.

You will work closely with our Director of Ecology and with our software development team, from first design conversations through to product releases. You’ll bring the ecological science and knowhow that underpins how our products accelerate nature recovery - helping users to analyse data, make decisions, and monitor and communicate delivery. You’ll also be our eyes and ears on how ecology is developing, keeping us abreast of the very latest innovations in technology and practice.

We're a small, well-funded team building something ambitious. This means you'll get the autonomy and impact of a start-up, with the stability of a company that has strong revenue and years of runway.

Responsibilities

You will bring deep ecological expertise to the development of Verna's products.

To achieve this, your responsibilities will include:

  • Ensure product development is underpinned by ecological science, so that our software helps users to achieve verifiable nature recovery in the most effective way possible.
  • Provide insight into how ecologists think, feel, and work. Ecologists are a key user segment for our products, and their work informs how we support all types of user. You will act as an internal source of user insight, alongside our direct engagement with users.
  • Collaborate with the software team. Enable our product development work to embed ecological principles and insight from the outset, working hand in hand with software engineers and designers.
  • Keep Verna on the leading edge of ecology innovation, tracking new technologies and best practices that we can use or support.
  • Represent Verna in the ecological science community, including sharing learnings from the unique data we are generating.

This is a hands-on role in a small team, in a company and sector that are changing fast. The role is likely to evolve over time.

We operate as a remote team, with London office bases available. The whole team meets in person every quarter, somewhere in Central or Southern England, with travel and accommodation provided by Verna.

Our approach to AI

AI is reshaping what is possible in nature recovery. We believe that the cost of not using AI to tackle the nature crisis is far greater than the environmental cost of running AI models. If you want to know more about Verna's attitude to AI and the environment, read our article on Why an environmental company uses AI – and why we'd be wrong not to.

We expect everyone in the Verna team to be thoughtful, fluent users of AI in their daily work. This includes knowing how to get the best from AI, how to spot risks and mistakes, and staying on the leading edge of AI methodologies.

About you

This role will suit an experienced ecologist with strong technical skills, who wants the challenge and impact of shaping a global product in a mission-driven start up.

We are looking for:

  • Mission-driven: You are motivated by the impact of your work on nature recovery.
  • Ecological expertise: Strong grounding in ecological concepts and methods, with experience across a range of habitats, taxa, and project types. Experience outside the UK, or with global datasets, is a plus.
  • Ecological qualifications: BSc and/or MSc in ecology or a closely related subject. Have, or be eligible for, membership of CIEEM or an equivalent professional body.
  • Data and analysis expertise: Comfortable working with modelling and data analysis, including use of software tooling.
  • Enthusiasm for tech: Excited by what software and hardware innovation can bring to ecology, with a track record of experimenting with the latest opportunities - including AI.
  • Collaboration and communication: Motivated by working with other disciplines to build things together, and able to communicate clearly with people who aren’t expert ecologists.
  • Delivery focus: Focused on delivering on-time and to standard, taking a pragmatic attitude that does not make perfect the enemy of great. This is a pressured, fast-paced start-up environment, where timely, high-quality outputs are essential to success.
  • Curious and keen to learn: We are an agile team using leading-edge technology to work on difficult problems. All team members need to quickly learn new skills and capabilities. It’s not what everyone wants from their career, but highly challenging and rewarding for the people it suits.

Like ecosystems, teams are more vibrant, innovative, and resilient when they are more diverse. We welcome applications from everyone.

How to apply

To apply, please fill in the application form.

The next step, for candidates taken forward, is a 20-minute intro call with our Director of Ecology, Helen Nyul. After that, there are two interview stages plus references. We aim to give candidates feedback after each stage within days, and to complete the end-to-end process for a candidate within a few weeks.

If you would like to ask any questions before deciding whether to apply, you can email careers@verna.earth with subject line “Ecologist”.