Hiring Organization:
Centre for Compassionate Conservation,
University of Technology Sydney
Date posted:
2017
-
05
-
03
Position
Description:
We are
looking for a research assistant to help run
a pilot study on the behaviour of semi
-
wild
Asian elephants in a forest sanctuary in northern Thailand.
There is a family of elephants that
are free
-
living in a native forest. We are looking for someone to observe and document the day
-
to
-
day behaviour of t
hese elephants.
The research assistant will be responsible for the following tasks:
1. Identifying individuals
2. Collecting behavioural data
3. Recording behavioural data
4. Developing a comprehensive ethogram
5. Photographing/recording the elephants
6.
Data entry and data back
-
up
Field work is scheduled to begin in July
(flexible start date)
.
The research assistant must be able
to commit to at least 2 months.
Qualification/Experience:
1. A strong background in
animal behaviour
, biology, zoology, psychology,
animal welfare,
veterinary studies, conservation, or a related field.
2
. Experience traveling or living in
southeast Asia
(ideal but not required)
4. The ability to work both independently and as part of a multi
-
cultural tea
m
5. Physically healthy and capable
of working in a hot, tropical
climate
6. The ability to hike fairly steep terrain for an extended period of time
7
. Motivated & responsible with a sense of humor
8
. The ability to trouble
-
shoot problems
9
. Prior
experience doing fieldwork in animal behavior is a big plus, but not required
depending
upon other qualifications
Location:
Remote village/forest in northern Thailand.
Salary/funding:
No salary is provided; however, accommodation
is provided. We are also able to offer a
contribution towards airfare.
Depending upon where the research assistant is coming from,
roundtrip airfare may be fully covered.
The field site is in a remot
e village in northern Thailand.
The
accommodation is
very basic but
clean and comfortable. Toilets are mostly western but some are Asian bucket
-
style. The
showers are a traditional bucket shower with no hot water.
The field assistant is responsible f
or
obtaining medical insurance.
The successful candidate wi
ll be required to regularly camp in the
forest. You will always be accompanied by others when camping.
This is an excellent opportunity for Masters or
experienced
Bachelors students who are
interested in continuing on a career in
animal behaviour
,
animal
welfare,
and/
or conservation.
If approved by the project PIs, it may be possible for the student to use some of the data
collected for a thesis or to contribute to publications.
For information about graduate/postgraduate research opportunities at the Ce
ntre for
Compa
ssionate Conservation see here:
http://www.uts.edu.au/research
-
and
-
teaching/our
-
research/centre
-
compassionate
-
conservation
.
Term of Appointment
:
2
-
3 months starting in early
July
; somewhat flexible
.
Application Deadline:
June 10, 2017
Comments:
Please submit your CV, a cover letter outlining your interests, motivation for applying, relevant
experiences, and the names and contact information for two references. Please email this
information to
ba
kerliv@gmail.com
by
June 10,
2017. Applications will be evaluated as they are
received until the position is filled.
Contact information:
Dr. Liv Baker
University of Technology Sydney
Sydney, Australia
Email address:
bakerliv@gmail.com