Land the perfect career opportunity working with nature

AMBITIOUS net zero targets mean significant changes are required across Scotland’s economy – and the jobs we do must also adapt if we are to create a better world for nature and people.

That is the message from NatureScot as it prepares for a week of events and activities aimed at raising awareness of the skills and jobs needed for a nature-rich, low-carbon future.

Based on existing evidence, the land-based and nature-based sector is struggling to recruit new people and the current workforce needed to implement nature-based solutions to climate change is insufficient in number, skills and training. 

Ivan Clark, Nature-based Skills and Jobs Manager at NatureScot, says out of date perceptions about land-based jobs are one of the barriers to greater participation, while pathways can be a confusing mixture of acronyms, course details and choices.

NatureScot's Skills and Jobs Manager, Ivan Clark

“The perception is that ‘nature-based’ or ‘land-based’ jobs are just about getting your hands dirty,” explains Ivan. 

“But in practice they involve for example, new digital jobs in satellite data analysis and remote sensing techniques, highly qualified specialisms such as hydrologists, ecologists and civil engineers and highly skilled plant and machinery operators on the ground.”

He adds: “A good example of the breadth of knowledge and experience required is Scotland’s peatland restoration project.

“It is one of our biggest infrastructure projects, and it requires a huge range of skills, from JCB drivers to digital mapping experts.

“Scotland has ambitious plans for restoring nature and tackling the climate emergency, so it is a big challenge. There is a skilled workforce out there, and we want to harness that – but it needs the right people with the right skills in the right place to do it.”

The nature-based sector makes a significant contribution to the Scottish economy, amounting to around 195,000 jobs or 7.5 per cent of Scotland’s workforce in 2019.  

Nature-based jobs grew at more than five times the rate of all jobs in Scotland in the period between 2015 and 2019 and accounted for one-third of all job growth during those years.

Significant further growth in nature-based sectors, such as peatland restoration, green infrastructure, woodland creation and blue carbon between now and 2030 is expected to be significant.

“Scotland has a wide variety of nature, landscapes and microclimates, and there is an equally broad demand on those natural resources, from food and timber production, to providing ecosystem services such as flood protection, climate change mitigation and adaptation, pollination and opportunities for recreation,” explains Ivan.

“The knowledge and skills requirements for those who work within the land-based and aquaculture sector are no less diverse. The increase in skilled jobs needed to meet long-term Scottish climate and biodiversity targets is a big opportunity for the Scottish wellbeing economy.  

“New jobs being created range from peatland ecologists, hydrologists and civil engineers to roles in green finance, remote-sensing, natural flood management, low-carbon architecture and sustainable urban planning.”  

Above, the Working with Rivers graduate scheme has been a big success. 

To learn more about all the opportunities available, NatureScot is running Nature Restoration Jobs and Skills Week, from March 14 to 17, with a range of training events for the public and more specialist audiences all over Scotland.

Topics for the public events range from how to create a frog pond and fencing and tree-planting techniques, to whale-tracking and understanding the science behind climate change. 

Specialist sessions include the creation of green roofs and turning amenity grasslands into wildflower meadows.

Introducing awareness of nature-based jobs at secondary schools is a key aim of NatureScot’s work in this area, explains Ivan.

“We are already talking to Education Scotland about how to improve this – for example, one of the areas looked at by the Commission for Land-Based Learning Review is the school estate, and how spaces in and around schools could be used for more outdoor learning,” he says.

“Many subjects, such as biology, geography and maths, can be taught using outdoor resources.”

On the same day as the conference, NatureScot is providing an opportunity for schools to engage with a range of professionals through its Nature-based Jobs and Skills Showcase online event.

Speakers include young professionals already working in the sector, in areas such as deer management, countryside ranger roles and green finance, who will talk about why jobs helping to restore nature can be so rewarding and about their own pathway to success in a nature-based job.

“Young people will be able to log in and ask questions, and find out more about what nature-based jobs look like,” says Ivan.  

“We hope young people will be inspired to consider a career in the nature-based sector. 

“If we’re going to tackle twin climate and nature crises in the years to come, we need everyone to play their part.”

For more information about Nature Restoration Jobs and Skills Week, 
visit www.nature.scot/doc/nature-restoration-jobs-and-skills-week-13-17-march-2023

-----------------------------------------------------

‘My placement was perfect – you need to get your foot in the door’

VICKY Johnson moved to Scotland from South Africa two years ago, armed with a plethora of qualifications and a passion for conservation. Finding work proved difficult, however.

“I had a degree in botany, ichthyology and fisheries science, an Honours degree in biodiversity and conservation, and a Masters in phycology – lots of academic qualifications, but no UK experience,” she explains.

“I was working in a college kitchen when I heard about the Working with Rivers graduate placement scheme, and it sounded perfect. Sometimes you just need to get a foot in the door.”

After the success of last year’s programme, NatureScot has teamed up with Graduate Career Advantage Scotland (GCAS) and Fisheries Management Scotland (FMS) to run a second Working with Rivers placement scheme.

It supports recent graduates looking to gain experience and skills in the river restoration sector, combining on-the-job learning in both office and outdoor environments, with development experiences in a range of areas, such as river restoration, natural flood management, Invasive Non Native Species (INNS) control and riparian woodland creation. 

Originally from Cape Town, Vicky loved being close to nature from a young age.

“I was always outside,” she laughs. “I grew up hill climbing and watching wildlife – everything was focussed on nature and the outdoors.

“After my studies, I became a mountain guide and realised that I wanted to do more around environmental education and spreading the message. I did some conservation based tour guiding, worked for an environmental education company, and helped set up a vulture conservation project.”

Vicky moved to Scotland with her boyfriend Rob, who is a fish farmer, when he got a job here in 2021.

“The placement was amazing,” she says. “I was placed with the Galloway Fisheries Trust based in Newton Stewart. I had experience of working in conservation in South Africa, but this introduced me to the kinds of environmental challenges Scotland is facing. 

“I had the opportunity to do my own project, which focussed on invasive weed control on the River Urr and because I was part of the team, I got the chance to go out and help on a whole range of things, such as surveys, tree-planting, habitat restoration and fish rescues.”

Vicky adds: “I was also put through different training courses, and received qualifications in pesticide spraying and developing a catchment wide river restoration plan which was a brilliant opportunity.”

After completion of the placement, Vicky was offered a six-month contract with the Nith Catchment Fishery Trust (NCFT), a charitable organisation working to conserve and enhance all native freshwater fish and their habitats in the inland and coastal waters of the River Nith. Here, that she gained qualifications and skills in electrofishing and invertebrate identification.

She is now a peatland and geomapping intern, funded by the Galloway Glens, with the Crichton Carbon Centre.

“I am interested in water quality and flood mitigation and am really enjoying learning about the relationship between peatland and water,” she explains. “I was working in the rivers and I am now in the hills, and it is really fascinating to see how the landscape works together.

“Programmes like Working with Rivers are really important, not just in helping people get jobs, but also in raising awareness of the variety of nature-based jobs that exist.”
Vicky adds: “You could work in communications, marketing, data science…be based in the office or outdoors – there are so many opportunities. 

“The placement gave me such a wide range of experience that it allowed me to see where my interests lie and really focus on what I wanted to do.”

--------------------------------------

Virtual event's green outlook

AS well as the critical need to support young people’s employment opportunities, there is a need for lifelong learning as individuals, communities and organisations to ensure as a society we understand what the climate emergency means for our lives, our society and businesses.  

In order to support a just transition to net zero, it is essential to help people find new skills to access new job opportunities, and to help their employers respond to the climate and biodiversity challenges.

To support this need, NatureScot is hosting Scotland’s first Nature Restoration Skills Conference on March 13. The virtual event will include a headline address by Lorna Slater, the Scottish Government’s Minister for Green Skills, Circular Economy and Biodiversity.

The purpose is to raise awareness of the skills and opportunities to restore Scotland’s nature to tackle climate change, in a way that provides new opportunities for business and for Scotland’s workforce.  

The audience will include policy makers, learning and training providers, careers service providers and representatives of relevant public, third sector and business sectors that are (or could be) engaged in activity related to nature restoration.

Other confirmed speakers include NatureScot’s chief executive Francesca Osowska; Nikki Yoxall, representing UK Nature Friendly Farming Network and Liz Barron-Majerik from Lantra Scotland.