Escarpment Biosphere Conservancy is hiring a full-time remote GIS Coordinator in Ontario, Canada, offering $55,000–$70,000 annually plus benefits and opportunities to support major conservation projects.
Escarpment Biosphere Conservancy is offering an exciting opportunity for an experienced Geographic Information Systems (GIS) professional to join its growing conservation team as a GIS Coordinator. The full-time, permanent position offers an annual salary of $55,000 to $70,000, depending on qualifications and experience, together with a comprehensive health benefits package and flexible working arrangements.
The position is primarily remote, with occasional travel opportunities across Ontario to support conservation projects and field activities.
The Escarpment Biosphere Conservancy is one of Ontario’s leading charitable land trusts and has worked since 1997 to permanently protect ecologically significant natural areas. The organization has already protected more than 25,000 acres of forests, wetlands, alvars, shorelines and Niagara Escarpment landscapes through land acquisition, conservation easements and long-term stewardship.
As part of its Living Landscapes Campaign, the organization aims to protect an additional 8,000 acres by 2030 while strengthening its capacity to manage and steward protected lands for future generations.
About the GIS Coordinator Opportunity
The GIS Coordinator will play a central role in helping the organization make informed conservation decisions. Rather than functioning solely as a traditional GIS technician, the successful candidate will use geographic information, spatial analysis and mapping to support conservation planning across the organization.
The coordinator will work with land securement, stewardship, conservation planning, fundraising, communications and senior management teams. The role will involve maintaining spatial databases, developing conservation analyses, producing professional maps and creating decision-support tools.
The successful candidate will also have an opportunity to help shape how GIS information is collected, managed, analyzed and applied as the organization continues to expand.
The position is full-time at 37.5 hours per week and reports to the Manager of Land Securement while providing GIS support across departments.
Although the position is advertised as remote, there may be opportunities for travel to important conservation landscapes throughout Ontario, including the Niagara Escarpment, Saugeen Peninsula and Manitoulin Island.
Key Responsibilities
Conservation Planning and GIS Analysis
The GIS Coordinator will support the development and refinement of the organization’s conservation geography and priority mapping. This will include analyzing natural heritage, ecological, geological, hydrological, landscape and planning information
The coordinator will develop spatial analyses to identify conservation priorities, ecological connectivity opportunities, areas of natural heritage significance and landscape-scale conservation opportunities.
Another important responsibility will be evaluating potential conservation properties within their wider landscape context. The coordinator will also identify data gaps, inconsistencies, limitations and potential biases while helping ensure that GIS methodologies are reliable and defensible.
Because many decision-makers may not have technical GIS backgrounds, the successful candidate will need to translate complex spatial analyses into practical recommendations.
Land Securement
GIS will be an important part of the organization’s process for identifying and protecting land. The coordinator will prepare property maps and spatial information for potential conservation projects and assist with preliminary property screening and conservation due diligence.
This may involve analyzing property boundaries, natural heritage features, planning designations, protected lands, roads, water features and other relevant spatial information.
Maps and GIS information will also support landowner meetings, conservation agreements, Ecological Gifts, surveys, appraisals, legal reviews and closing processes.
The coordinator will maintain accurate GIS records of newly protected properties and other conservation interests.
Stewardship and Field Data
The successful candidate will support mapping and spatial analysis for nature preserves and conservation easements. This will include maintaining information on conservation boundaries, ecological features, trails, access points, infrastructure, restoration areas and management activities.
The role will also involve supporting GPS/GIS field-data collection and preparing maps for stewardship planning, ecological monitoring, restoration and property management.
The coordinator will help identify opportunities for landscape-scale restoration and stewardship while supporting the implementation of Landscape Land Conservation Software.
Responsibilities will include coordinating data migration, updating layers, troubleshooting GIS-related issues and supporting efficient long-term conservation management. The coordinator will also assist staff with the Landscape database, stewardship monitoring, work-item inventories and trail management.
GIS Data, Systems and Mapping
The GIS Coordinator will maintain the organization’s GIS database and spatial data infrastructure. The position will involve integrating information from municipal, provincial and federal agencies, conservation authorities, Indigenous sources and other organizations.
The coordinator will establish and maintain standards for data organization, metadata, naming conventions, symbology and quality control. They will also document data sources, currency, limitations and appropriate uses.
The organization is interested in improving its efficiency through tools such as automation, web GIS, dashboards and conservation software.
The coordinator will also produce professional maps for Board meetings, landowner discussions, conservation projects, stewardship activities, funding applications, reports, presentations and public communications.
GIS Capacity Building
An important aspect of the role will be helping other employees make effective use of GIS. The successful candidate will provide technical advice, develop simple procedures and training materials, and support the use of mobile GIS and field-data collection tools.
The coordinator will be expected to remain informed about developments in GIS technology, conservation planning and Ontario’s natural heritage information.
Qualifications
The ideal candidate will have post-secondary education in Geographic Information Systems, Geography, Environmental Science, Natural Resources, Planning or a related field
Candidates should have at least three years of progressively responsible GIS experience and strong experience with ArcGIS Pro. Experience in spatial analysis, cartography and spatial-data management is also important.
The organization is seeking someone with a strong understanding of data quality, metadata, coordinate systems and GIS best practices.
Excellent organizational, analytical and project-management skills will be important because the coordinator will manage multiple projects and work with different departments.
The successful candidate must also be able to explain technical information clearly to people without specialist GIS knowledge.
A valid driver’s licence and willingness to travel throughout Ontario are required.
Additional Experience Considered an Asset
Experience in conservation organizations, charitable land trusts, Ontario natural heritage systems, municipal planning, Official Plans or Niagara Escarpment planning would be beneficial
Experience with ArcGIS Online, Field Maps, Survey123, dashboards, web GIS, GPS/GNSS data collection, spatial modelling or multi-criteria decision analysis would also strengthen an application.
Knowledge of LiDAR, remote sensing, aerial imagery, environmental datasets or GIS automation using Python, SQL, ModelBuilder or Arcade would be an advantage.
Experience with Landscape Land Conservation Software, as well as incorporating Indigenous knowledge, local knowledge or community-based information into conservation planning, would also be valuable.
What the Organization Is Looking For
The Escarpment Biosphere Conservancy is looking for a professional who is curious, analytical, highly organized and detail-oriented.
The ideal candidate will be conservation-minded, creative, diplomatic and comfortable working both independently and collaboratively. They should be able to work with imperfect or incomplete datasets while understanding the importance of data limitations, uncertainty and potential bias.
Most importantly, the organization wants someone who recognizes that effective GIS supports effective conservation decisions.
Salary and Benefits
The successful candidate will receive an annual salary of $55,000–$70,000, depending on qualifications and experience.
The position also offers:
- Comprehensive health benefits
- Flexible work arrangements
- Professional development opportunities
- A supportive and welcoming team environment
- A strong focus on employee wellness
- Opportunities to shape the organization’s growing GIS capacity
- Opportunities to work across some of Ontario’s most spectacular natural landscapes
- Meaningful work contributing directly to the permanent protection of important natural areas
Why Join Escarpment Biosphere Conservancy?
The role provides an opportunity to combine professional GIS expertise with environmental conservation. The organization is entering an important period of growth, with plans to protect thousands of additional acres, expand stewardship programs, strengthen Indigenous relationships and improve landscape-scale conservation planning.
The GIS Coordinator will therefore have an opportunity to influence how conservation opportunities are identified and evaluated, how protected lands are managed and how conservation impact is communicated.
The position could be particularly attractive to GIS professionals who want their technical skills to have a direct environmental and social impact.
How to Apply
Applications will be accepted until the position is filled, and the start date is immediate, with some flexibility.
Interested candidates should submit both a cover letter and resume by email to [email protected]. Applicants should include their name and the position title, GIS Coordinator, in the email subject line.
The organization states that applications submitted through LinkedIn or other online career portals will not be considered.
The Escarpment Biosphere Conservancy welcomes applications from racialized groups, ethnic minorities, women, Indigenous People, people with disabilities and +2SLGBTQ people. It describes the opportunity as an equity employment opportunity and encourages members of the identified communities to self-identify.
Only candidates selected for interviews will be contacted.
For GIS professionals passionate about conservation, this opportunity offers the chance to use spatial technology to help protect some of Ontario’s most important natural landscapes while contributing to the long-term growth of a major conservation organization.
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