International Research Data Officer at University of Leeds

**Location: Leeds – Main Campus**

This position is primarily based at the university campus and offers the possibility of a hybrid working arrangement. We are open to discussing flexible work options as well.

Are you interested in joining an exciting research project that investigates the role of central African tropical forests in mitigating climate change? Do you have strong quantitative data management and analysis skills? Are you adept at assisting others with data management?

We have a new opportunity to support the CongoFor1.5 project, which aims to understand the changing ecology and carbon dynamics of the Congo Basin’s tropical forests. This project, led by the Ecology and Global Change Research cluster within the School of Geography, entails measuring forest trees across 225 locations in the Congo Basin to quantify the carbon absorption capacity of these forests and their impact on climate change.

In this role, you will provide support to our field campaign partners by preparing necessary datasheets and guiding them on their completion using ForestPlots.net. You’ll handle the scanning and digital submission of data from long-term forest inventory plots, ensuring their integration into ForestPlots.net. Working collaboratively with our partners, you’ll verify data accuracy and conduct quality control, generating diagnostic outputs from the database. You’ll also coordinate with partners, Research Fellows, and the Principal Investigator, Prof. Simon Lewis, to finalize each dataset and archive it for use in ForestPlots.net.

ForestPlots.net is an advanced, web-based platform designed for the management, sharing, and analysis of forest demographic, biodiversity, soil, and carbon data, concentrating on the world’s most biodiverse and carbon-rich forests in South America, Africa, and Southeast Asia. With over 1,000 registered users from 40 countries, ForestPlots.net tracks the lives of two million trees across 18,000 species in more than 4,000 locations. Your role will involve integrating its use among our project partners in Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gabon, and the Republic of the Congo.

Please be aware that due to Home Office visa requirements, this position may be suitable for first-time Skilled Worker visa applicants only if they meet the criteria for salary concessions. For detailed information, please visit www.gov.uk/skilled-worker-visa.

For research and academic roles, consideration under the Global Talent visa is possible. More information is available at www.gov.uk/global-talent.

**What We Offer in Return:**

– 26 days of annual leave plus approximately 16 bank holidays and customary closures (including Christmas) – totaling 42 days per year!
– Generous pension scheme options with life assurance benefits.
– Health and Wellbeing: Enjoy discounted staff membership at The Edge, our state-of-the-art campus gym, featuring a pool, sauna, climbing wall, cycling circuit, and sports halls.
– Personal Development: Access to courses from our Organisational Development & Professional Learning team.
– On-site childcare, shopping discounts, and travel schemes are also accessible.

And much more!

To inquire further about this role, please reach out to:

Professor Simon Lewis
Email: s.l.lewis@leeds.ac.uk