Natural Capital Spatial Analyst

1012-428 Natural Capital Spatial Analyst

Job Purpose Summary

Help us tackle the twin crises of biodiversity loss and climate change by enabling a natural
capital approach to land management across Scotland. This role offers an exciting and unique
opportunity to support and shape the development of our landscape-scale natural capital tool,
designed to help accelerate nature recovery and bring the benefits of nature closer to people.
This project is part of NatureScot’s transformative Farming with Nature Programme (FwN),
previously known as the Natural Capital Pilot Programme.

The tool will be the first of its kind in Scotland and is being developed in partnership with
Liverpool John Moores University. By quantifying and mapping the ecosystem services that nature
provides, it will help decision makers identify opportunities and scenarios that maximize
benefits for both people and nature.

The Natural Capital Spatial Analyst will be a key part of this process with responsibility for
implementing and developing the models behind the tool. This will include manipulating,
interpreting, and mapping spatial datasets, and establishing indicators for measuring natural
capital assets and ecosystem services. Continuing with and expanding on our current co-design
approach, the role will involve working closely with project partners and stakeholders to
develop models and approaches that meet their needs and will support effective decision making.

We are looking for an enthusiastic and innovative individual, who will be based within the
Natural Capital team and will provide support to the Natural Capital Manager and Natural
Capital Tools Manager to develop and co-design the landscape scale natural capital tool.

Context

NatureScot’s Farming with Nature Programme (FwN) is a suite of projects to test natural capital
approaches at field, farm, and landscape scale, in order to inform future rural policy and land
management support schemes.

As part of this programme, NatureScot is leading on the development of a new tool that will
enable decision makers to take a natural capital approach to managing land at the landscape
scale in Scotland.

A natural capital approach is when the full range of benefits that we receive from nature are
taken into consideration within the decision-making process. In order for these benefits to be
included within the decision-making process, we need the methodologies and tools to quantify
them. By mapping and modelling how certain land use changes might impact the ecosystem services
they provide, you can identify the opportunities and scenarios that provide the most benefits
for both people and nature. Understanding the true value of nature is essential for tackling
the twin crises of biodiversity loss and climate change, and it can help Scotland secure a
resilient, inclusive, nature-rich and low-carbon economy for our future.

The tool is being developed in partnership with Liverpool John Moores University, the authors
of EcoServR, an existing tool in the coding language R for mapping natural capital assets and
ecosystem services. The ‘bones’ of the tool are based on EcoServR but core functionality, the
ecosystem services that are measured, and the end product will be bespoke for Scotland and
developed using a co-design process.

Over the next few years, the tool will be co-designed with a wide-ranging group of land
managers and stakeholders from across Scotland. So far, the co-design group comprises 100+
different individuals from across a range of organisations including public bodies, eNGOs,
local authorities, natural capital consultants, research institutions and nature finance
organisations. A prototype of the tool has just finished being piloted with seven landscape
scale partnerships, the results of which will further influence the design of the final tool. A
Minimum Viable Product (MVP) of the tool will be completed by March 2025.

Working Environment

The Natural Capital Spatial Analyst will be part of the Natural Capital Team within Natural
Resource Management, working in collaboration with project partners and stakeholders. The role
may involve occasional travel within Scotland to engage with stakeholders and participate in
workshops and meetings. The successful candidate will have the opportunity to contribute to the
development of a pioneering natural capital tool that can have a significant impact on future
land management decisions in Scotland.

The Natural Capital team leads on natural capital and socio-economic issues within NatureScot,
with a particular emphasis on natural capital approaches in land use, economic development and
public policy, rural development including nature-based jobs and skills, and securing private
investment in nature-based solutions (nature finance).