Information for applications for Marketing and
Fundraising Manager position:
Advertised: 13 January 2020.
Closing Date for applications to reach the NSS Office:
Sunday 9 February 2020.
The Nature Society (Singapore) or NSS, is a non-government, non-profit organization, registered as a
Society and an Institution of a Public Character (Unique Entity
Number S61SS0142H). It is dedicated to the
appreciation, conservation, study and enjoyment of the natural heritage in
Singapore, Malaysia and the surrounding region. Inaugurated in 1954 as the
Singapore branch of the Malayan Nature Society, it became the Nature Society
(Singapore) in 1991.
The Society is run by its active members. These
comprise the Executive Committee, the Council, the Chairpersons and Committees
of the various Special Interest Groups and functional Committees and all those
who lead, organize or support specific activities. The Society depends
financially on subscriptions and donations from its members as well as donations
from companies, institutions, foundations and private individuals.
Regular activities for members include guided local
nature walks, slide talks and overseas eco-trips. These can be of either
general nature interest or of specialist interest such as birds, other
vertebrates, butterflies, plants or habitats, such as intertidal or marine
zones. A programme of regular island-wide censuses of birds as well as a bird
race are annual events. The Society also has monthly Fun with Nature programmes
for youngsters aged 5 – 9 years, and a related sponsored programme for schools, the Every Singaporean A Naturalist programme. In addition, the society
is at any time involved in a number of projects. These can be book publishing projects,
conservation and habitat restoration projects or advocacy to provide feedback
to government-linked bodies regarding the effects of proposed developments in
or adjacent to nature reserves and nature areas. For such projects specific
surveys of birds, mammals, butterflies and other vertebrates and invertebrates
are conducted, sometimes independently and sometimes in collaboration with
National Parks Board.
In the past the Society successfully persuaded the
government to set aside and manage Sungei Buloh as a wetlands nature park, a
park which was so successful that it was later enlarged and gazetted as a
nature reserve. The Society was also able to stave off, through its
Environmental Impact Assessment report, proposals to develop part of the Peirce
Forests, in the Central Catchment Nature Reserve, into a golf course. It has
relocated corals from several areas in advance of reclamation projects, and it
joined with other nature groups to provide information to the government on the
rich biodiversity of Chek Jawa, at Pulau Ubin, which led to the government
deferring proposed land reclamation. Since the publication in 1990 of the then
ground-breaking Master Plan for the Conservation of Nature in Singapore, the
Society has continued to produce numerous conservation-oriented and
biodiversity-based reports, checklists and guides; an updated edition of this
Master Plan is planned for 2020. Since 2013, has been actively involved in the
Cross Island Line MRT routing issue, and in 2019 a new book about the Green
Rail Corridor was launched; please see our website on this and other recent
projects.
NSS has produced a number of important publications by
Special Interest Groups of the Society; for 2020 an updated edition of our
best-seller Wild Animals of Singapore
(2008, reprinted 2012) by the Vertebrate Study Group is scheduled. The Marine
Conservation Group has an active rescue and research programme in relation to
Horseshoe Crabs at Kranji, which now includes an island-wide annual survey and
a tracking project. In November 2008, the Society adopted the Kranji Reservoir
within the framework of the PUB ABC Waters scheme. Under this Adoption it has
focused on restoration of the marshland and ponds and on nature appreciation
activities for the general public in the area close to Neo Tiew Lane 2. The
Bird Group of the Society has adopted the Lorong Halus Wetlands. The
Conservation Committee has also recently been active in the conservation of freshwater
ponds at Lorong Halus and green areas of the Tengah development.
Secretariat
The Society operates from an Office at The Sunflower
at 510 Geylang Road, i.e. the corner of Lorong 28, Geylang, and at present
employs three-full time staff. Some specific tasks such as the production of
the quarterly Nature Watch magazine
are contracted to individual members.
Job
Description of Marketing and Fundraising Manager post
The three main roles of the Marketing and
Fundraising Manager are:
1) Marketing – to liaise with all the
partners of the society as well as the press, other NGOs and the public to
increase the profile and effectiveness of NSS.
2) Membership recruitment – to expand our
membership base and help us recruit and retain members.
3) Fundraising – to work with existing and
new donors and benefactors to improve the finances of the society.
Other important aspects of the post:
a) The Marketing and Fundraising Manager would
be based at the Society Office. The staff organization is intended to be
non-hierarchical and somewhat independent, with each member of staff taking
responsibility for their own functions and working independently as well as
together. Both amongst staff and members, the Society has always had a
“hands-on and muck-in culture” which involves everyone helping out in whatever
capacities are needed at times of urgency and at Society events. The new
manager will have to fit into our current team and work closely with our
present Account and Membership Officer as well as our Outreach Officer to
enhance final outcome of our mission. We
need someone who can take the Society to the next level. To be effective, we
could and should have more members in NSS, and we need more funds to conduct
our activities and to build up our financial resilience.
b) Decision-making in the Society rests in
the hands of the nine-member Executive Committee (Exco). However, decisions are
normally made by Exco within the context of Council (which is Exco plus Chairpersons
/ Representatives of Special Interest Groups and Committees and Co-opted
Members). This enables the Society to work as far as possible on a consensus
basis and ensures that as wide a group possible is always aware of ongoing
matters. Exco/Council meetings take place monthly, but the Exco and Council
members are in constant contact through an email loop so that information is
shared and decisions can be made between monthly meetings.
c) To increase efficiency and to ensure
that the staff is fully informed, it is intended that the appointed manager will
attend the monthly Exco/Council Meetings on the second Monday evening of each
month, from 7.30 pm.
d) The initial appointment would be on a
three-months probationary period, with the option of extending this to 12 months,
if necessary. The position would operate with one month’s notice on either
side, both before and after the probationary period. Further terms
and conditions will be discussed with selected candidates.
e) It is expected that applicants for this
position would have good interpersonal and communication skills and be able to
use their initiative. It is also expected that they would have a strong
commitment to nature and biodiversity conservation in particular, and to wider,
related environmental issues. Existing or former members of the Society are
welcome to apply. We are open to applicants with a wide range of education,
training, work or volunteer experiences. Applicants are free to tell us of all
their skills and capacities which they feel may be of use in the position or to
the Society, and we are open to an applicant with specific skills who might
discuss with us a recasting of the appointment.
f) Short-listed applicants may expect to
attend two interviews.
APPLICATIONS
Applicants should send the following by Sunday
9 February 2020:
1. Cover letter detailing their particular
interest in the position and expected monthly salary.
2. Curriculum Vitae (CV) with contact and
personal details, highlighting relevant education, experiences and skills.
3. Two references with full contact details
of the referees.
Hard copies to: Kerry Pereira, Nature
Society (Singapore), 510 Geylang Road, #02-05 The Sunflower, Singapore 389466.
Soft copies to: kerry@nss.org.sg.
Please write “Application for Marketing and Fundraising Manager Position”
on the top right-hand corner of the envelope or email subject line.
Further information on the Society and its
activities can be found on the main website www.nss.org.sg and the linked webpages, websites and blogs of various
Special Interest Groups and Committees.
Thank you for your
interest
We sincerely thank all applicants in advance for their
interest. We will do our best to respond to all applicants.
Shawn Lum,
President,
Nature Society (Singapore)
On behalf of the Executive Committee.