National Seed Bank Manager

EL 1 - $120,290 - $129,379 per annum plus superannuation
- Parks Australia Division
- Canberra, ACT
- Manage and support a team of passionate seed scientists.
- Collaborate widely to deliver holistic seed conservation and research programs.
- Oversee the upgrade, and long-term operation, of the National Seed Bank.

**Identified position**
This position is an ‘Identified’ position which signifies that the role has a strong involvement in issues relating to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. The successful applicant must have an understanding of the issues affecting Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people and an ability to communicate sensitively and effectively with Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander People.

**Who we are**
Australia’s natural and cultural heritage is unique. Our land and seascapes are distinctive, home to plants and animals found nowhere else in the world, and to some of the oldest living cultures on earth. These environments and cultures are an essential part of our national identity, and visitors travel from across the country and the world to experience them. The Director of National Parks (the Director) is responsible for six national parks, the Australian National Botanic Gardens, 58 Australian Marine Parks and the Heard Island and McDonald Islands Marine Reserve established under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999. Parks Australia is the federal park agency that supports the Director, and they are a division of the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water (the Department). We work to showcase these natural and cultural wonders to the world, demonstrating to all why these places are so special, and inspiring communities to become more invested in their care and future.

The Science and Australian National Botanic Gardens Branch leads science and conservation planning and policy for Parks Australia, and conducts research in conservation and biodiversity management through a range of programs. We engage in and coordinate diverse research partnerships and ensure First Nations knowledge and innovative solutions are core to our work, enabling us to enhance engagement and embed science into decision-making at all levels. Our work includes:

- strategic science planning and prioritisation and shaping research partnerships for Parks Australia
- leading cross-cutting research to support Parks Australia - in areas such as climate change adaptation, nature positive and knowledge weaving
- providing scientific support for Protected Areas policy and Park Management Plans
- managing the Australian National Botanic Gardens, home to our Branch and the nation’s largest living collection of native plants
- facilitating research and science capacity building and education
- curating national collections of biological data and conserving and protecting plants through systematics research, seed banking and ex situ conservation

The Conservation Science section, which has been recently established in the branch, facilitates and supports innovative, cross-disciplinary research to inform management of the Commonwealth parks and gardens, to achieve outcomes for conservation and community, and to contribute to the national nature positive conversation. The section includes marine and terrestrial conservation scientists working together on complex, real-world problems that realise the potential for the parks and gardens to build conservation knowledge for Australia.

The Conservation Science Section includes the National Seed Bank at the Australian National Botanic Gardens (ANBG). The National Seed Bank team contributes to conservation of threatened plant species by sourcing, collecting and storing wild seeds, and conducting research on seed germination requirements, dormancy, longevity in storage and reproductive ecology. As a result, the National Seed Bank contains a unique collection of seeds and other germplasm (such as spore) of native plant species from all over Australia - approximately 8,000 collections of almost 4,000 species. These scientific collections are associated with data such as provenance, propagation and lineage history, seed research, curated images, and verified herbarium specimens, and are integrated with wider plant conservation and research conducted at the ANBG. With combined expertise in botanical taxonomy, evolution and systematics, seed biology and horticulture, the ANBG is uniquely placed to provide holistic national plant conservation solutions.

**The Job**
The National Seed Bank Manager directs the National Seed Bank’s conservation and research programs and resources, oversees a team of trained specialists, students and skilled volunteers who work collaboratively on research projects with internal and external partners, and coordinates the ongoing curation of the seed collection and operations of a national facility. The National Seed Bank Manager is based with the other members of the National Seed Ba