Project Director, Protecting Australia's Nature

Application Deadline: Friday, September 19, 2025

The Environment Portfolio at The Pew Charitable Trusts

For more than 30 years, Pew has been a major force in engaging the public and policy makers about the causes, consequences, and solutions to some of the world's most pressing environmental challenges. Our environment work spans all seven continents with more than 250 professionals working at the local, national, and international levels to reduce the scope and severity of global environmental problems, such as the erosion of large natural ecosystems that contain a great part of the world's remaining biodiversity, and the destruction of the marine environment. Pew's global environmental program focuses on science-based, nonpartisan, and sustainable solutions to help protect the planet and people. We work in partnership with governments, Indigenous rights holders, intergovernmental organizations, non-governmental organizations, local stakeholders, scientists, and other researchers to advance public policy so that nature and communities can thrive.

Since 1990, Pew has worked in North America, South America and Australia to protect large and critically important terrestrial ecosystems, including rivers and other freshwater resources, coastal temperate rainforests, interior mountain ranges, the northern boreal forests, Australia's Outback, and Chilean Patagonia. We work to ensure these natural systems remain bountiful, functioning, and resilient, providing essential ecological services such as clean air and clean water, sustenance and food security for local communities and more broadly for the welfare of current and future generations. Our work relies on the sciences of conservation, sociology, biology, and economics to advocate for practical and durable solutions to the loss of biodiversity. 

In the sea, reforms to how our oceans are managed are essential to address overfishing, pollution, and loss of habitat. Pew began its oceans program in the United States, focusing on ending overfishing and protecting fragile marine habitat. Starting in 2005, Pew's ocean conservation program expanded around the world and played a significant role in reforming marine fisheries management in the European Union and on the high seas and creating large scale marine reserves around the world. Our work is grounded in the best available science and pursues domestic and international conservation measures that are long-term and provide permanent, durable protections for marine ecosystems. We also work to address systemic threats to the ocean, including from plastics, over-and-illegal fishing, seabed mining, and climate change.

Protecting Australia's Nature

Australia is the only nation on Earth that also spans a continent. Because of its isolation over many millions of years, Australia is one of 17 nations in the world to be considered "megadiverse" because of its exceptional biodiversity. In 2007, Pew began its conservation work in Australia, and as our program matured, we formed partnerships with First Nations communities and local conservation partners to advance place-based protections. Pew is a results-oriented organization. Our work with partners and stakeholders has led to the declaration of the world's largest network of marine parks, the doubling of Outback land protected in Australia's National Reserve System and securing of more than $1 billion in funding for Indigenous land management. While efforts have expanded Australia's terrestrial and marine protected areas, the ecological health of Australia's landscapes is threatened by a range of pressures, including invasive species, habitat loss, overfishing, water extraction, and climate change. Australia's key environmental indicators continue to decline, including the conservation status of threatened and endemic species. Recently, Pew's Protecting Australia's Nature team and our partners have expanded our goals to encompass a continental focus, aiming to extend protection to critical terrestrial, marine, and freshwater systems by drawing on a robust network of influence both federally and in the states where we campaign.

Position Overview

The project director, terrestrial, will lead the terrestrial work of the Protecting Australia's Nature program to ensure the successful delivery of terrestrial and freshwater campaigns. Having a strong record of campaign success, established leadership skills and management expertise, the project director will work with the Protecting Australia's Nature campaign teams to establish strong, durable and equitable conservation outcomes across Australia that contribute to protecting our unique environment and building sustainable futures for communities. The project director will report to the director, Protecting Australia's Nature, and will work in close collaboration with the project director, oceans, to advance the goals of the Protecting Australia's Nature project. 

This position is in Pew's Brisbane office. A home office in other locations in Australia may be considered for the right candidate. This position participates in Pew's hybrid work program with core days in the office and the flexibility to work from home the remaining days. Staff also enjoy four remote working "flex weeks" per year.

Responsibilities

• Foster a work environment that inspires excellence, values impact, encourages transparency, builds mutual trust and respect, embraces and values diversity, and is collaborative, caring and compassionate.
• Manage and mentor members of the terrestrial and freshwater teams, including providing day-to-day leadership, facilitating ongoing professional development, and fostering a healthy team culture. 
• Develop and implement effective campaign strategies and set achievable and measurable goals to achieve the objectives and deliverables of the Protecting Australia's Nature program. This includes achieving the global biodiversity framework target of protecting 30% of Australia's lands by 2030 and creating new models of river and floodplain protection for identified rivers in northern Australia. 
• Establish and maintain working collaborative relationships with key decision-makers, government officials, a broad cross section of stakeholder leaders, Indigenous leaders, and national and international institutions, as well as relevant conservation NGOs. 
• Monitor the progress of project implementation and provide regular reports and updates to Pew, our partners, and relevant donors. 
• In collaboration with the Protecting Australia's Nature terrestrial campaign managers, design and oversee cost effective budgets, evaluate project costs, and monitor campaign expenses and capacity needs.
•  Develop and maintain knowledge of the science, policies, and politics of conservation in Australia. 
• Collaborate with Pew's institutional partnerships team to identify potential donors, cultivate relationships, and generate interest and support for efforts that result in significant funding for projects. 
• Ensure a significant and effective public profile for terrestrial conservation issues for Pew's Protecting Australia's Nature Project including supporting Pew campaign managers and partners, responding to media enquiries about Pew's terrestrial work in Australia, and representing Pew publicly at conferences, seminars, and official forums. 
• Participate in activities that support program and Pew-wide objectives. 

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience is required; advanced degree is strongly preferred.
• Generally, ten years of applicable experience in leading successful state and national campaigns and initiatives aimed at solving conservation needs. A strong understanding of campaign strategy and experience in applying a diversity of strategic approaches to achieve campaign outcomes.
• Demonstrated knowledge of conservation policy and current trends. Familiarity with policymaking, regulatory and legislative processes.
• Passion for nature conservation and working with First Nations people, land holders and stakeholders to achieve large scale and enduring outcomes for the environment.
• Strong understanding of the Indigenous cultural context of conservation work in Australia, with experience working alongside First Nations people to achieve conservation outcomes. Experience in co-design with Indigenous communities to support conservation initiatives would be highly regarded.
• Demonstrated experience managing staff and leading multiple campaigns, and/or partnerships, that have delivered measurable results.  Aptitude to analyze budgetary information, assess organizational capacity and organize teams to meet deadlines on multiple projects, and effectively identify and report progress against milestones. Experience inspiring and coaching staff to achieve project outcomes and facilitate and support professional growth.
• Exceptional interpersonal skills, with demonstrated experience leading diverse teams, engaging with a wide range of stakeholders, contractors and consultants, and navigating sensitive cultural and political environments with respect and effectiveness to build support for and deliver state and national goals.   A track record of effectively identifying potential partners, cultivating relationships, and generating ongoing support for a cause.
• Politically astute with proven aptitude to leverage political and stakeholder relationships and strategic insights to achieve positive policy and program outcomes. Experience influencing others and reading nuances of meaning accurately to advance relationships and project goals. Aptitude to understand the social and economic issues in regional Australia.
• Demonstrated track record of success in using effective marketing techniques and media to communicate conservation needs. Aptitude to quickly synthesize complex arguments to communicate the essence of issues and means to address them in compelling language.  Strong oral, presentation, facilitation and written communications skills and aptitude to clearly articulate complex ideas, thoughts and concepts to a general audience.  Understanding of campaign communication tactics including emerging trends.
• Seasoned judgment and comfort in making decisions, justifying recommendations, and being responsive, clear, and firm with colleagues and partners.
• Experience working with and managing donor relationships, including the aptitude to align program goals with philanthropic priorities and reporting expectations. 
• Comfortable working with a high degree of independence and autonomy.

Travel

This position requires occasional domestic and international travel to meetings and conferences.

Work Authorization

Candidates must be legally authorized to work in the country for which they are seeking employment without visa sponsorship.

Salary Range

The salary range represents a reasonable estimate of the annual salary based on Pew's commitment to provide equitable and market-competitive pay. The actual salary offered will take into consideration many factors including but not limited to job-related knowledge, skills and experience, internal pay equity, and business need.

Pew is an equal opportunity employer and makes employment decisions without regard to race, ethnicity, gender, or any other protected characteristics.