[Hiring] Lead Editor @British Ecological Society

Role Description

We are seeking someone able to work across disciplines who is highly motivated in advancing the publication of work from across research areas exploring relationships between humans and nature to join the team of Editors on People and Nature.

Key responsibilities:

• Solicit the submission of high-quality manuscripts in all areas relevant to the Journal.
• Drive the strategic direction of the Journal by assessing submitted manuscripts for suitability, selecting handling Associate Editors and reviewers, and making decisions based on their comments and your own judgement.
• Gather opinions from fellow researchers on the strengths and weaknesses of the Journal: use this information to suggest changes in procedure, to develop new initiatives and/or to feed into general discussions.
• Identify and recruit new Associate Editors, including through the promotion of open recruitment calls, with a focus on ensuring diverse representation and participation on the Editorial Board.
• Assist the editorial office team to identify papers for further promotion via video, blog posts and the media.
• Promote the Journal and the BES when attending conferences.
• Contribute to the Journal’s development and join in discussions with those involved with other BES journals to help identify opportunities for cross-journal initiatives.
• Act as Associate Editor for a limited number of manuscripts.

Qualifications

• Evidence of an active and relevant publication record.
• Knowledge and understanding of the subject area, complementary to that of the existing Editors.
• Experience of reviewing and of other editorial work.
• Ability to work as part of a team of Editors, think strategically and creatively, and support the Journal along with the wider journal team.
• Ability to work independently and to prioritise from a range of active projects.
• Ability to form, communicate with, and operate in scientific networks and engage with other relevant audiences.
• Ability to consider multiple information sources or viewpoints, and act decisively.
• Commitment to the post and to the mission of the BES, and a desire to explore new opportunities to develop and enhance journal publishing.

Requirements

• Interdisciplinary researcher whose work encompasses ecology and/or conservation research, social sciences and/or the humanities, and collaboration.
• Clear communicator who works well as part of a team and a good decision-maker who acts with integrity.
• Solid understanding of their own field of research, as well as an overview of the wider scope of the journal.
• Experience of reviewing and editing processes.
• Commitment to maintaining the high editorial standards of the Journal.
• Interest in ongoing developments within academic publishing.

Benefits

• Part-time, 3-year contract (honorarium c. £3,892.36 per annum, which equates to approximately €4,645 or US$4,645).
• Located at the holder’s host university or organisation, based anywhere in the world.
• Some additional financial support is available to facilitate attendance at meetings with other BES Editors and to act as an ambassador for the Journal at relevant conferences.

Company Description

The British Ecological Society (BES) is the oldest ecological society in the world and our mission is to advance ecology and make it count. We have 7,000 members around the world and support the ecological community through our journals, meetings, grants and through our education, engagement and policy work.

Launched in 2018, People and Nature is a journal of relational thinking. It is a broad-scope, open-access journal publishing work that contributes to understanding of the relationship between humans and nature. The journal aims to foster innovation and experimentation and particularly encourages submissions that stimulate debate.