Invertebrates Australia is looking to recruit a Chair, Secretary, and Treasurer and up to three more general (non-executive) directors.

ABOUT INVERTEBRATES AUSTRALIA

Invertebrates include the vast majority of animal diversity - from bees, beetles and spiders to jellyfish, coral and giant squid - and are of almost unquantifiable ecological and economic importance. Many of them do our hard work, e.g. pollinating, decomposing, nutrient cycling, reef-building, and others undo our hard work, e.g. locust plagues and invasive species, but irrespective, they receive a small fraction of government and industry resourcing and media attention relative to vertebrates.

Even though their importance is undisputed, they are often ignored and are therefore poorly known by Western science. This old problem of “what to do about the invertebrates” urgently needs solving if we are to ensure that our ecological and economic systems remain stable as we navigate and mitigate climate change. We must get them out of the Too Hard Basket and get to work.

Invertebrates Australia was founded in September 2021 by three scientists, catalysed by the extreme extent and severity of the 2019/2020 megafires. Our founders met on a government-funded project that aimed to assess the impact of the fires on all ~111,000 named Australian invertebrates. Lack of data inhibited any analyses for most groups, roughly 75% of species. The project brought into sharp relief the critical mismatch between the way invertebrates are seen, as one large group of cryptic creepy crawlies, and the way they truly are, hundreds of mega-diverse groups. We realised that this mismatch has far-reaching consequences and contributes to the lack of data and knowledge.

By creating a group that can represent all invertebrates we hope to make a big positive impact on ecological and economic outcomes in biodiversity management. For example, we aim to make the most of any seat on a committee or project given to an ‘invertebrate person’ by backing them with a well connected and resourced organisation so they can meaningfully speak on behalf of invertebrates. We plan to do this by facilitating, conducting and promoting scientific research and conservation activities; engaging our extensive network of experts; and partnering with existing scientific societies and environmental charities.

Since founding in September 2021, we have grown to 10 invertebrate biologists from universities, museums, and zoos based around Australia. We started as a medium sized charity having already secured funding for projects with partners such as the World Wildlife Fund for Nature (WWF) and Australian Research Data Commons (ARDC). We have several more exciting project proposals awaiting approval.

OUR VISION

Our vision is for invertebrates to be properly valued, not only for their intrinsic worth but also from ecological and economic viewpoints. Our mission is to promote, support, and conduct science-based activities focused on invertebrates to fill the void in our knowledge and secure Australia’s biodiversity and the industries that depend upon it.

ABOUT THE ROLES

We are looking to recruit a Chair, Secretary, and Treasurer and up to three more general (non-executive) directors. Skills and experience in one or more of the following areas are highly desired:

• Experience in the role(s) of chairperson, secretary and/or treasurer in an Australian charity
• Deep understanding of the cultural, political, economic and social context of First Nations people
• Fundraising and philanthropy
• Government partnerships
• Finance and accounting
• Policy and legal relating to Australian charities
• Marketing
• Environmental campaigning
• Environmental Law
• Conservation policy and legislation
• Agriculture and Integrated Pest Management

We are committed to having a board that is representative of the community with which we work. We strongly encourage applications from women, First Nations people, people with a disability, people who identify as LGBTIQA+, and people from ethnically diverse backgrounds.

The expectations of directors on our board are to:

• Ensure Invertebrates Australia maintains its focus
• Provide guidance through monitoring activities
• Enable excellent executive performance
• Ensure that Invertebrates Australia acquires and appropriately uses the resources to carry out its mission sustainably
• Be satisfied with the integrity of reporting and systems of internal control including risk management
• Ensure Invertebrates Australia complies with the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC) governance standards.
• Volunteer time for Invertebrates Australia and donate at least $1 per year to create a ‘fully invested’ board. Charity directors are unpaid roles.

FURTHER INQUIRIES & SELECTION PROCESS

If you have any questions about the roles, please email the CEO Kate Umbers [email protected] using the subject line: Directors / Board Members (Voluntary) - Remote enquiry via EthicalJobs.

Shortlisted applicants will then be contacted for an online interview that will take place during May. Applicants who are not selected for an interview will be notified by email.

Please note: Invertebrates Australia sometimes works with young people and as such a valid Working with Children Check and Police Check may be required for this role.

More information: www.invertebratesaustralia.org