Recruitment Notice for Director of General Office of International Association of Botanical Garden (IABG) Council

Salary: Competitive.

Location: South China Botanical Garden, Guangzhou, China.

Application Deadline: 30 April 2013, but we will leave this position open until the appropriate candidate is identified.

Start Date: As soon as possible.

Contract: 5 years, including a six-month probationary period.

About the IABG

The International Association of Botanical Gardens (IABG) was founded in Paris in 1954 and is a worldwide organization affiliated to the International Union of Biological Sciences (IUBS) and a scientific member of IUBS, as a commission of the International Association of Botanical and Mycological Societies (IABMS).
The aims of IABG are:

·　  to promote international cooperation between botanical gardens, arboreta and similar institutes maintaining scientific collections of living plants;

·　  to promote the study of taxonomy of plants to benefit the world community;

·　  to promote documentation and exchange of information, living plants and specimens between botanical gardens and similar institutes;

·　  to promote the conservation of plants through cultivation and other means within botanical gardens and similar institutes;

·　  to promote the introduction to cultivation of appropriate plants of benefit to the community;

·　  to promote habitat conservation by cooperation between IABG and other relevant bodies; and

·　  to promote horticulture as an art and science.

IABG holds a series of international academic activities, including the international conference held every 6 years. The 13th Conference of IABG was held in November 2012 in Guangzhou, China. The new IABG Board was announced at the conference, with Prof. Vernon Heywood, the world famous botanist from Reading University, UK, elected as the new president, and Prof. Hongwen Huang, the director of South China Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, elected as the secretary-general. The secretariat of IABG is located at South China Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, China. IABG is now globally seeking a director of the General Office of its council.

Requirements

1. Discipline, dedication and good health.

2. Excellent organization and interpersonal communication skills.

3. Master or higher degree in plant taxonomy, gardening, horticulture, biological conservation, plant ecology, or related majors.

4. At least two years of relevant work experience in botanical gardens or related fields.

5. High proficiency in English or Chinese, fluency in listening, speaking, reading and writing, with strong office information technology skills.

Responsibilities

1. Establish and improve the international network and the global / regional organizations of IABG, and coordinate international cooperation and exchanges among global botanical gardens according to the aims of IABG.

2. Implement the work plans of IABG, organize activities to build the network information platform for IABG, promote exchanges of information and resource among world botanical gardens, and strengthen their capacity of construction.

3. Provide expert advice and technical support for the strategic planning and scientific development of botanical gardens and take the role of organization and coordination.

4. Responsible for the daily affairs of the IABG board and maintenance of IABG website.

5. Assist administrative and executive work of the president and the secretary-general of IABG board, as well as other tasks assigned.

How to Apply
Interested applicants please send:

1) the Job Application Form, including basic information, education and employment experiences, competence, work plan and objectives (please see the attachment);

2) photo copy of ID card / passport, graduation and merit certificates; and

3) two letters of recommendation with contact information of referees

to: Dr. Hanping Xia

Human Resources and Education Department, South China Botanical Garden, CAS,

Xingke Road #723, Tianhe District, Guangzhou 510650, China

Telephone: +86-20-37252678

E-mail：xiahanp@scib.ac.cn

Website: http://english.scib.ac.cn/

We acknowledge all the applications, but only short-listed candidates will be contacted. Please indicate your expected salaries when you send your application material.