Social Data Lead

About Rainforest Builder

Rainforest Builder is Africa's foremost company specializing in tropical forest restoration. Collaborating with top scientists and foresters worldwide, we focus on rebuilding tropical forests on a grand scale. Supported by major corporations and investors, Rainforest Builder employs around 2,500 people across Ghana and Sierra Leone. Our projects span long durations (exceeding 70 years) and large areas, targeting more than 100,000 hectares. We handle the entire project lifecycle including design, seed collection, nursery management, silviculture, forest protection, and carbon/biodiversity data gathering. Our developments adhere to Verra Verified Carbon Standard (VCS) and Climate, Community, and Biodiversity (CCB) standards.

Role Overview

The Social Performance and ESG teams work closely with stakeholders, communities, and land users involved in the projects. Community engagement happens weekly, with livelihood restoration efforts monitoring over 1,500 individuals. The Social Data Lead is responsible for ensuring the integrity, organization, and accessibility of social and spatial data supporting these programs. Responsibilities include survey design, data cleaning, analysis, and preparing data in compliance with VCS, CCB, IFC Performance Standards, and investor demands. Collaboration with the Social Performance Lead and operational teams in Ghana and Sierra Leone is key.

Key Responsibilities

• Partner with the Social Performance Lead to merge, clean, and analyze social and ESG program data.
• Create surveys and data collection tools like KoBoToolbox for gathering community-related information.
• Validate and manage spatial (GIS) datasets accurately.
• Support annual monitoring and reporting for livelihood restoration programs to satisfy investor requirements.
• Develop and sustain data pipelines and workflows to enhance data accessibility across departments.
• Coordinate with field and management teams to address data needs and uphold quality standards.
• Keep thorough documentation and data standards for long-term usability and auditability.

Required Qualifications & Skills

• 1 to 2 years of experience in data collection, cleaning, and analysis, including GIS data handling.
• Demonstrated experience managing large datasets effectively.
• Proficiency in GIS platforms such as QGIS or ArcGIS, and survey software like KoBoToolbox.
• Strong skills in data analysis tools including Excel, R, or Python.
• High attention to detail and capability to work with imperfect field data.
• Excellent written and verbal communication abilities.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience working with farm-level geolocation data is advantageous.
• Familiarity with carbon market dynamics and restoration projects.
• Knowledge of IFC Performance Standards compliance, especially IFC PS5.
• Background in forestry, conservation, agriculture, agribusiness, or social/community development, including experience with commodity supply chains, traceability, or certification bodies.
• Experience collaborating with field teams in Ghana or West Africa.
• Comfortable utilizing AI-assisted tools to accelerate data processing and analysis.

Additional Information

This role is based full-time at our Accra office with regular travel to project locations in Ghana and Sierra Leone as needed.