Creative Commons (CC) is a global nonprofit organization working to solve the world’s most pressing problems by opening up knowledge and culture about them. We’ve created open copyright licenses that can be used to broadly share creative, educational, and research work. We advocate for legal and governance strategies that make these works globally accessible rather than restricting them. We promote the sharing and expansion of knowledge for the benefit of society.
Climate change, and the resulting harm to our global biodiversity, has been one of the world’s most pressing problems for decades, and we are doing our part to open up climate data so it is accessible and easy to share. We’ve produced a set of Recommended Best Practices for the Better Sharing of Climate Data and are positioned to support these groups as needed through December 2024. Our recommendations emphasize the worldwide use of simple legal terms, specific metadata values, and intentional governance practices that maximize the shared use of climate data.
We are seeking a remote, part-time, contracted Research Analyst to support our Open Climate Data Project for 20 hours/week, for three months starting in May 2024 (with possibility of extension).
Responsibilities
The Research Analyst will be supporting learning and implementation of the Recommendations across climate data organizations, agencies, and national ministries worldwide. The Research Analyst will be responsible for conducting organizational and landscape research so our team is best informed and prepared to work in partnership with these organizations. The Research Analyst will also be responsible for coordinating engagements with external organizations, and advocating for the adoption of our recommendations. The Research Analyst will also support with writing and publishing insights, wins, and informational materials. We specifically will be collaborating with these organizations to improve: staff knowledge, open data policies, licensing choices, database platform user experience designs, metadata schemas, and open data governance practices.
The Research Analyst will work under the direct supervision of and in collaboration with the Open Climate Data Project Lead, to achieve the objectives outlined for the project:
- Facilitate further learning and implementation of our Recommendations for Better Sharing of Climate Data across major climate agencies, ministries, and organizations. We are proactively securing engagements to inform climate organizations and offer customized direct training and consulting via in-person meeting and virtual webinars. This includes presenting at international climate data conferences, and collaborating with the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the Group on Earth Observation (GEO) to support open policy implementation among their member states and territories’ national ministries and agencies dedicated to weather, climate and hydrology. Our goal is to see climate data organizations worldwide update their operations, practices, and policies in alignment with Creative Commons’ Recommendations for Better Sharing of Climate Data.
- Formally integrate the Recommendations into international metadata standards. We are coordinating with organizations that provide foundational metadata guidance to most of the world’s climate data organizations, including the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) Data Catalog Vocabulary (DCAT), and Open Geospatial Consortium. This is our upstream strategy to promote metadata standards that center licensing terms, attribution requirements, and provenance, and impact the establishment and development of climate data sharing policies long-term.
Requirements
Our ideal Open Climate Data Research Analyst has the following:
- A Bachelors’ Degree or coursework in related field
- Confidence in conducting extensive online research
- High curiosity, with excellent analytical and problem solving abilities
- A well-organized approach to documenting findings and questions
- Excellent writing ability, with 3+ samples available
- An understanding of the value and application of open data
- Coursework or experience in climate, open licensing, policy, data, open access, and/or related fields
- Desire to engage in the other work happening at Creative Commons
- Excellent project management, including time management and work organization skills
- Strong communication skills and presentation effectiveness
- Excellent interpersonal skills and ability to maintain collaborative relations in culturally diverse contexts
- Ability to work effectively both independently and as part of a team
Diversity
We believe that diverse teams build better organizations and better services. Applications from qualified candidates from all backgrounds, including those from under-represented communities, are very welcome. Creative Commons works openly as part of a global community, guided by collaboratively developed codes of conduct and anti-harassment policies.
Work Environment and Location
At CC, we are committed to fostering a global and inclusive environment, and strive to have a diverse team that represents many backgrounds. Creative Commons has been a fully-distributed organization since 2015 — we have no central office, and all positions are in a remote working environment. This position reports to and will regularly meet with their manager in U.S. Pacific time (UTC -8). You must have a computer, mic, camera and high-speed broadband access.
Compensation
Creative Commons is a leading non-profit employer, offering a positive, flexible, and supportive work environment. We pay $27.50/hour for this remote contract position, 20 hours/week for three months starting in May 2024.
How to Apply
Please email your cover letter, resume, and three writing samples to taylor@creativecommons.org, with the subject heading of “Open Climate Data Research Analyst / [Last Name].” No phone calls, please. No recruiters. We are looking to hire for this role ASAP, so please share this opportunity widely and apply right away. Deadline is Sunday, April 29, 2024.