Senior Geospatial Field Technician - Spekboom Restoration Project

About the role

NatCarbon Africa is recruiting a Senior Geospatial Field Technician for its Spekboom Restoration Project in the Eastern and Western Cape, working with partner Imperative Global to restore up to 100,000 hectares of degraded subtropical thicket biome. The role reports to the Geospatial Team Lead and coordinates a team of Geospatial Field Technicians and Young Professionals in UAV-based monitoring and spatial data collection, combining field leadership with technical expertise in drone operations, data processing and quality assurance.

Key responsibilities

• Serve as field point of contact between the Geospatial Team Lead and the technicians and young professionals.
• Plan, lead and coordinate their daily activities, including weekly, monthly, quarterly and annual schedules.
• Supervise and mentor the team, providing on-the-job training and ensuring safe UAV operations.
• Conduct and supervise UAV flights with advanced sensors and platforms, in line with aviation and safety regulations.
• Lead logistical and operational planning for UAV deployments, including flight permissions, equipment readiness, vehicle maintenance and coordination with Operations and Project teams.
• Process and analyse post-flight data, including image mosaicking, terrain modelling and integration with GIS systems.
• Run quality assurance checks on data accuracy, completeness and consistency before analysis or reporting.
• Maintain geospatial data systems, with storage, version control and metadata documentation.
• Meet monitoring schedules and deliverables within project timelines and budgets.
• Lead applied R&D, test new drone technologies and sensors, and develop SOPs and automated workflows.
• Collaborate with Ecology, GIS and Data teams on custom monitoring approaches.

Required profile

• Degree or tertiary qualification in Geomatics, Remote Sensing, GIS, Environmental Science, Earth Science, Engineering, Land Surveying or a related field.
• 2-5 years' experience in UAV operations, remote sensing, geospatial field monitoring or similar.
• Proven experience leading or supervising small technical teams in field or data collection contexts.
• Expertise in photogrammetry, orthomosaic generation and 3D modelling.
• Valid Remote Pilot Certificate (fixed-wing and multi-rotor) with BVLOS rating; valid South African driver's licence (off-road experience advantageous).
• Excellent written and verbal English and Afrikaans (isiXhosa advantageous); physically fit for challenging outdoor work.

Required skills

• UAV operations, photogrammetry and geospatial data processing.
• GIS software (ArcGIS, QGIS) and photogrammetry tools (Agisoft Metashape, DJI Terra).
• Data management, quality control and problem-solving.

Some travel within the Eastern and Western Cape, including to remote locations, and occasional weekend or holiday work; work hours may be irregular.