Conor Daly
What employment sector do you work in?
Industry Sector
How long have you had a green job for nature?
3 Years
Salary Range
€40,000 – €50,000
Please describe the work that you do.
Draft and review EIAR, AA/NIS and PEA Reports. Coordinate reports schedule with operations staff.
What do you most like about your job? Any dislikes?
Flexible remote/office hours. Getting to apply my mind to all kinds of project types.
Still do occasional field work surveys when needed to so i still get to keep my foot in practical skills.
I’ve been able to pursue my own research interests as well including detection dogs for ecology and pollinator ecology.
What inspired you into this career?
I’ve been looking to work in this sector since my degree. I love studying wildlife and this job path has allowed to build up competence in surveys and legislation.
Have you faced any challenges in progressing your career so far?
I was working in falconry centres after my Masters. I got my first ecology sector job in in 2021. Not having a car at the time was a big roadblock to getting the first job.
Getting the initial experience was very challenging especially the longer you are out of university. Keeping things like Excel, R Studio and GIS up to date were difficult to stay on top of while i was job hunting.
What education/training did you have?
BSc (Hons) in Zoology with minor in Earth and Ocean Science.
MSc in Biodiversity & Conservation.
I also took part in online courses after graduating in ornithology, thermal imaging for wildlife before getting my first ecology job.
What advice would you give to someone coming into the profession?
Have your driver’s license and a reliable car by the time you graduate.
Prepare/plan a gap between your graduation and a full-time job. Give yourself the breathing room to volunteer part-time or somewhere abroad for 6 months – 1 year.
If consultancies are your goal, make sure you have skills/knowledge in the main receptors (Birds, Mammals, Bats and Aquatics). These make up the bulk of graduate ecologists’ field work.
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Tags: Republic of Ireland, Industry sector, Ecologist