Lead Editor - People and Nature (Hiring Immediately)

We are seeking someone able to work across disciplines who is highly motivated in advancing the publication of work from across research areas exploring relationships between humans and nature to join the team of Editors on People and Nature. 

Salary: c. £3,892.36 per annum, which equates to approximately €4,645 or US$4,645 
Contract: Part-time, 3-year contract 
Location: At the holder’s host university or organisation, based anywhere in the world 
Closing date: 9am Tuesday 3rd November

About us 

The British Ecological Society (BES) is the oldest ecological society in the world and our mission is to advance ecology and make it count. We have 7,000 members around the world and support the ecological community through our journals, meetings, grants and through our education, engagement and policy work. 

Launched in 2018, People and Nature is a journal of relational thinking. It is a broad-scope, open-access journal publishing work that contributes to understanding of the relationship between humans and nature.  The journal aims to foster innovation and experimentation and particularly encourages submissions that stimulate debate. The journal is gradually establishing itself as a leader in the field, with a broad, international audience, an active social media presence via Bluesky and a dedicated journal blog .

About you 

We are seeking a Lead Editor to join the editorial team and to continue raising the Journal’s profile worldwide. The Journal’s editorial team consists of Editor-in-Chief, Kevin Gaston, six Lead Editors, and a Commissioning Editor who are supported by dedicated editorial office personnel, and an international board of around 125 Associate Editors from more than countries. The Editors work together to determine journal strategy and to increase the reputation and quality of the Journal, in addition to making decisions on around 1,000 manuscripts submitted each year. Further details about the Journal and its current editorial team can be found at .

To complement our Editor team, we are looking for an interdisciplinary researcher whose work encompasses ecology and/or conservation research, social sciences and/or the humanities, and collaboration. Because of the Journal’s scope, applicants should have experience of working across multiple disciplines. 

The ideal candidate will be a clear communicator who works well as part of a team and a good decision-maker who acts with integrity. They will have a solid understanding of their own field of research, as well as an overview of the wider scope of the journal; experience of reviewing and editing processes; commitment to maintaining the high editorial standards of the Journal; and an interest in ongoing developments within academic publishing. 

The journal recognises the importance of a board that is as diverse as it can be to better represent the breadth of the science and scientists and, in order to maintain this diversity, we therefore particularly welcome applications from leading researchers who are female or gender diverse.

This post is a part-time three-year contract (honorarium c. £3,892.36 per annum, which equates to approximately €4,645 or US$4,645) and located at the holder’s host university or organisation, based anywhere in the world. Some additional financial support is available to facilitate attendance at meetings with other BES Editors and to act as an ambassador for the Journal at relevant conferences. 

Key responsibilities: 

• Solicit the submission of high-quality manuscripts in all areas relevant to the Journal 

• Drive the strategic direction of the Journal by assessing submitted manuscripts for suitability, selecting handling Associate Editors and reviewers, and making decisions based on their comments and your own judgement 

• Gather opinions from fellow researchers on the strengths and weaknesses of the Journal: use this information to suggest changes in procedure, to develop new initiatives and/or to feed into general discussions 

• Identify and recruit new Associate Editors, including through the promotion of open recruitment calls, with a focus on ensuring diverse rep]]>