Internship

The Huinay Scientific Field Station (HSFS) is an international scientific field station in Chilean Patagonia. The station is located 100 km south of Puerto Montt in the Comau Fjord. Currently HSFS is the only biological field station located in the Chilean fjords. It was created in 2001 by the private, non-profit organization Huinay Foundation to facilitate scientific research, to promote sustainable development, and to promote conservation of the biodiversity found in the fjords of Chile through scientific research.

The small village Huinay, with a population of approximately 25 inhabitants, can only be accessed by a boat-trip from Hornopirén. Most facilities - except some small shops and a rural hospital in Hornopirén - are located in Puerto Montt, a town located three to four hour’s drive by car or bus from Hornopirén. The surroundings are characterized by steep mountains and volcanoes. Almost 6.000 millimeters of annual precipitation results in extremely lush vegetation characterized by extra-tropical (temperate) rain forests.

What will you do as an intern?

Below is a description of intern responsibilities and projects. This list is not all-inclusive, and work will vary with the season and type of research conducted by visiting scientists.

• Taxonomy database management and data entry. E.g., recording data for species identified in photo transects; contacting authors for missing species identifications; subsequent updating of the database.

• Using all compiled information to create a more final list of species occurring in the Chilean fjords (formatted for OBIS compatibility).

• Assistance with GIS analysis, R scripts and programming (if possible).

• Assistance with daily field station duties (e.g. aquarium maintenance).

• Assist visiting scientists with their projects (e.g., terrestrial and marine specimen collections).

• Giving tours and promoting the station to visitors of the research station; educating the public about the scientific research being conducted at the station.

If you are an experienced cold water drysuit diver (50+ drysuit dives) and you have all your own gear that you could bring with you, there might be opportunities to help the assistant with some of the local diving tasks. You would also need your own dive insurance.

Who are we looking for?

Ideally, we seek interns with the following qualifications:

• Ability to volunteer for a duration of two months minimum.

• Interest in learning about marine biology, ecology, and/or scientific field research.

• Maturity, independence, initiative, and ability to work in a small team in an isolated, often rainy environment.

• Good social skills, comfortable with interacting with diverse groups of people.

• Completion of science classes (e.g., in biology, environmental sciences, or ecology, preferably university-level).

• Good computer skills (e.g., Microsoft Office, Internet, Adobe applications).

• Knowledge of GIS (ArcGIS, QGIS), R, Python or programming skills are an asset (not a strict requirement).

• Aside from your native language, speaking and writing skills in English and/or Spanish.

• Medical insurance and financial ability to cover travel to and from Huinay,Chile.

What do you gain by interning at HSFS?

• An opportunity to learn about native Chilean flora and fauna, both marine and terrestrial. Topics learned may include but are not restricted to marine biology taxonomy, database creation and/or maintenance, biology field research techniques, and more!

• Participation in important scientific projects and an opportunity to meet and/or work with international scientific experts.

• Experience of living and working in an international scientific field station.

• This is an unpaid internship. However, we will provide food and lodging in the beautiful, remote setting of Huinay, Chile.

Applications for 2018 and 2019 are now closed.

Please contact applications.huinay@gmail.com for more details on how to apply.

To learn more about Huinay Foundation and the Huinay Scientific Field Station:

Visit our webpage (www.huinay.cl)