Bega Inaho

Nationality: Papua New Guinea

Home Town:  Asaro, Eastern Highlands Province

Current Job: Senior Terrestrial Biologist at Ok Tedi Mining Ltd in Papua New Guinea.                 

Education:    Master of Science (Conservation Biology), University of Minnesota, Minnesota, United States, and

                     Bachelor of Science (Biology), University of Papua New Guinea, Papua New Guinea.

Professional interests include; Tropical Ecology, Biodiversity Monitoring and Impact Assesments, Bio-Statistics, Climate Change & Conservation Biology, Environmental Sustainability, Ecosystem Rehabilitation & Capacity building.   

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE:

Current:                     SENIOR TERRESTRIAL BIOLOGIST – Ok Tedi Mining Ltd.                 

DUTIES: 1: Manage Terrestrial Ecology Program, and provide advice to the Environment Department. This includes developing and supervising terrestrial research and monitoring activities, manage consultant contracts, develop safe working protocol and others.   

Previouse:                 SENIOR BIOLOGIST – PNG Institute of Biological Research.                 

DUTIES: 1: Develop grant/research proposals and manage research projects, including specimen and data management; 2: Supervise intern biologists; 3: Implement research projects (this includes logistic arrangement and community liaison), analyse data, produce report and present to interested stake-holders; 4: Assist Management with management of organization and other office duties and contract engagements; 5: Interact/collaborate with international/national scientist and partner organisations on environment and biodiversity research and issues.

Professional Engagements

1. CONSULTANT TERRESTRIAL ECOLOGIST

DUTIES: Engaged to carry out High Conservation Value Assessment (HCVA) for PNG Biomass in their Markham valley project developement sites.

2. CONTRACT BIODIVERSITY OFFICER – Total E&P PNG Limited, Gulf Province PNG.

DUTIES: Biodiversity and Environment impact assesment survey along proposed seismic lines in the Petroleum Development Licenses Areas in Purari, Gulf Province

3. CONTRACT ECOLOGIST - New Guinea Binatang Research Center, Madang, PNG.                          

DUTIES: Oversee and supervise 50 hectare vegetation plot monitoring, assessment, and re-census at Wanang Conservation Area, Madang, PNG.

4. CONTRACT ECOLOGIST – Golder Associates Port Moresby PNG.

DUTIES: Team leader and researcher on Ecological Baseline Survey for the Ramu2 Hydro Power Project environment impact assesment

5. CONTRACT RESEARCHER – Institute of National Affairs, Port Moresby, PNG.

DUTIES: Socio-Ecological survey on coffee farmers and farms in various villages across Henganofi District, EH Province, PNG.  

6. CONTRACT RESEARCHER – Wildlife Conservation Society, Goroka EH Province, PNG

DUTIES: Establish vegetation plots and collected plant data to estimate carbon stock (REDD + project) in forests across Manus and New Ireland Provinces od PNG.

RELEVANT SKILLS:

Botany:  Forest Inventory: plant specimen collection and preparation (pressing,   drying   and   mounting), plot establishment and plant enumeration, line and belt transect sampling, community surveys, and phenology.

Ornithology Survey: line-transects, point-count sampling, presence/absence surveys, mist netting and bird handling, processing and spercies dentification

Mammalogy: Trapping: mist-netting (bats), Harp-trapping (bats), cage traps (rodents, marsupials), small mammal handling and processing. 

Bio-Culture Survey:   Interviews and document traditional ecological knowledge.

Logistics Planning:     Plan and arrange field trips into remote research sites in PNG.

Community Liaison:   Interact with communities to do awareness on research projects, get community consent to do research on their land and also solve issues arising from research and conservation activities. Arrange, workshops, meetings etc.