CEA Plant Care Associate (Part-Time Contract)

Terrana; Durham (NC); Hybrid; USD 33,000 - 37,000; Part time

Job summary

Terrana Biosciences is seeking a part-time CEA Plant Care Associate to join the team at the Research Triangle Park location. The role supports the greenhouse operations with hands-on plant care, sanitation, and setup tasks in a fast-paced environment.

The position requires basic horticultural skills, weekend availability, and the ability to lift 50 lbs. Expect 20 hours per week with morning to afternoon scheduling flexibility.

Qualifications

• Basic horticultural skills and experience working with plants in a controlled environment.
• Strong understanding of safe greenhouse practices.
• Ability to lift 50 lbs, work in hot, humid environments, and stand for long periods.

Responsibilities

• Support the CEA team by cleaning, bleaching, and maintaining plant production space, equipment, and supplies.
• Ensure a clean, safe, well stocked, and organized plant production workspace.
• Assist in CEA set up, build-out and maintenance of greenhouse area.
• Grow and maintain healthy plants through sowing, germinating, watering, fertilizing, pest control, and monitoring of growth conditions.
• Other duties as assigned.

Skills

Basic horticultural skills

Controlled environment experience

Tools

Microsoft Office

LIMS

Job description

CEA Plant Care Associate (Part-Time Contract)

COMPANY DESCRIPTION

Founded through Flagship Pioneering’s venture creation engine, Terrana Biosciences is a cutting-edge agricultural biotechnology company developing innovative RNA-based products to address global agricultural challenges. We are committed to advancing sustainable farming solutions through precision technologies that ensure environmental safety and regulatory compliance.

THE ROLE

We are seeking a highly motivated, proactive, and detail-oriented Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) Plant Care Associate to join our team in our Research Triangle Park location. This role will support our research team by assisting with maintenance of our greenhouse facilities. The successful candidate is highly organized, comfortable working in a fast-paced entrepreneurial environment, and an integral part of a highly collaborative and interdisciplinary team. Excellent communication, record-keeping, and teamwork will be critical. This role is for a three- or four-month part-time contract, ideally with morning hours up to 20 hours per week (morning to afternoon schedule with 2-3 hours some to most weekends; some flexibility in hours during the week). After that time the position would end or transition to a full-time contract role.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Support the CEA team by cleaning, bleaching, and maintaining plant production space, equipment, and supplies
• Ensure a clean, safe, well stocked, and organized plant production workspace
• Assist in CEA set up, build-out and maintenance of greenhouse area
• Grow and maintain healthy plants through sowing, germinating, watering, fertilizing, pest control, and monitoring of growth conditions
• Other duties as assigned

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE & QUALIFICATIONS

• Basic horticultural skills and experience working with plants in a controlled environment

Additional Qualifications:

• Strong understanding of safe greenhouse practices
• Ability to work weekends and occasional holidays as needed
• Ability to lift 50 lbs, work in hot, humid, or bright conditions, and to work on your feet for extended lengths of time
• A high level of initiative and good judgment, adaptive and quick learner, efficient in multi-tasking and troubleshooting
• Attention to detail, including the ability to manage multiple, competing priorities and execute methodically
• A strong self-starter with willingness to adapt to the changing needs of a fast-paced research and development effort
• Experience with Microsoft Office, LIMS, and various software systems
• Strong willingness to learn
• Innovative with an ability to problem-solve

ABOUT FLAGSHIP PIONEERING:

Flagship Pioneering invents and builds platform companies, each with the potential for multiple products that transform human health, sustainability and beyond. Since its launch in 2000, Flagship hasoriginatedmore than 100 companies. Many of these companies have addressed humanity’s most urgent challenges: vaccinating billions of people against COVID-19, curing intractable diseases, improving human health, preempting illness, and feeding the world by improving the resiliency and sustainability of agriculture.

Flagship has been recognized twice on FORTUNE’s “Change the World” list, an annual ranking of companies that have made a positive social and environmental impact through activities that are part of their core business strategies and has been twice named to Fast Company’s annual list of the World’s Most Innovative Companies. Learn more about Flagship at www.flagshippioneering.com .

At Flagship, we accept impossible missions to enable bigger leaps. Our core values guide us through uncertainty and toward lasting impact.

We are an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will be considered for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.

We recognize that great candidates often bring unique strengths without fulfilling every qualification. If you have some of the experience listed above but not all, please apply anyway. We are dedicated to building diverse and inclusive teams and look forward to learning more about your background and interest in Flagship.

The pay range for this role is $32 - $36 per hour and the contractor will be employed by a third-party staffing company. Certain employee benefits may be available to the contractor through the staffing company after meeting minimum criteria. Compensation and benefits information is based on Terrana Biosciences, Inc.'s good faith estimate as of the date of publication and may be modified in the future.