Job Opening
Job Opening ID: 225942
Job Network : Economic, Social and Development
Job Family : Environmental Affairs
Category and Level : Consultants, CON
Duty Station : PARIS
Department/Office : United Nations Environment Programme
Date Posted : Jan 24, 2024
Deadline : Feb 6, 2024

Result of Service
1. Strengthened institutional and legal arrangements of the Alliance
2. Efficient executing of meetings and fostered collaboration among partners and stakeholders, adhering to established timelines and achieving agreed-upon results. Ensure that Steering Committee and meeting agendas are agreed with Alliance members; and that meeting reports are drafted and cleared by the Alliance.
Work Location
Remote
Expected duration
11 months
Duties and Responsibilities
United Nations Environment Programme is the United Nations system’s designated entity for addressing environmental issues at the global and regional level. Its mandate is to coordinate the development of environmental policy consensus by keeping the global environment under review and bringing emerging issues to the attention of governments and the international community for action. UNEP’s medium-term strategy (MTS) 2022 – 2025 identifies unsustainable patterns of production and consumption as the main underlying cause for the three planetary crises of climate change, nature loss and pollution. To address these interconnected issues requires an integrated approach that focuses on climate, biodiversity, and pollution requiring substantial financial and economic transformations towards a more resource-efficient, circular economy.

The consultant will work for the Consumption and Production Unit in the Industry and Economy Division to support the implementation of the project “Greening Supply and demand: Advancing Eco-Labels and Sustainable Public Procurement for climate and biodiversity protection (Eco-Advance)”. The project aims to advance more sustainable patterns of consumption and production through employing the policy tools of ecolabelling (led by UNEP) and sustainable public procurement (led by GIZ). The project is financed by Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Nuclear Safety and Consumer Protection (BMUV), through the International Climate Initiative. The project’s primary focus is to assist the Environmental Alliance of the Americas (referred to as “the Alliance”), a regional initiative of Latin American countries striving to create a regional ecolabel known as the Sello Ambiental de América. The initiative aims to harmonize national type I standards, develop common criteria for products, processes, and services among countries, and raise regional recognition and awareness about sustainable products and services.

In this context, the consultant’s role is to support the operationalization of the Environmental Alliance of America and provide the tools to the Chair and the members of the Alliance for agile decision-making. Additionally, the consultant will support partnership building efforts with political partners and stakeholders in the Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) region.

Specific duties for the project include the following:
1. Support implementation of the workplan of the Alliance. This includes support to:
• The implementation of suggested changes to the governance structure of the Alliance
• The legal formalization of the Alliance
• The development of a medium and long-term financial model for the Alliance
• Product prioritization and criteria development process; development of mutual recognition agreements
2. Support the Chair of the Alliance to operationally coordinate national organizations.
3. Support the secretariat functions of the Alliance, by organizing coordination meetings with Alliance members and support the organization and participation in Steering Committee meetings. This involves preparing background materials in advance of meeting, drafting brief conclusions and action points of each meeting and knowledge management throughout the process.
4. Support the facilitation of product selection and criteria development under the Environmental Alliance of America through participatory approaches
5. Under the guidance of UNEP, liaise with GIZ to ensure connections are made with country processes under Output 1, 2 and 3 of the IKI EcoAdvance project (national level activities on SPP and Type-I ecolabelling).

The consultant will report to the UNEP Programme Management Officer of the Consumption and Production Unit in the Industry and Economy division.
Qualifications/special skills
Advanced University Degree (Master’s or equivalent) in relevant field. A first-level university degree in combination with at least 2 (two) years of qualifying and relevant professional experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.
A minimum of 5 years of demonstrated professional competence in Sustainable Consumption and Production (SCP) tools, including ecolabelling is required.
Working experience in Latin America and the Caribbean region is required.
Knowledge of the United Nations System is desirable.
Ability to work independently and facilitate multi-disciplinary working groups, using independent judgment to plan, prioritize and organize a diverse workload in a fast-paced environment is desirable.
Languages
For the post advertised, fluency in oral and written Spanish and English is required. Knowledge of other official languages in the United Nations System is an advantage.