UN Women – Unites Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerement of Women

Junior Professional Officer Programme (JPO) Chiffre Nr.  2024-2-45

I General Information

Title: JPO on Gender, Climate, Peace and Security 

Sector of Assignment: Policy, Programme and Intergovernmental Division

Organization/Office:  UN WOMEN Peace, Security and Resilience Unit

Duty Station:  New York City, USA

Duration of assignment: 2 years with possibility of extension for another year. The extension of appointment is subject to yearly review concerning priorities, availability of funds, and satisfactory performance.

Please note that for participants of the JPO-Programme two years work experience are mandatory! Relevant work experience can be counted. In order to assess the eligibility of the candidates, we review the relevant experience acquired after obtaining the first university degree (usually bachelor’s degree).

II. Organizational Context

Organizational Context

UN Women, grounded in the vision of equality enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, works for the elimination of discrimination against women and girls; the empowerment of women; and the achievement of equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action and peace and security. Placing women’s rights at the center of all its efforts, UN Women leads and coordinates United Nations system efforts to ensure that commitments on gender equality and gender mainstreaming translate into action throughout the world. It provides strong and coherent leadership in support of Member States’ priorities and efforts, building effective partnerships with civil society and other relevant actors.

The Peace, Security and Resilience Section of the Policy, Programme and Intergovernmental Division supports UN Women to fulfill its coordination mandate in the area of peace and security, UN system efforts to promote improved implementation, and monitoring and reporting of global commitments on Women, Peace and Security, including as set out in the Beijing Platform for Action and in Security Council resolutions, relevant Statements by the President of the Security Council, as well as related accountability frameworks established by the UN system. In the area of sustaining peace, UN Women supports Member States and civil society in implementing parallel resolutions of the Security Council and General Assembly (A/RES/70/262 and S/RES/2282 (2016)) on sustaining peace and together with the Peacebuilding Support Office (PBSO) coordinates the implementation of the SG’s Seven-Point Action Plan on Gender-Responsive Peacebuilding. UN Women as well makes efforts towards ensuring that the voices of the WPS experts and activists are informing policy framing on sustaining peace.

In line with its mandate, UN Women recognizes the interconnections between climate change, security, and women’s rights, and seeks to address these critical issues through innovative approaches. UN Women plays a critical role in ensuring that gender considerations are included in climate-security mechanisms, programmes and policies, and on the other hand, that climate-related security risks are included in the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda. The Joint Programme for Women, Natural Resources, Climate and Peace by UN Women, UNEP, UNDP, and DPPA demonstrated the importance of such integrated action. A key milestone was the joint report “Gender, Climate and Security: Sustaining Inclusive Peace on the Frontlines of Climate Change” offering a set of recommendations to guide policymaking, programming, research, and investments. In addition, UN Women is part of the internal reference group for the 2023 PBSO’s Thematic Review on Climate Security and Peacebuilding and actively engages with the UN Climate Security Mechanism jointly established by DPPA, UNDP, UNEP and DPO to highlight the importance of the gender-climate-security nexus.

 

Objective of the Position

In light of the international community’s growing recognition of the impact of climate change on international peace and security, as evident in the June 2023 UN Security Council ministerial open debate on “Climate Change, Peace and Security”, UN Women stresses the urgent need to address the gender dimension within the climate security field. During the open debate, several Member States placed a strong emphasis on recognizing the important roles of women and young people in addressing climate-related security risks and referred to the WPS agenda. The JPO on Gender, Climate, Peace and Security will play a pivotal role in providing technical expertise, strategic guidance, and coordination to support UN Women’s efforts in integrating gender-responsive approaches in climate change and peacebuilding mechanisms and climate security within the Women, Peace, and Security framework.

The JPO position is in line with the recommendations for action on “Preventing conflict and violence and sustaining peace” of the Secretary General’s New Agenda for Peace and links Action 5 “Transform gendered power dynamics in peace and security” with Action 6 “Address the interlinkages between climate, peace and security.” The position is also consistent with the increasing references to climate change in National and Regional Action Plans on WPS and offers tremendous potential to assist member states in developing concrete goals and actions. The Gender, Climate, Peace, and Security JPO will further develop strategies to create linkages between WPS National Action Plans with reference on climate change and Gender Action Plans under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the outcomes of COP28.

Additionally, the JPO will develop gender-specific strategies to address challenges such as livelihood insecurities and increased risk of gender-based violence, while amplifying the unique knowledge and experiences of women and girls on the frontlines of the climate crisis, including their efforts to resolve conflicts over natural resources and promote adaptation measures to climate-induced conflicts. By advocating for a JPO position that seeks to integrate a gender perspective into peace and climate policies, UN Women aims to create a holistic approach that addresses the multifaceted challenges of gender inequality, climate change, and insecurity.

III. JPO Programme Components

Title of Supervisor:  Policy Specialist Sustaining Peace

Content and methodology of supervision:

• The JPO will receive structured guidance from the supervisor, especially in the beginning of the assignment, with the purpose of gradually increasing the responsibilities of the JPO.
• The JPO and supervisor will develop an annual workplan based on the initial assessment of the JPO’s capability and strengths, with clear results and performance indicators.
• The JPO will receive mid-year and year-end performance feedback, the periodicity of feedback in between will be determined based on the degree to which the JPO can work independently.
• The JPO will participate in regular team meetings and retreats to ensure alignment of individual workplan with the overall office workplan and priorities.

Evaluation:

The Performance Management and Development (PMD) tool will serve as a primary platform to evaluate the JPO’s performance.

Training components:

• Participation in a UN Women Induction Course in New York within the first 6 months of the assignment.
• The JPO will be required to complete all UN Women mandatory online training courses including introductory courses on gender equality concepts and programming approaches for UN staff, courses on sexual harassment, PSEA, ethics, HIV in the workplace and security.
• The JPO will have access to online training and learning resources of the Learning Management System to develop management skills as well as knowledge in specific technical areas in line with the individual learning plan developed annually with the supervisor.
• The JPO will take part in training activities that are planned for the office based on learning needs assessments conducted at the beginning of the year.
• The JPO will also have the opportunity to participate in trainings workshops, seminars organized by UN Women Regional Offices and Head Quarters on coordination as opportunities for growth.
• The JPO will also have the opportunity to participate in workshops/seminars organized by UN Women led projects and other national and international partners and attend regional and national conferences/workshops as a participant or speaker, with agreement of the supervisor.
• Use of yearly JPO duty-related travel and training allocation (DTTA), as per the online DTTA guide.
• A significant amount of the JPO’s development will occur through guided experiences and missions in country and regional offices which take place during the assignment.

IV. Functions

Under the overall guidance of the Chief of the Peace, Security and Resilience Unit and direct supervision of Policy Specialist, the JPO will be responsible for the following:

• Conduct a comprehensive analysis of the linkages between climate change, security, and women’s rights, and provide evidence-based recommendations for integrating gender-responsive approaches to climate security.
• Support the development and implementation of strategies to strengthen the capacity of relevant stakeholders, including UN Women staff, national governments, and civil society organizations, on gender-responsive climate security, with focus on strengthening peace and security perspectives in the development of UN Women’s climate change strategy.
• Generate technical expertise and knowledge to support in the design and implementation of gender-responsive policies, programs, and projects related to climate security and women, peace, and security, for instance in support of UN Women’s Country Offices applying to the 2023 PBSO Gender Promotion Initiative with a focus on climate change adaptation and mitigation as well as natural resource management.
• Facilitate knowledge exchange, collaboration, and coordination among key stakeholders working on climate security and women, peace, and security, including through organizing workshops, conferences, and other relevant events.
• Conduct research and produce high-quality reports, briefs, and other knowledge products on emerging trends, best practices, and innovative approaches in integrating gender into climate security, with a focus on gender-responsive climate finance in fragile and conflict-affected contexts and an analysis of climate change within Women, Peace and Security National Action Plans.
• Contribute to the advocacy for gender-responsive climate security policies and strategies at the international, regional, and national levels, and represent UN Women in relevant forums, conferences, and meetings, such as for instance the Conferences of the parties (COPs), Open Debates of the U Security Council, meetings of the UN Peacebuilding Commission, the Committee on the Statues of Women (CSW), and more.
• Support strategic partnerships with governments, UN agencies, civil society organizations, academic institutions, and other relevant actors to enhance collaboration and leverage resources for gender-responsive climate security.

V. Competencies

Core Values:

• Respect for Diversity
• Integrity
• Professionalism

Core Competencies:

• Awareness and Sensitivity Regarding Gender Issues
• Accountability
• Creative Problem Solving
• Effective Communication
• Inclusive Collaboration
• Stakeholder Engagement
• Leading by Example

Functional Competencies:

• Strong coordination skills, programme formulation, planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation skills
• Strong analytical skills
• Strong knowledge of gender equality, women empowerment and climate security

VII. Recruitment Qualifications

Education and certification:

• Master’s degree in gender studies, international relations, environmental sciences, peace and conflict studies, or a related field.

Experience:

• Minimum of 2 years of progressively responsible experience in gender equality, climate change, security, or peace and conflict-related work.
• Strong knowledge and understanding of gender-responsive approaches in climate security and women, peace, and security.
• Demonstrated experience in policy development, program design, and implementation, preferably in an international context.
• Proven ability to conduct research, analyze complex issues, and produce high-quality reports and knowledge products.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to effectively engage with diverse stakeholders.
• Strong advocacy and networking skills, with a track record of building partnerships and mobilizing resources.

Prior experience in the UN System is an asset.

Language Requirements:

• Fluency in English, both oral and written, is required.
• Proficiency in another UN languages is an advantage.

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