Land-based Pollution Consultant -Retainer (Technical Specialist, Land-based pollution)

Background Information – UNOPS Water, Environment and Climate (WEC)

The Water, Environment and Climate (WEC) portfolio, based in Vienna, and with offices based globally is part of the UNOPS Global Portfolio Office. The Portfolio has built strong partnerships and is effectively managing a portfolio of over 500 million USD over the last 15 years to support key initiatives with fund management, project implementation and administrative support.

WEC effectively operationalizes partners’ agendas with global approaches, as well as regional and country specific activities focused on climate action, protection and conservation of the environment. Partners profit from WEC’s ability to operationalize and/or scale up their important substantive agendas, including in support of key multilateral environmental and climate agreements, such as the Paris Agreement, the Cartagena Convention as well as the Sustainable Development Goals.

The South China Sea region and the UNEP/GEF SCS-SAP Project

The South China Sea is a semi-enclosed sea, which supports a number of unique habitats and ecosystems that are amongst the most biologically diverse shallow water marine ecosystems globally. The richness and productivity of the South China Sea and associated environments are, however, seriously threatened by high population growth, pollution, overharvest and habitat modification, resulting in high rates of habitat loss and impairment of the regenerative capacities of living resources. The socio-economic impacts of environmental deterioration are significant for the economies of this region.

Recognising that actions were urgently needed to halt degradation of the environment of this marine basin, the countries of the region sought the assistance of UNEP and the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and the project “Reversing Environmental Degradation Trends in the South China Sea and Gulf of Thailand” was implemented from 2003-2008. This included a Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis (TDA) of the issues and problems and their societal root causes as the basis for development of a Strategic Action Programme (SAP) which was inter-governmentally adopted in 2008. The SAP established a series of objectives and priority costed actions for coastal habitats, land-based pollution management, and the overexploitation of fish stocks in the South China Sea

A multitude of organizations -including several UN agencies, regional inter-governmental organizations and NGO’s- are active in the SCS-SAP region in the fields of fisheries, environmental protection and sustainable development. Yet, coordination and collaboration in terms of communication and awareness building on the aforementioned environmental problems (and on the implementation of related solutions) is still incipient.

In May 2018, a US$ 15 million grant was released by the GEF to support the execution of the 5-year “SCS-SAP Project” (2018-2023). Due to various reasons, including the COVID19 pandemic, the project has been delayed and has been extended to June 2024 with a possibility of a further extension to 2026. The United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) is the executing agency for the implementation of the SCS-SAP project.

Land-based pollution has been a core element of the original SAP and remains a priority transboundary issue for the region. The updated TDA and SAP therefore need to consider the implications of land-based pollution and prioritise actions for mitigating the impacts of land-based pollution at the regional scale.

The SCS-SAP project will therefore recruit a consultant on land-based pollution with the aim to assess the current status of land-based pollution in the South China Sea and Gulf of Thailand, and propose coordinated actions at the regional level for its mitigation.

Duty station:
Please be aware that this is a home-based position, with the duty station being your city of permanent residence. Regular travel may be required.

This is a retainer (consultant) national vacancy/position and will be hired for 12 months for a maximum of 220 working days with possibility of extension depending on performance and on availability of funds.

The consultancy includes the following key tasks:

• Working with the Regional Working Group on Land-based Pollution to agree on methodologies for assessing the status and information on land-based pollution at national level as well on principles for increased harmonisation.
• Assessment of sources, flows, and impacts of land-based coastal and marine pollution in the South China Sea and Gulf of Thailand, with a focus on transboundary sources and impacts of these.
• Assessment of pollution from the aquaculture sector in coastal and marine areas of the South China Sea and Gulf of Thailand, as well as the impacts of pollution on the aquaculture sector.
• Coordinate the Consultant 2 (Blue Economy and the Private Sector) on assessing the inter-linkages between pollution, aquaculture and the blue economy.
• Support national consultations on the status of land-based pollution assessments at national levels in each of the SCS countries using a watershed approach.
• Write draft report on assessment of land-based pollution in the South China Sea and Gulf of Thailand, including the case assessment of inter-linkages between aquaculture and pollution.
• Present above findings to the SCS-SAP Regional Working Group on Land-based Pollution.
• Finalize draft report on assessment of land-based pollution in the South China Sea and Gulf of Thailand, including the case assessment of inter-linkages between aquaculture and pollution.
• Identify transboundary issues related to land-based pollution, and coordinate with Consultant 5 (TDA and SAP Update) to ensure their integration into the TDA process.
• Provision of guidelines for national reporting on the status of land-based pollution assessments and modeling in each of the SCS countries using a watershed approach.

Education

• Master’s Degree in Environmental Science, Marine Science, Pollution Science, or a related field is required.
• First level university degree (Bachelor’s degree or equivalent) with additional two years of experience may be accepted in lieu of an Advanced university degree.

Experience

Required

• A minimum of 5 years of successful experience in marine pollution.
• Knowledge of, and experience with coastal and marine issues in a regional seas context, including in the South China Sea.

• Experience of working with the UN system would be an asset.

Languages

Proficiency in English is required.

Contract type: Individual Contractor Agreement (ICA)
Contract level: ICSC 10/ LICA 10.
Contract duration: This is a retainer (consultant) national vacancy/position and will be hired for 12 months for a maximum of 220 working days with possibility of extension depending on performance and on availability of funds.

For more details about the ICA contractual modality, please follow this link:
https://www.unops.org/english/Opportunities/job-opportunities/what-we-offer/Pages/Individual-Contractor-Agreements.aspx

• Please note that UNOPS does not accept unsolicited resumes.
• Applications received after the closing date will not be considered.
• Please note that only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process, which involves various assessments.
• UNOPS embraces diversity and is committed to equal employment opportunity. Our workforce consists of many diverse nationalities, cultures, languages, races, gender identities, sexual orientations, and abilities. UNOPS seeks to sustain and strengthen this diversity to ensure equal opportunities as well as an inclusive working environment for its entire workforce.
• Qualified women and candidates from groups which are underrepresented in the UNOPS workforce are encouraged to apply. These include in particular candidates from racialized and/or indigenous groups, members of minority gender identities and sexual orientations, and people with disabilities.
• We would like to ensure all candidates perform at their best during the assessment process. If you are shortlisted and require additional assistance to complete any assessment, including reasonable accommodation, please inform our human resources team when you receive an invitation.

Terms and Conditions

• For staff positions only, UNOPS reserves the right to appoint a candidate at a lower level than the advertised level of the post.
• For retainer contracts, you must complete a few Mandatory Courses (they take around 4 hours to complete) in your own time, before providing services to UNOPS. For more information on a retainer contract here.
• All UNOPS personnel are responsible for performing their duties in accordance with the UN Charter and UNOPS Policies and Instructions, as well as other relevant accountability frameworks. In addition, all personnel must demonstrate an understanding of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in a manner consistent with UN core values and the UN Common Agenda.
• It is the policy of UNOPS to conduct background checks on all potential personnel. Recruitment in UNOPS is contingent on the results of such checks.

* This is a Homebased position, and therefore the incumbent will need to use his/her own laptop and software.