Position description
The Technical, Operational, and Program Support (TOPS) project is a United States Agency for International Development (USAID) funded institutional support contract for USAID’s Bureau of Resilience, Environment and Food Security (REFS), designed to help the Agency meet the pressing challenges caused by climate change. TOPS aims to help USAID meet the increasing complexities of global development by recruiting top-notch technical assistance providers to work in USAID’s offices and provide direct support to USAID teams.
In support of TOPS, Environmental Incentives is seeking a Senior Climate Resilience Advisor to support the Office of Economic Growth and Agriculture Development (EGAD) in Haiti. The Advisor will assist in the design and provide technical input into development programs aiming to build climate resilience, mitigation, and adaptation measures in Haiti as part of USAID programming responsibilities. They will serve as the Office’s climate specialist and will be asked to produce concrete deliverables and tasks outlined below. The Climate Resilience Advisor will provide technical support to Mission Activity Planners on best-practices for productive engagement with the private sector, local organizations, and relevant local authorities with the mandate to advance/regulate/monitor climate adaptation and mitigation efforts that can be brought to scale to yield measurable impact in lowering GHG emissions and/or mobilizing finance toward this aim. The Climate Resilience Advisor will provide approximately six to twelve months Level of Effort of technical support.
This is a great opportunity for someone who can provide expert guidance related to how USAID/Haiti’s Natural Resource Management/Agriculture and Water Security, Sanitation, and Hygiene programs are supporting USAID’s climate goals. The Senior Climate Resilience Advisor will provide data gathering and analytics and market research that support USAID/Haiti’s strategic investments in building the capacity of local institutions that implement climate adaptation and mitigation initiatives to meet the Agency’s ambitious targets set by the Agency’s Climate Strategy. The Senior Climate Resilience Advisor will support Mission integration of Agency climate objectives into new designs.
PURPOSE
The Senior Climate Resilience Advisor will support the Economic Growth and Agriculture Development Office (EGAD) in the Haiti portfolio to ensure USAID/Haiti integrates climate throughout the Haiti portfolio to include water, agriculture, and natural resource management as the initial focus. The Climate Resilience Advisor will complement the function of the Mission CIL when necessary to ensure climate risk is at the forefront of programming considerations and work in partnership with the CIL in a supportive role for integration into strategy processes if called upon. They will also:
- Serve as a point of contact for communication with USAID/Washington about climate integration and resilience with local staff and respond to other climate integration management and Mission needs.
- Support technical design teams for the development of Climate Risk Assessments (CRA) included in IEEs and provide guidance for the implementation of CRA recommendations.
- Support the CIL and EGAD team members in the assessment of capacity building needs in the Mission with respect to climate integration in support roles.
- Serve as the alternate point of contact with USAID/Washington to coordinate training needs.
- Provide mentoring and on-the-job training to staff, particularly to AOR/CORs, and to implementing partners to ensure the climate integration requirements are known and followed.
RESPONSIBLITIES
Provide Expert Technical Service
- Contribute to the technical alignment that supports the development of business models for replication, both within climate mitigation and adaptation, water and agriculture; generate new ideas and stimulate innovative thinking and approaches to addressing climate challenges in an economically and financially viable manner in a developing country context;
- Synthesize, analyze, and document experience and evidence and contribute to country-level learning for climate solutions in Haiti;
- Contribute to relevant portions of the Mission strategy and planning documents representing climate and resilience and prepare reports within the Mission and to external audiences when needed.
Concrete Deliverables Include:
- Undertake a crosswalk between USAID climate interventions with the GOH NDCs and NAPs and identify any gaps not covered by other donors. Be able to articulate how USAID/Haiti’s efforts are contributing to USG’s and GOH’s climate goals;
- Present in a 10-page document and presentation to the Mission/Washington audiences.
- Work with the MEL team and utilize resources from USAID Washington to integrate climate indicators and elements into USAID EGAD activities;
- Create and collect an evidence base for operationalization of USAID’s resilience approach and identify synergies and opportunities to continue current resilience approach with evidence as a basis;
- Support market research toward the Mission’s design of a new activity that promotes nature-based solutions and cross-cutting climate integration (e.g., agriculture, natural resource management, water security (resource management) and sanitation management, etc.) with a localization and private sector focus;
- Engage in market research that supports the Mission’s Activity design(s) that facilitate coastal resilience through improved capacity of local institutions responsible for sustainable marine and coastal productivity in Haiti
Capacity Development
- Coach EGAD’s and other Mission MEL experts in how USAID will ensure and communicate climate integration into all program sectors in addition to contributions to the resilience agenda.
- Support robust donor coordination and work with DOC to showcase climate resilience that incorporates USAID contributions.
- Provide backstopping support to water, agriculture, natural resource management, and climate portfolios as an activity manager when necessary.
- Coach and mentor new staff in climate resilience and nature positive climate considerations and how to integrate throughout development sectors.
The incumbent may travel approximately 35% of the time to perform job responsibilities and will come to Haiti and other countries on TDY as needed up to four times per year.
Qualifications
- A Master’s Degree is required in a field related to climate science, biological science, Business strategies, Environmental Economics, Environmental Management Science, Environmental Engineering, Natural Resources Management, Biology, or a related subject. Degrees must be from accredited U.S. or international institutions.
- 10 or more years of progressively responsible experience in analytics or program management relating to climate change, carbon finance and Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation in Developing Countries activity management, social impact business, ecology, biodiversity, ecosystems, conservation, or other environmental and/or finance and investment areas.
- Demonstrated technical knowledge in one or more of the following: climate finance, social impact investing, carbon market and offset mechanisms, environment and natural resource management, ecology/biology, environmental economics, local and rural development approaches, agriculture and/or natural resource management, and technology transfer and extension.
- Demonstrated experience with recommending proven methodology for calculating and monitoring emissions reduction; flagging values outside of expected ranges; applying metrics for verifier review, and developing sampling guidance for surveys, monitoring, and controlled tests, as well as approaches for conducting baseline and project surveys.
- A thorough understanding of the impacts of and responses to climate change and natural resource management context in Haiti.
- Working knowledge of USAID’s Climate Strategy. Knowledge of climate-related institutions that function in Haiti.
- Demonstrated experience working with carbon credit/climate finance institutions and with donor financial mechanisms such as multilateral bank investments and loan programs with climate and conservation objectives.
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience conducting site visits and/or field work to successfully monitor project activities; knowledge of relevant revaluations, assessments, and analyses.
- Ability to identify significant regional economic, political, and social trends and assess their importance and potential impacts on USAID development assistance objectives and projects.
- Field experience in Haiti and/or other environmentally degraded landscapes with limited governance capacity/resources.
- Demonstrated program management skills including previous experience in Federal Government grants management.
- Demonstrated communication and coordination techniques that are appropriate to the nature, complexity, and scope of Haiti’s climate and resilience issues.
- Climate expertise across adaptation, mitigation, and clean energy sectors and/or in other nature positive climate focused, nature-based solutions development programming experience.
Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities
- Working knowledge of Federal Government project development, management policy and documentation, business practices, and procurement and property management principles.
- Ability to manage, monitor, evaluate, and report on regional programs and activities; ability to preserve and present data in meaningful terms.
- Ability to work as a member of a team and to foster teamwork is required as is the ability to develop and maintain productive working relationships at all levels, including with staff and colleagues, the U.S. Ambassador and members of the U.S. country team across multiple countries, ministerial-level officials and local government officials, the heads of other donor agencies, and leaders of the NGO and corporate community in multiple countries.
- English language communications skills (native speaker level). Demonstrated ability to communicate effectively through oral presentations and briefings, written reporting and analysis, and information technology tools. 2+/3 level of French level of speaking ability.
- Ability to contribute to strategic communications efforts.
- Ability to attend conference calls and virtual meetings with international clients outside of regular business hours.
- Proficiency with MS Office suite and Google Applications.
ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS
- Criminal background check required.
BASE STATION
The position will be fully remote from home of record.
Application instructions
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