The British Embassy Vilnius is looking for a Senior Science and Innovation Officer for Ukraine on a fixed-term 18-month contract from mid-October 2024.  The role will lead on delivery of the UK Government’s Science, Technology and Innovation interests with Ukraine.  The role will deliver remotely from British Embassy Vilnius.

The UK is a global leader in science, technology and innovation. International collaboration is essential to maintaining the excellence of the UK’s research base.  These areas are also vital to Ukraine’s recovery and as such form an integral part of the UK’s foreign policy priorities.

The jobholder will be based in the British Embassy Vilnius but will work as part of the UK Government’s global network of Science and Innovation officers – a Network of over 100 officers in 40 countries worldwide. The Network sets the strategic direction for the role and the jobholder will be part of a regional team that covers Central and Eastern Europe, reporting to the Regional Manager based in Bratislava, Slovakia.

The work of the UK ST&I Network is guided by the following principles:

• Projecting UK Excellence and Leadership Globally
• Building and Facilitating S,T&I collaborations of value to the UK
• Providing Insight and Intelligence to inform UK approaches.

Located in the British Embassy Vilnius, the jobholder will also work closely with, and as an integral part of, the British Embassy Kyiv’s political and programme teams ensuring delivery contributes directly to the Ukraine Country Business Plan owned by HM Ambassador in Kyiv.  The jobholder will work closely with the Economic Adviser position at the British Embassy Kyiv who leads on UK interests in the Ukrainian tech sector and innovations, including in AI and digitisation, identifying areas for UK-UA technical cooperation.  As such, this role will lead on scientific and academic connections that can both support growing cooperation in critical and emerging technology but also in the areas of science that can both support recovery and greater collaboration on issues such as climate change and global health. 

It is a role that will deliver remotely – the jobholder will need to coordinate closely with both the Science and Innovation network team and the British Embassy Kyiv to ensure coherent approaches, drawing on the benefits of being part of each team, to deliver effectively.  The jobholder will also be part of the local team in Vilnius, contributing to wider Ukraine objectives.

The jobholder will create a network of science and academic community stakeholders and work to build sustainable long-term partnerships and collaborations with UK science and innovation stakeholders. These stakeholders will also include those researchers who have relocated to other European countries.  The jobholder will also need to build relationships with UK ecosystem stakeholders, drawing on the support and access the Network provides to do so, to support delivery.

The job will include aspects of project delivery, requiring project management skills.

What will the jobholder be expected to achieve?

• Monitor and report on key developments in Ukraine science, technology and innovation policies to inform UK international engagement.
• Respond to requests from UK stakeholders for information on the local ecosystem.
• Build and manage a network of contacts in government, research organisations and universities in the UK and Ukraine to support SIN and Embassy objectives.
• Support British Embassy Kyiv teams to integrate science, technology and innovation considerations into policy and programme work.
• Lead on a programme of projects, visits, events and other activities to facilitate scientific and innovation collaboration between the UK and Ukraine, enhancing visibility of UK’s science excellence and innovation capability and articulating how this can help support Ukraine’s recovery.
• Support opportunities for the British Ambassador to Ukraine and wider Embassy representatives to engage on science and innovation with high-level Ukraine stakeholders. 
• Lead work on designing and delivering projects that can support connections and lead to outcomes on how scientific cooperation can support recovery and contribute to mutual science interests in thematic areas defined by the UK Science and Innovation Network.

Despite not being present in Ukraine, the jobholder will play an active role both as part of the local Embassy political and programme teams –as well as the Regional Science and Innovation Team in Central and Eastern Europe. 

The jobholder will need to travel to the UK and potentially to Ukraine as travel advice allows.

Essential on arrival:      

• Excellent level of written and spoken English (C level).
• A minimum of a university degree in a relevant topic – from politics, economics and international relations to science, tech and innovation areas. 
• Experience of working in embassies or other international or multilateral organisations.
• A keen and demonstrated interest in scientific and technological issues.
• Ability to work independently, as well as part of a team, and under remote line management
• Willingness to travel to Ukraine, UK and locations in Europe.
• Strong inter-personal and communication (oral and written) skills.
• Proficiency in MS Office applications (Microsoft Word, Excel, Outlook and PowerPoint).