Candidate Brief Senior Advisor - Resilience December 2017
Dear Candidate, Thank you very much for the interest you have shown in the Senior Advisor Resilience position. We are looking for an experienced technical expert to advise on resilience and climate change adaptation across CIUK s programmes, and to support the development of policy, research and funding proposals using our programmatic experience as a foundation. The post holder will be responsible for developing strong relations with institutional donors, research institutes, peer agencies and our country offices. You will play a key role in raising the profile of CARE International s resilience and adaptation work in the UK and amongst our partners internationally. You will work closely with our fundraising teams to secure additional funding for our climate change and resilience work. Our ideal candidate will have experience of implementing resilience and adaptation programmes at field level, together with previous experience in high level representation. You will be a proactive team player with strong communication skills and the ability to turn conceptual ideas into programmes. You will have experience of working in either humanitarian or development contexts. We hope after reading this brief, you feel you have the right skills and experience- if so, we would encourage you to make an application. Sheri Lim Team Leader Climate Change & Resilience 2
Background Information CARE is one of the world s leading humanitarian and development organisations. Founded nearly 70 years ago with the CARE package, CARE now fights poverty and injustice in 84 countries and has built up a strong reputation for innovation and impact. CARE s programmes focus on achieving lasting change by tackling the underlying causes of poverty and strengthening the capacities of poor communities to help themselves. In everything we do, CARE places special focus on gender issues and working alongside poor women and girls because, equipped with the proper resources, women have the power to help whole families and entire communities escape poverty. Women are a vital part of CARE s community-based efforts to improve food and nutrition security; protect life and resilience in humanitarian crisis; increase access to quality healthcare and education and expand economic opportunity for all. CARE helps poor people have a greater say about the decisions and policies that affect their lives, supporting them with information and skills so they can challenge decision-makers. CARE s advocacy efforts also bring evidence from our programmes of what works to change policy and practice at both a local and global scale. CARE is a non-sectarian and nonpartisan organisation. 3
About the CARE Confederation CARE International operates in 84 countries, but is held together by 13 national members. These national agencies are separate legal entities but operate through one presence in each country and work together under the CARE International Board and Secretariat, based in Geneva. They are bound together by the CARE code. Globally CARE employs 8,000 staff, with over 95% of them locally sourced and has an annual income of $800m. CARE s work is governed by our global Program Strategy, which outlines our goal that by 2020, CARE and our partners will support 150 million people from the most vulnerable and excluded communities to overcome poverty and social injustice. About CARE International UK CARE International UK is an important part of the global CARE International confederation and one of the largest and most influential members. We employ 115 staff and generate around 45 million a year for CARE s poverty-fighting work. As well as raising money for CARE s humanitarian and development work around the world, we provide programme expertise in four key areas: Humanitarian response With a long-term presence in many of the world s most vulnerable places, we take a comprehensive approach to emergency response including preparedness, immediate assistance and long-term recovery. We have a particular focus on women and girls; shelter in emergencies, and building resilience through our climate change adaptation and food security work. Women s Economic Empowerment We are working with poor women to give them access to economic resources through programmes on financial inclusion, supply chains and workers rights. The private sector has a critical role to play in reducing poverty and supporting women s economic empowerment. We take an innovative approach to engage with the private sector at global, national and local levels to improve the impact of their activities so that real opportunities are created for poor people. CIUK has also launched Lendwithcare a new solution for financial inclusion which offers the chance for people in the UK to make small loans to poor entrepreneurs. 4
Preventing and responding to sexual violence in conflict In an increasingly turbulent world, we provide expertise and support to our field operations in countries experiencing conflict, by supporting programmes spanning peace-building, reconciliation and rehabilitation. Protecting women from violence and increasing their participation in peace-building is a major advocacy priority. Governance The capacity of poor people to influence the institutions that govern their lives is fundamental to addressing the underlying causes of poverty. We work at a local level to help the most vulnerable and marginalised hold public authorities and other power holders to account for how they take decisions and allocate public funds. Within the CARE confederation, we have five strategic roles. We: 1. Design and deliver quality programmes that address the underlying causes of poverty and specifically examine and address the disproportionate impact of poverty on women and girls. 2. Advocate for policies to help the poorest, and change government and business practices to bring about lasting social change among communities living in poverty and affected by crises. 3. Raise strategic and transformational funding for CARE s poverty-fighting programmes in the world s poorest and most vulnerable communities. 4. Support CARE International s global transformation to achieve broader and deeper impact in our fight against poverty by providing strategic direction, resource and expertise. 5. Value our staff and strengthen our organisational effectiveness and accountability. 5
Background to the job/the team CARE International UK (CIUK) works extensively through Country Offices in many parts of Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean. The Climate Change and Resilience team supports the implementation of CIUK s strategic plan and the wider engagement with the CARE International 2020 Programme Strategy. CIUK delivers on resilience and climate change adaptation outcomes through a number of regional and country specific initiatives in sub-saharan Africa, South Asia and the Middle East. CIUK s climate change and resilience team focuses on community-based adaptation, climate information services and early warning systems, disaster risk reduction and management, preparedness, disaster recovery, and resilience in contexts facing protracted crises and recurring disasters. The team provides technical and policy advisory support to a range of programmes and also supports leadership of this work across the CARE confederation. The team prioritises humanitarian-development connections, and works across a portfolio of short-term humanitarian response and recovery as well as longer resilience and climate change programmes, both with CIUK and other CARE members and country offices directly. The Climate Change and Resilience team contributes to CARE International s Vision by supporting policy development and high-quality programmes in situations of chronic food insecurity, changing climate conditions, recurrent disasters, vulnerability and acute crises. The objectives of the team are to build a strong, well-resourced portfolio, providing programme support and technical advice that support secure, resilient livelihoods and humanitarian response and to deliver coherent and quality evidence and learning that contributes to knowledge sharing for improved policy, practice and investment. The post holder will be responsible for technical advisory support within CIUK and to other members and offices across the CARE confederation. The post holder will also be expected to explore new funding opportunities and to provide technical input into funding submissions. S/he will ensure that learning and evidence from CARE s work is captured and used to contribute to programme quality, communications and advocacy work. S/he will lead analysis of current risk reduction and resilience building approaches, and engage in the UK policy arena on resilience with civil society, donors and other actors in this space. S/he will also play an external representation role, engaging with senior decision-makers and peers to influence policy, promote CARE s work, and develop new partnerships. The post-holder will work on the CARE UK s portfolio of resilience and/or climate change programming (currently including Syria, Yemen, Nepal, Pakistan, Niger, Somalia, Tanzania, Kenya, Malawi) and other countries and regions that may arise. The post based at CIUK s office in London, with a combination of in-country travel and provision of support remotely. 6
Organogram Head of Humanitarian Technical Team Emergency Shelter Team Leader Climate Change & Resilience Team Leader Senior Humanitarian Advisor(Gender & Protection) Senior Shelter Advisor Shelter Advisors x 3 Promoting Safer Building research team Senior Resilience Advisor Senior Cash & Markets Advisor 7
Job Description 1. Overview Post Title: Senior Resilience Advisor Department: Programme & Policy Department, Humanitarian Technical Team, Climate Change and Resilience Team Responsible to: Climate Change and Resilience Team Leader Accountable to: Head of Humanitarian Technical Team Base Location: London, with travel (up to 40% of the time). CARE International UK (CIUK) reserves the right in consultation with employees to change base location according to organisational and departmental requirements. Line Management Responsibility: No staff report to this post. The Senior Advisor may at times be responsible for supervising volunteers and consultants. The Senior Advisor may assume supervision responsibilities in the future. Budgetary Responsibility: The Senior Advisor will not have any organisational budgetary responsibility, however they may manage discrete budgets associated with specific pieces of work and projects. They will be responsible for making a significant contribution to team and CIUK fundraising targets. 8
Contacts: External Contacts o International donors, eg DFID and EC (relevant contacts in London, Brussels and at country level). o Counterparts in other NGOs and NGO networks. (e.g. BOND groups, Communities of Practice, etc.) o Academic & research institutions. o Others as relevant e.g., UN, Multilateral organisations, Private sector partners. o Consultants and resources persons in research institutions, universities, forprofit and not-for-profit consultancy agencies and companies. Internal Contacts o Colleagues in the CIUK Programmes Team; Humanitarian Team; Inclusive Governance team and Women s Economic Empowerment team o CIUK Advocacy, Marketing and Communications teams. o CARE International Climate Change & Resilience Platform o Relevant food security, disaster risk management and resilience initiatives and networks within CARE o CARE International Country Offices, Regional Management Units and Regional Emergency Coordinators o CARE International gender network The above list is provided for guidance only and is not an exhaustive list of all the contacts with whom the post-holder may be required to liaise. 2. Main Areas of Responsibility Programme Quality and Impact Technical lead for CARE s Resilience programming in regions where CARE UK has resilience, climate change or livelihoods programming (currently in Southern Africa, East Africa, West Africa, South Asia, Middle East) Provide technical assistance and advice in project design, funding proposals, project implementation and monitoring & evaluation, including direct assistance to other CARE country offices and members. Develop and manage multi-country research and learning initiatives within the Team s portfolio. Drive learning and knowledge management within portfolio by authoring, commissioning and contributing to publications, policy documents, guidance documents, blogs and other resource materials for internal and external audiences. Policy Influencing Lead the development of organisational policy positions on relevant issues based on learning from CIUKs programming. 9
Support and develop priority advocacy positions in collaboration with country offices and programme staff and seek to influence appropriate target audiences. Represent programme activities to institutional donors, UN agencies, academic institutions, think tanks and peer agencies. Promote CIUK s resilience building activities and learning by organising, contributing to, and/or speaking at relevant events and organising events to showcase CARE s work. Engage strategically with relevant networks. Establish and/or develop relationships with relevant bilateral and multilateral institutions, partners and related agencies. New Funds and Resources Support the Team Leader in attracting resources toward annual fundraising targets, including by working with fundraising staff to identify new opportunities for climate change adaptation, disaster risk reduction and resilience-building programming and by recovering costs for technical assistance to donor-funded projects. Support the development of project proposals to institutional donors, foundations, and the private sector working with country offices, the Regional Management Units and CIUK s fundraising teams. Contribute to organisational efforts to raise awareness about CIUK s work on resilience building and risk and vulnerability reduction. Connecting with CARE International Develop and strengthen working relationships within the CARE-wide Climate Change & Resilience Platform. Other 1. Any additional duties as may be reasonably required by a senior technical advisor within the scope of the above. 2. This document forms part of the post holder s contractual terms and conditions of employment. 3. The document is not an exhaustive list of core elements of the role. This job description is a working document and may be amended from time to time by mutual agreement. Data Protection The post holder hereby agrees not to disclose any confidential or sensitive information to a third party or outside organisation except where required to do so by law. Health and Safety 10
The post holder agrees to abide by CIUK s Health and Safety principles and code of conduct and to take all reasonable steps to ensure both their own safety in the work place as well as that of their colleagues. Equal Opportunities The Post holder agrees to promote and uphold the principles of equal opportunities in accordance with CIUK s Equal Opportunities Statement and all related policies. 11
3. Person specification Essential Desirable Education & Qualifications MA or MSc in international development, natural resource management or environmental sciences or equivalent relevant experience Gender studies, climate change, household livelihood analysis, or other relevant development-specific training. Skills & Expertise In-depth understanding of key concepts in climate vulnerability, community-based adaptation, disaster risk reduction and resilience-building, and expertise in applying these to development and/or humanitarian programmes. Specific technical capacity and skills in any combination of the following: climate change vulnerability and adaptation, community-based disaster risk management, integrated risk management for resilience, natural resource management, ecosystembased approaches, gender and climate change, livelihoods and poverty-alleviation. Demonstrable understanding of principles of participation, gender equity (including women s empowerment), accountability and pro-poor governance in development work. Strong ability to analyse, summarise and synthesise learning and evidence and produce high quality written outputs suitable for publication and advocacy work. Ability to support and advise non-specialist colleagues and deliver training. Experience in developing or implementing knowledge management and learning processes and/or strategies. Project design, development, management and proposal writing skills for securing project funding. Strong communication skills with a range of stakeholders and external agencies Skills in numeracy and basic statistical analysis. Fluency in French, with the ability to work in French language environments. Background in climate change adaptation or livelihoods improvement with small-holder agriculturalists or pastoral communities in Africa, and/or Background in disaster risk reduction and resiliencebuilding in Asian countries. 12
Experience Significant experience implementing programmes involving resilience building and/or climate vulnerability reduction in contexts with chronically vulnerable people. Experience representing an organisation at a high-level, including interacting with and attracting support from institutional donors such as DFID, ECHO and the EC. Experience providing technical advice on areas of expertise to different audiences. Experience designing and leading research initiatives, monitoring and evaluating projects, demonstrating impact in projects, and policy analysis. Experience drafting policy documents for external audiences and advocating to highlevel policy audiences. Experience securing donor funding for projects. Other Capacity to relate effectively to a variety of audiences. Takes responsibility for problem solving and delivering quality results. Willingness to undertake travel as required to support projects. Ability to manage multiple projects and pieces of work simultaneously High quality writing and presentation skills Experience living in and/or implementing development or humanitarian programmes in the Sahel or dryland/semi-arid regions in Africa. Experience engaging closely with multilateral bodies. Experience of working with and supporting colleagues remotely. Media skills (including social media) 13
Application Process Closing date: Applications will be reviewed on submission and suitable applicants will be contacted for interview within two weeks of being submitted. If a suitable candidate is identified early, we reserve the right to close the recruitment before the advertised deadline of Monday 15th January. If you have not heard from CARE UK within two weeks of submitting your application, then please assume you have not been selected for an interview. For further information please visit www.careinternational.org.uk Twitter: @careintuk Facebook 14