Specific tasks and responsibilities
1. Collaborate with the adaptation team to organize the implementation of approved projects, including:
- Contribute to the preparation and coordination of the launch of projects.
- Conduct the implementation of annual work plans and schedules.
- Monitor contracts and payments.
- Monitor project results, indicators of the results framework and monitoring of risks.
- Contribute to the preparation of annual performance reports and the project completion report.
- Conduct, when necessary, meetings with government officials and other interested parties for technical meetings.
- Collaborate in high-level technical and political meetings of different actors.
- Contribute to the management of deliverables for projects.
- Conduct actions to redirect projects towards the desired results.
- Develop reports, meetings and presentations on adaptation to climate change.
- Advice the communication team on the best ways of disseminating key results from the projects and ensure a regional outreach of UNEP’s lessons learnt
- Provide guidance to the NAP’s project management units for the execution of activities.
2. Collaborate with the adaptation team in the coordination and development of new project proposals, including:
- Contribute to the preparation and coordination of baselines, formulation of proposals (whether pre-concepts, concepts or complete proposals), and response to comments from climate funds.
- Structure project components, outputs and activities to ensure that they adequately address identified climate vulnerabilities and barriers, and lead to the achievement of expected results and transformational changes.
- Monitor the implementation of annual work plans and schedules for the development of proposals.
- Collaborate in technical and political meetings with governments for information gathering and decision-making.
- Monitor the work of technical work teams and social organizations for the formulation of proposals.
- Conduct, when necessary, meetings with local communities, and other stakeholders for consultation processes.
- Contribute to the management of terms of references, agreements and payments.
- Monitor the submitted proposal review process.
- Monitor the responses to both UNEP and the funds’ comments to the proposals, providing technical inputs to strengthen the projects based on these reviews.
UNEP offices, Panama City, Panama
Expected duration10 MONTHS
Duties and ResponsibilitiesThe United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) is the leading global environmental authority that sets the global environmental agenda, promotes the coherent implementation of the environmental dimension of sustainable development within the United Nations system and serves as an authoritative advocate for the global environment.
The UNEP Latin America and the Caribbean Office (LACO Office), located in Panama City, Panama works closely with the 33 countries of the region – including 16 small island developing States – with a population of about 588 million people. The office works to serve the needs of the region and its activities are integrated into the work programs approved by the United Nations Environment Assembly of UNEP (UNEA).
UNEP seeks to support countries in Latin America to implement the Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development and its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the new Paris Agreement and the priority actions defined in the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) of Latin American countries.
To achieve this, UNEP is seeking a Climate Adaptation Specialist to support the regional adaptation portfolio under the supervision and guidance of the UNEP Programme Management Officer for Adaptation of the Climate Change Unit for Latin American and Caribbean Office. This consultant will work 40 hours per week at the UNEP LACO at Panama City, Panama
UNEP LACO’s Climate Change Unit is currently supporting countries in the region to prepare and execute proposals and access climate change funds and thus promote resilience for both men and women, in particular to those most vulnerable to climate change. Given the gap in climate adaptation finance, UNEP LACO is emphasizing its support to LAC governments in the formulation and implementation of adaptation projects and programmes.
As a result, the services of a consultant are required to develop outputs related to four initiatives led by UNEP LACO: 1) Adaptation Fund’s proposal ”Enhancing the climate resilience of coastal communities in Limon, Costa Rica and Bocas del Toro, Panama through Nature-based Solutions for local livelihoods”, which involves Costa Rica and Panama; 2) Adaptation Fund’s proposal “AdaptAndes: Enhancing socioecosystems resilience, knowledge management and regional cooperation and governance across the Andes”, which involves Argentina, Chile, Colombia and Peru; 3) implementation of National Adaptation Plans (NAP) portfolio, funded by the Green Climate Fund, which includes Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Honduras, and Panama; and 4) “Enabling framework of environmental finance as an accelerator of the SDGs” in Cuba.
- Bachelor’s degree in environmental, forestry or agricultural engineering, natural resource management, biology, anthropology, or a closely related field is required..
- Master's degree or equivalent in international development, policy, economics, natural resource management, conservation, environment, and climate change, or a closely related field is required.
- Additional specialization studies in related topics will be valued.
PROFESSIONAL:
- At least seven (7) years of general experience in resource management, environmental or forest research or management, conservation, human rights and indigenous communities, or other related fields is required.
- At least four (4) years of experience in climate change adaptation, conservation, or natural resource management is desirable.
- Experience with projects related to Ecosystem-based Adaptation or Nature-based Solutions is desirable.
- Experience with the United Nations system is desirable.
- Experience in adaptation project formulation processes with the Adaptation Fund (AF), Green Climate Fund (GCF), or another multilateral climate fund is desirable.
- Work experience in at least one Andean country is desirable (Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela).
- International experience, demonstrated at the study or work level, is desirable.
LANGUAGE:
- Fluency in Spanish is required.
- Fluency in English is required.
THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.
$ads={1}