Climate Change GCF Strategic Advisor for Asia - Consultancy

Description

Background:

Mercy Corps is a leading global organization powered by the belief that a better world is possible. In disaster, in hardship, in more than 40 countries around the world, we partner to put bold solutions into action — helping people triumph over adversity and build stronger communities from within.

Mercy Corps' ten-year Pathway to Possibility strategy identifies Climate Change as one of two primary drivers of fragility globally. It also outlines five core organization-wide commitments, one of which commits Mercy Corps to being a ‘Climate-Smart’ organization. Our mission is to raise awareness, drive tangible changes, foster innovation and, most importantly, empower vulnerable communities. This isn't just a blueprint for action—it's our pledge to a more resilient and sustainable future for all. In essence, our climate-smart commitment outlines the ways our work must change to ensure our programs have the enabling conditions to achieve climate impact. As an organization, we plan to: Build Our Climate IQ, Walk the Talk, Ensure Program Impact, Expand our Funding Base, and Raise our Influence within the Global Climate Movement.

Purpose / Project Description:

The purpose of this consultancy is to support meeting two of our four climate-smart commitments of Ensure Program Impact and Expanding our Funding Base in the Mercy Corps Asia region by harnessing additional climate finance opportunities and understanding country-specific donor priorities and visions. As Mercy Corps is a non-accredited entity, this consultancy aims to help our Asia country teams access the Green Climate Fund (GCF) through the Direct Access track by engaging directly with the country-specific National Designated Authorities (NDA) and providing recommendations for country teams on next steps based on strategic thematic areas of focus and stakeholder engagement with GCF.

Consultant Objectives:

This consultancy has three primary objectives:

• Help our country teams understand the current state of play of the GCF’s investments in a subset of the region's prioritized countries and the NDA's priorities.
• Help identify potential entry points for working with the NDA to submit concept notes through the direct access track
• Establish plans and strategies for continuing to engage the NDA in order to advance toward concept not submission.

Consultant Activities:

The Consultant will:

• Through desk research, help Mercy Corps country and regional teams understand the priorities, state of GCF funding, and opportunities to engage the NDA in a prioritized mix of country contexts.
• Based on the desk research, identify 3-4 countries with the most opportunities and lead the coordination of initial engagements between Mercy Corps country leadership and the National Designated Authority (NDA) for the GCF in those countries. The aim of these consultations will be to learn about: (a) The current standing on Readiness Programme (i.e. Are they accessing the money for Readiness or NAP development? Are they looking for support?) (b) the existing project pipeline for GCF, including identity of direct access entities and interest in partnering with Mercy Corps to implement. (c) Their interest in supporting Mercy Corps’ effort for accreditation at the global level.
• Based on the above develop a short report for each pre-identified country that lays out (a) key findings from the desk research and consultations, (b) recommendation and workplans for each country to continue the engagement.

Consultant Deliverables:

The Consultant will:

• Conduct desk research to understand the GCF context and background in each country
• Coordinate engagement between Mercy Corps and the NDA in each country of the four countries prioritized

• Draft final reports for each country that document what has been learned and the next steps.

• The final deliverable will be 4 country level reports in line with what has been described above.

Timeframe / Schedule:

This consultancy should be completed by June 30, 2024

• Second Week of June for Desk Research
• Third Week of June for virtual meetings with NDA in the four countries
• Fourth Week to write the four country-level reports

The Consultant will report to:

Eliot Levine- Senior Director for Climate and Environment on the Technical Resources and Quality Team

Shavonne Stanek, New Initiatives Senior Advisor for Climate and Energy in Asia

The Consultant will work closely with:

Asia Portfolio Country Leadership (Country Directors, Directors of Programs, and Key Program Managers)

Regional Leadership (Regional Deputy Director, Regional Business Development Senior Specialist)

Required Experience & Skills:

• Bachelor’s degree in a relevant technical field (Master’s preferred)
• 5-10 years of technical experience, ideally with experience working on GCF program development
• Climate relevant knowledge and expertise
• Track record of producing high quality recommendation and strategic visioning for climate programming

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Achieving our mission begins with how we build our team and work together. Through our commitment to enriching our organization with people of different origins, beliefs, backgrounds, and ways of thinking, we are better able to leverage the collective power of our teams and solve the world’s most complex challenges. We strive for a culture of trust and respect, where everyone contributes their perspectives and authentic selves, reaches their potential as individuals and teams, and collaborates to do the best work of their lives.

We recognize that diversity and inclusion is a journey, and we are committed to learning, listening and evolving to become more diverse, equitable and inclusive than we are today.

Equal Employment Opportunity We are committed to providing an environment of respect and psychological safety where equal employment opportunities are available to all. We do not engage in or tolerate discrimination on the basis of race, color, gender identity, gender expression, religion, age, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin, disability (including HIV/AIDS status), marital status, military veteran status or any other protected group in the locations where we work.

Safeguarding & Ethics Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our stakeholders and to international standards guiding international relief and development work, while actively engaging communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects. Team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner and respect local laws, customs and MC's policies, procedures, and values at all times and in all in-country venues.