Consultant on TEEB National Implementation

Result of Service 1. Additional applications of the TEEBAgriFood framework in India, linked to policy priorities of the Indian government. 2. Increased stakeholder engagement with the project’s goals and outcomes.

Work Location Home-based

Expected duration 12 months

Duties and Responsibilities Organization Setting:

UN Environment 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. Its mandate is to coordinate the development of environmental policy consensus by keeping the global environment under review and bringing emerging issues to the attention of governments and the international community for action. UN Environment Ecosystems Division works with international and national partners, providing technical assistance and capacity development for the implementation of environmental policy, and strengthening the environmental management capacity of developing countries and countries with economies in transition.

The consultant will work for the Economics of Nature Unit in the Ecosystems Division to perform the execution of different work packages of The Economics of Ecosystem and Biodiversity (TEEB) projects, and specifically on the project “Promoting biodiversity and sustainability in the agriculture and food sector through economic valuation” funded by the European Commission. The UN Environment TEEB initiative supports the implementation of TEEB studies of agro-ecological value chains in accordance with the TEEBAgriFood Evaluation Framework, which is broad in scope and requires considerable technical capacity related to quantification and valuation of natural capital and ecosystem services.

The Steering Committee for TEEBAgriFood India, co-chaired by Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare (MoAFW) and Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MOEFCC), recommended the policy focus area for the project in India to be an assessment of organic farming and agroforestry in selected districts of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand states in the Ganga basin. The Steering Committee is in the process of selecting a third and/or fourth state for application of the TEEBAgriFood framework.

The project will entail a TEEBAgriFood Framework application to identify differences between Business as Usual (BAU) and at least two Alternative Policy Scenarios, at every step along the value chain, based on modeled future projects. The study shall quantify or evaluate qualitatively changes in social, manufactured, natural, and human capital stocks and associated flows under each scenario. With reference to natural capital, changes in the flows of ecosystem services (or dis-services and residuals) between scenarios are to be used to identify how natural capital contributes to agri-food value chains and how in turn agri-food value chains may impact natural capital stocks.

UNEP requires the support of a consultant to support the implementation of the project in additional states in India, as well as to support mainstreaming of project outcomes for the TEEBAgriFood Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh States.

The consultant will report to the Head of the Economics of Nature Unit (TEN) in the Ecosystems Division.

Duties and Responsibilities: Duties and responsibilities of the consultant will include: 1. Contribute to the organization of a project workshops and steering committee meetings for the project in India. Participation will include broad representation of change agents, such as government (national and regional, the latter determined by the geographical scope of the intervention), line ministries, key research partner, agri-business, farmers’ groups, and civil society groups. This will include: a. preparation of background documents, the agenda and a list of invitees; b. overseeing the arrangement of adequate logistical arrangements for the workshop; c. writing a review of workshop outcomes; and d. drafting summaries for the Steering Committee. 2. Develop Terms of Reference for TEEBAgriFood applications in new State(s) and provide guidance to research consortia to be contracted ahead of their being contracted on the application of the TEEBAgriFood Framework. 3. Provide detailed technical review, assistance and support to research consortia on modelling (e.g. InVEST, SWAT), data sources, and science-policy translation. 4. Contribute to the application of the Theory of Change leading to policy adoption by facilitating the collaboration between partners and stakeholders in India to achieve this, including: the TEEBAgriFood political focal point in India; TEEBAgriFood research institutes; the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare; the Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Climate Change, other members of the TEEB India Steering Committees; and other stakeholders as necessary. 5. Work with the TEEB communications officer and the TEEB country focal point to develop and disseminate outreach materials.

Qualifications/special skills An advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent), preferably with a specialization in environmental geoinformatics, environmental management, law, social anthropology, environment and development, sustainable development, economics, applied economics, agriculture, or related fields is required. A first level degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree. A minimum of five (5) years teaching or training with governments, non-governmental organizations, or research institutions with a focus on environment and development is required. Experience in working on environmental issues in the Indian agriculture sector is desirable.

Languages English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For this post, fluency in spoken and written English is essential. Fluency in spoken Hindi is desirable.

No Fee 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.