Editorial Support for COP31 Story Book

Volunteering

Contract

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The Rising Lines is a Pacific-wide story book being developed by the United Nations Communications Group (UNCG) Pacific as part of its communications and advocacy efforts ahead of Pre-COP31 and COP31. The publication will bring together stories from UN colleagues that reflect the experiences, perspectives and priorities of people and communities across the Pacific in the context of climate change and climate action.

The story book will serve as an advocacy vehicle for Pre-COP31, which will be held in Fiji and Tuvalu in October 2026, and will subsequently support communications and advocacy efforts around COP31 in Türkiye. It aims to bring Pacific voices and lived experiences into wider climate conversations and demonstrate why climate action matters to communities across the region.

The assignment will be coordinated by the UN Resident Coordinator’s Office (RCO) in Fiji, working in collaboration with the UN Information Centre (UNIC) Canberra Communications Team, under the leadership of the respective communications teams. The editor will contribute to ensuring that stories submitted by UN colleagues are clear, compelling, consistent and publication-ready, while preserving the original meaning, voice and integrity of each contribution.

Through this assignment, the online volunteer will support the UNCG Pacific in producing a high-quality advocacy product that can help amplify Pacific perspectives and strengthen the visibility of Pacific priorities in the lead-up to Pre-COP31 and COP31.

The UNCG in the Pacific seeks to engage two editors with strong editorial and writing skills to edit a selection of stories submitted by UN colleagues for The Rising Lines, a storybook being developed as an advocacy and communications vehicle for Pre-COP31 and COP31.

The Rising Lines will help bring Pacific perspectives, experiences and priorities to wider audiences ahead of the Pre-COP31 meetings in Fiji and Tuvalu in October, and subsequently to COP31 in Türkiye. The stories will highlight the people, communities and experiences at the heart of climate action in the Pacific.

The purpose of the assignment is to strengthen the clarity, structure, readability and overall flow of the submitted stories while preserving the original meaning, facts, intent and voice of the authors. The editor will ensure that the stories are clear, engaging and consistent with UN editorial and writing standards.

The online volunteer is expected to: - Edit a selection of stories submitted by UN colleagues for The Rising Lines (approx. 20 each) - Improve grammar, sentence structure, clarity, consistency and flow. - Ensure that stories are concise, coherent and engaging while retaining the authors’ intended meaning and voice. - Apply appropriate UN writing and editorial standards. - Identify and flag any passages that may require clarification from the author rather than changing their intended meaning. - Incorporate comments and feedback from the project team. - Complete and submit the edited stories within one week of receiving the materials.

Candidates should have:

Experience in editing, journalism, communications, publishing or a related field. ( 3 years of realted experience would be an advantage) Excellent command of written English, including grammar, spelling, punctuation, sentence structure and style. Demonstrated experience editing feature stories, human-interest stories, articles or other narrative content. A strong understanding of UN editorial and communications style, including the ability to edit content for clarity, accuracy, consistency and appropriate tone. The ability to improve the readability, structure and flow of stories while preserving the author’s original meaning, voice and intent. Strong attention to detail and the ability to identify inconsistencies, repetition, awkward phrasing and unclear passages. Ability to work sensitively with stories based on people’s experiences and perspectives, ensuring that editing does not alter or misrepresent the intended message. Strong organisational skills and the ability to manage multiple stories and meet a one-week deadline. Experience working with international organisations, the United Nations, development communications or climate-related communications will be considered an asset. Familiarity with Pacific climate change and sustainable development issues will be considered an asset.

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Added 5 days ago - Updated 4 days ago - Source: unv.org