Internship with the Biodiversity Finance Initiative - BIOFIN

Internship

Overview

Support the global BIOFIN team in biodiversity finance activities.

You have:

• Enrolled in a graduate school programme or final year of a first university degree programme.
• Graduated with a degree in Biology, Geography, Environmental Studies, Engineering, Economics, Finance, Business Administration, Policy, International Relations, Communication, ICT or related fields.
• Proficiency in written and spoken English is required.
• Fluency and/or knowledge in Russian is required.
• Knowledge of other languages (Spanish, Portuguese, or French) is an asset.
• Previous related work experience in a national or international entity, preferably in finance area.
• Experience in developing websites/programming or using social media channels is an asset.

Contract

This is a Internship contract. It usually requires 0 years of experience, depending on education. More about Internship contracts.

Background

There are currently 35 countries globally participating in BIOFIN. The project, which began in 2012, is coordinated by the UNDP through a global team supporting country implementation and the continuous improvement of the BIOFIN methodology.

The global team works with interdisciplinary national teams, customising the methodology to the national context in each country. At the national level, BIOFIN works under the leadership of ministries of finance (treasury), economy, planning and environment to bring together a core group of national stakeholders, including the private sector, to rethink the most suitable finance modalities for biodiversity. Activities are implemented through in-depth consultation with a strong focus on capacity development.

Partnerships are another important feature of the BIOFIN methodology in each country, in particular with related initiatives such as WAVES, TEEB, PEI, UN-REDD, GIZ ValuES and relevant conservation finance projects including those under the UNDP-GEF portfolio. At the regional and global level, BIOFIN enables participating countries to exchange experiences through a variety of South-South cooperation mechanisms such as regional and global workshops, the BIOFIN website (www.biodiversityfinance.net), dedicated webinars and other platforms. BIOFIN is part of UNDP’s Global Environmental Finance (UNDP-GEF), hosted by the Ecosystems and Biodiversity (EBD) cluster under UNDP’s Bureau for Policy and Programme Support (BPPS).

BIOFIN Phase-I (2012-2018) enabled full assessments and initial implementation of finance plan elements in target countries. Based on lessons learned, a new and comprehensive version of the BIOFIN Methodology was developed. Significant scaling up of finance solutions is required in all countries to address the biodiversity finance challenge.

BIOFIN’s Phase-II (2018 – 2022) will mainly focus on the implementation of prioritised finance solutions while also allowing additional countries to undertake the initial assessments and create the finance plan. See www.biodiversityfinance.org for further information.

The BIOFIN team is based in Istanbul, at UNDP’s Regional Hub, which has over 100 staff.

Duties and Responsibilities

The intern would be an integrated member of the global BIOFIN team. The main responsibility of the Intern will be to support the global team in their technical, management and communication activities, through the following tasks:

• Familiarize with the revised BIOFIN methodology and analyse different country outputs;
• Further elaborate the BIOFIN financing solutions database with new entries and develop guidance materials and training materials on financing solutions for BIOFIN teams in different countries;
• Review international best practices to identify case studies of nature-based finance solutions that can serve as examples for BIOFIN work;
• Provide support on the implementation of the Knowledge Management strategy;
• Develop guidance materials and training materials on financing solutions for biodiversity conservation for BIOFIN teams in different countries;
• Support the organization of events;
• Assist with the organisation and documentation of meetings;
• Write stories and news articles on BIOFIN activities;
• Support the BIOFIN Communication team by promoting and maintaining BIOFIN’s social media updated (e.g. Website / Twitter / Facebook page);
• Support the organization of webinars and regional calls;
• Research, collect, analyse and present the work BIOFIN has been doing in its 35 core countries and the same for other similar projects working in different regions of the world;
• Monitor, analyse and synthesize the developments, press clippings and reports of BIOFIN, and maintain a database of BIOFIN news coverage and update regularly.

Competencies

• Excellent verbal and written communication, organizational and analytic skills;
• A well-organized individual with the ability to multi-task;
• A team player with ability to work productively and effectively with others;
• Desire to work with and gain the confidence and respect of people with different language, national and cultural backgrounds;
• Respect for the principles of the United Nations Charter and the UNDP Statement of Purpose.

Required Skills and Experience

Academic Qualifications/Education:

Applicants to the UNDP internship programme must at the time of application meet one of the following requirements:

1. Be enrolled in a graduate school programme (second university degree or equivalent, or higher);
2. Be enrolled in the final academic year of a first university degree programme (minimum Bachelor’s level or equivalent);
3. Have graduated with a university degree (as defined in (1) and (2) above) in a degree programme in a relevant discipline such as Biology, Geography, Environmental Studies, Engineering, Economics, Finance, Business Administration, Policy, International Relations, Communication, ICT or other related fields, and, if selected, must start the internship within one-year of graduation.

Experience:

• Previous related work experience in a national or an international entity would be an asset but is not required.
• Experience in related finance area is an asset.
• Experience in developing websites/programming or using social media channels is an asset.

Language skills:

• Proficiency in written and spoken English is required.
• Fluency and/or knowledge in Russian is required.
• Knowledge of other languages (Spanish, Portuguese or French) is an asset.

Learning:

• The intern will develop a good overview of global biodiversity financing practices and a basic understanding of UNDP project management concepts.

Additional Information:

Financial Issues:

Internships within the UN system are subject to conditions the applicant must get familiar with before signing his/her internship agreement.

Starting from January 2020 interns will receive stipends according to UN rules and regulations.

Any further costs associated with the internship must be borne by the nominating institution, related institution or government, which may provide the required financial assistance to its students; or by the student, who will have to obtain financing for subsistence and make his or her arrangements for travel, accommodation and other costs.

Application procedure:

The application should contain:

• Brief Cover Letter (in English) stating interest in and qualifications for the post and your availability;
• Current and complete CV in English.

Please combine all your documents into one (1) single PDF document as the system only allows to upload maximum one document.

Selected candidate(s) must submit the following documents prior to the start of the internship:

• An official letter from the University confirming enrolment in a graduate-level degree programme;
• Proof of medical and life/accident insurance valid for the location in which the internship will be carried out. Selected intern must have medical and life insurance.

Conditions:

UNDP only accepts interns for a minimum of 6 weeks and a maximum of 6 months; UNDP accepts no responsibility for costs arising from accidents, illness or death during the internship; Interns are not staff members and may not represent UNDP in any official capacity; Interns are responsible to arrange for their own visa and residence documents, and need to plan for these well in advance; The purpose of the internship is not to lead to further employment with UNDP but to complement an intern’s studies; therefore, there should be no expectation of employment at the end of an internship; More information available at: http://www.eurasia.undp.org/content/rbec/en/home/about_us/jobs/internships/

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Potential interview questions

Added 6 years ago - Updated 1 year ago - Source: jobs.undp.org