Junior Research Officer

Contract

This is a UNV National Youth contract. This kind of contract is known as National UN Volunteer. It is normally only for nationals. More about UNV National Youth contracts.

UNDP has been supporting the Ministry of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change in meeting its national and international environmental priorities and commitments. These include close to 40 projects in areas of biodiversity conservation, sustainable resource management, climate change and chemical management. UNDP’s support focuses on technical and policy advisory, institutional strengthening and building capacities of various stakeholders to utilize natural resources in a sustainable way, while increasing resilience to climate variability and associated risks and impacts.

UNDP supports Green Climate Fund (GCF) financed project “Enhancing Climate Resilience of India’s Coastal Communities” (PIMS 5991 /GCF FP084) implemented through the Ministry of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change (MoEFCC), central ministries and the nodal departments of the target state governments. The project is implemented in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and Maharashtra, to enhance the resilience of vulnerable coastal communities to climate change through ecosystem-based adaptation (EbA).

UNDP seeks to engage a National UN Volunteer to provide overall support towards the safeguard’s compliance, during the implementation of the project, through monitoring and reporting of the environment and social safeguards, of the project activities in the target landscapes. The Volunteer will report to the State Project Director (SPD) of their respective state and shall be closely working with State Project Management Unit (SPMU) of their respective state and the National Project Management Unit (NPMU) staff members.

• Coordinate with SPMUs and District Coordination Officers of their respective state, for undertaking project implementation activities and their subsequent environmental and social impact’s mitigation intervention measures, their monitoring and safeguard compliance reporting, in the target landscapes. • Support in organizing safeguards orientation and training workshop programs in coordination with NPMUs, SPMUs and DCOs of their respective state, at the target landscapes levels, district levels, state levels and the national level. • Assist in developing and finalizing the key reporting, planning and mitigation documents as per the Green Climate Fund’s (GCF) safeguards mandates, relevant to the target landscapes i.e., Gender Action Plan, Biodiversity Action Plan, Stakeholder Engagement Plan and Social Inclusion Plan. • Assist in management and functioning of the project’s National Grievance Redress Mechanism (GRM). • Support in compilation and documentation of the good practices and case studies on enhancing climate resilience of India’s coastal communities. • Maintain regular contact with the network of key stakeholders in the target landscapes of their respective state. • Coordinate field visits, and ability to travel to the target landscapes of their respective state. • Perform any other tasks assigned from time to time by the Supervisor.

• Integrity and professionalism: demonstrated expertise in area of specialty and ability to apply good judgment; high degree of autonomy, personal initiative and ability to take ownership; willingness to accept wide responsibilities and ability to work independently under established procedures in a politically sensitive environment, while exercising discretion, impartiality and neutrality; ability to manage information objectively, accurately and confidentially; responsive and client-oriented. • Accountability: mature and responsible; ability to operate in compliance with organizational rules and regulations. • Commitment to continuous learning: initiative and willingness to learn new skills and stay abreast of new developments in area of expertise; ability to adapt to changes in work environment. • Planning and organizing effective organizational and problem-solving skills and ability to manage a large volume of work in an efficient and timely manner; ability to establish priorities and to plan, coordinate and monitor (own) work; ability to work under pressure, with conflicting deadlines, and to handle multiple concurrent projects/activities. • Teamwork and respect for diversity: ability to operate effectively across organizational boundaries; ability to establish and maintain effective partnerships and harmonious working relations in a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic environment with sensitivity and respect for diversity and gender; • Communication: proven interpersonal skills; good spoken and written communication skills, including ability to prepare clear and concise reports; ability to conduct presentations, articulate options and positions concisely; ability to make and defend recommendations; ability to communicate and empathize with staff (including national staff), military personnel, volunteers, counterparts and local interlocutors coming from very diverse backgrounds; ability to maintain composure and remain helpful towards the staff, but objective, without showing personal interest; capacity to transfer information and knowledge to a wide range of different target groups; • Flexibility, adaptability, and ability and willingness to operate independently in austere, remote and potentially hazardous environments for protracted periods, involving physical hardship and little comfort, and including possible extensive travel within the area of operations; willingness to transfer to other duty stations within area of operations as may be necessary; • Genuine commitment towards the principles of voluntary engagement, which includes solidarity, compassion, reciprocity, and self-reliance; and commitment towards the UN core values.

relevant educational fields (Marine Biology, Fisheries, Environmental Science, Climate Change & Policy, Natural Resource Management, Sustainability Studies) will be considered. o Applicants with 1-2 years of relevant experience in the marine & coastal ecosystem or climate change will be preferred. o Excellent analytic and writing skills o Ability to aggregate and synthesize research literature and extract key messages and arguments o Excellent coordination and network skills

Mumbai – Maharashtra: Mumbai, is the most populous city in the Indian state of Maharashtra, offering a wide variety of jobs from conventional industries to IT services. It is also home to the Bollywood film industry. As India's capital of finance, Mumbai has the greatest number of fin-tech startups, and the cost of living and rental prices remains reasonably high

UN Volunteer entitlements and allowances: The purpose of the allowances and entitlements paid to the UN Volunteer is to enable UN Volunteers to sustain a secure standard of living at the duty stations in line with United Nations standards without incurring personal costs. For more information on entitlements please read the Conditions of Service (https://explore.unv.org/cos).

For information specific to your assignment please see below: o Monthly Voluntary Living Allowance (VLA): INR 40,483 o Entry lump sum (one-time payment): USD 400 (equivalent in INR) o Travel ticket when moving to duty station: USD 200 (equivalent in INR) o Exit allowance: 1 VLA/12 Months o Medical and life insurance Cigna Private Insurance o Leave entitlements: Annual leave - 2.5 days accrued per calendar month o Certified sick leave: 30 days o Uncertified sick leave: 7 days o Learning leave: 10 working days per consecutive 12 months o Maternity leave: 16 weeks o Paternity leaves: 10 days o Access to UNV Learning Portal for Online Courses