Project Coordinator

Volunteering Environment

Overview

Lead sustainable waste management project in Mumbai, ensuring gender equality and local partnership.

You have:

• At least 7 years of experience with Master's or 10 years of experience with bachelor's degree, in implementing large-scale waste management, WASH or related sustainability initiatives.
• Demonstrated track record of high-impact execution and results-based management.
• Hands-on experience in optimizing waste management operations and behavior change initiatives, from process improvements to staff training and quality assurance.
• Experience applying municipal solid waste regulations in India for efficient and compliant systems.
• Experience in coordinating with government bodies, civil society organisations, and the private sector in urban context.
• Skilled at translating strategic objectives into operational action plans, with capacity to meet targets under deadlines and budget constraints.
• Demonstrated ability to lead diverse teams and establish robust partnerships across sectors.
• Adept at identifying new solutions and adapting to evolving project requirements.
• Strong commitment to ensuring equitable participation of women, youth, and marginalized groups.

Contract

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

UNDP India in collaboration with Government, Private Sector entities, CSOs, and local community has initiated a project to minimize negative impacts and risks to environment and human health in India, by enhancing sustainable Plastic Waste Management practices. The project aims to develop socio-technical model (segregation/collection/recycling) to improve the use of resources, while ensuring compliance with regulations and in line with Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) in India.

The Plastic Waste Management (PWM) project within UNDP India has a unique and cross-cutting opportunity to contribute towards 14 of the 17 SDGs and spearhead the country office’s efforts towards taking necessary steps to achieve gender equality and integrate it in the functioning of the project. The project has strong linkages for reducing gender inequality and improving livelihood for women, especially Safai Saathis (informal recycling workers) associated with the project. The project works towards improving their institutional status and access to economic and social resources by providing better work opportunities and enabling social protection linkage.

The Project Coordinator will lead the project activities in Mumbai, with a specific focus on collaboration with the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM). This involves:

1. Coordinating behaviour change campaigns and awareness drives in selected wards (R-North and H-West) of Mumbai.
2. Overseeing operations of the local Material Recovery Facility (MRF) in H-West Ward of Mumbai.
3. Supporting the social inclusion program for informal waste workers.
4. Building and maintaining partnerships with local authorities, private sector, and civil society organizations to strengthen the impact of the project.

Under the direct supervision of the Project Analyst, the Project Coordinator will be responsible for the following tasks in Mumbai:

1. Project Strengthening and Execution • Develop and implement a clear action plan for scaling and optimizing the existing Plastic Waste Management model in Mumbai. • Set key performance indicators (KPIs), manage risks proactively, and ensure timely decision-making to keep all activities on track. • Provide hands-on leadership to the local project partners, ensuring operational efficiency and accountability.

2. Stakeholder and Partnership Management • Maintain and strengthen relationships with MCGM, private sector partners, civil society, and community-based organizations already engaged in the project. • Identify new opportunities for partnerships to expand the project’s scope and impact. • Organize stakeholder review meetings, ensuring key decisions are executed and monitored effectively.

3. MRF Operations and Technical Oversight • Oversee the day-to-day operations of Material Recovery Facilities (MRFs) in close coordination with local teams and Safai Saathis. • Drive continuous improvement in waste segregation, collection, and recycling processes, ensuring compliance with regulations and the adoption of circular economy principles. • Collaborate with technical experts to introduce systems, innovations (e.g., new technologies, process optimizations) that enhance efficiency and output quality.

4. Behavior Change and Awareness • Provide strategic direction for ongoing and new behavior change campaigns aimed at citizens, businesses, and waste workers. • Ensure communications and outreach materials reflect best practices in public awareness, driving measurable shifts in behavior. • Guide local teams in execution, monitoring campaign metrics and course-correcting as needed.

5. Social Inclusion and Gender Mainstreaming • Strengthen and expand existing programs for the inclusion and empowerment of Safai Saathis, especially women and marginalized groups. • Integrate gender-responsive approaches into all project components, from MRF operations to community engagement initiatives. • Track and report on progress toward gender and social inclusion targets, ensuring interventions are effective and equitable.

6. Monitoring, Evaluation and Reporting • Refine and lead the project’s M&E framework, setting performance indicators and ensuring data-driven decision-making. • Facilitate regular review meetings (monthly, quarterly) with stakeholders, presenting clear, concise reports on achievements, challenges, lessons learned and using it for troubleshooting and course correction. • Produce a final comprehensive report at the end of the assignment, detailing outcomes, impacts, best practices, and sustainability recommendations.

• Accountability • Adaptability and Flexibility • Building Trust • Commitment and Motivation • Commitment to Continuous Learning • Communication • Creativity • Ethics and Values • Integrity • Planning and Organizing • Professionalism • Respect for Diversity • Self-Management • Working in Teams

• At least 7 years of experience with Master’s or 10 years of experience with bachelor’s degree, in implementing large-scale waste management, WASH or related sustainability initiatives. • Demonstrated track record of high-impact execution and results-based management. • Hands-on experience in optimizing waste management operations and behavior change initiatives, from process improvements to staff training and quality assurance. • Experience applying municipal solid waste regulations in India for efficient and compliant systems. • Experience in coordinating with government bodies, civil society organisations, and the private sector in urban context. • Skilled at translating strategic objectives into operational action plans, with capacity to meet targets under deadlines and budget constraints. • Demonstrated ability to lead diverse teams and establish robust partnerships across sectors. • Adept at identifying new solutions and adapting to evolving project requirements. • Strong commitment to ensuring equitable participation of women, youth, and marginalized groups.

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.

As this is a national UN Volunteer assignment, the UN Volunteer will be responsible for arranging his/her own housing and other living essentials. This position is based in Mumbai. National UN Volunteers are part of the malicious insurance plan. National UN Volunteers are expected to be culturally sensitive and adjust to the prevailing culture and traditions.

The contract lasts for the period indicated above with possibility of extensions subject to availability of funding, operational necessity and satisfactory performance. However, there is no expectation of renewal of the assignment.

This assignment is part of the special programme initiative, as per the UN Volunteer Conditions of Service, Section XVIII, the Conditions for this assignment are amended as follows: • The Monthly Volunteer Living Allowance (VLA) will be INR 112,590.50/- per month • Exit allowance for each month served, paid on successful completion of the contract: INR 9,383.08 • The UN Volunteer is not eligible for entry lumpsum or travel costs • Health insurance will not be provided to dependents of the UN Volunteer • Access to UNV learning will be restricted to mandatory courses and free-of-charge learning resources provided by UNV.

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Potential interview questions

Added 1 year ago - Updated 1 year ago - Source: unv.org