Regional Climate Change Specialist – RBEC (Climate Promise) - IPSA 10

Contract

This is a IPSA-10 contract. This kind of contract is known as International Personnel Services Agreement. It is normally internationally recruited only. It usually requires 5 years of experience, depending on education. More about IPSA-10 contracts.

Background

Instructions to Applicants: Click on the "Apply now" button. Input your information in the appropriate Sections: personal information, language proficiency, education, resume and motivation. Upon completion of the first page, please hit "submit application" tab at the end of the page. Please ensure that CV or P11 and the Cover letter are combined in one file.

The following documents shall be required from the applicants:

Personal CV or P11, indicating all past positions held and their main underlying functions, their durations (month/year), the qualifications, as well as the contact details (email and telephone number) of the Candidate, and at least three (3) the most recent professional references of previous supervisors. References may also include peers.

A cover letter (maximum length: 1 page) indicating why the candidate considers him-/herself to be suitable for the position.

Managers may ask (ad hoc) for any other materials relevant to pre-assessing the relevance of their experience, such as reports, presentations, publications, campaigns or other materials.

Office/Unit/Project Description

Global Context

Working in 170 countries and territories to eradicate poverty, reduce inequalities and exclusion, UNDP plays a critical role in helping countries/territories achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). UNDP’s 2022-2025 Strategic Plan emphasizes the critical links between environmental sustainability, climate change mitigation and adaptation, and broader efforts to achieve the goals of the 2030 Agenda and Paris Agreement. Climate change could drive an additional 100 million people into poverty by 2030. One of its key priorities for the next 10 years is to support countries/territories accelerate ambitious action on climate change.

Climate change is the single greatest challenge humanity has ever faced, threatening water and food security, health, livelihoods, and the safety of billions of people together with drastic negative impact on global ecosystem balance. UNDP’s ambitious “Climate Promise” supports over 120 countries/territories to enhance their climate ambitions under the Paris Agreement, with focus on greater emissions reduction and resilience building. The second phase of the Climate Promise, launched in 2021 at COP26 in Glasgow, focuses on NDC implementation, climate advocacy, and long-term planning to ensure inclusive climate action at the speed and scale required to keep global temperature below 1.5°C.

The Climate Promise provides direct financial and technical support to countries on NDC implementation in the context of national development priorities. As part of this portfolio initiative, a contribution from the Japan Supplementary Budget (JSB) of $42M to COs and regional/global team was received. This contribution will provide financial and technical assistance to 23 countries/territories around the world and serve as the catalyst to showcase NDC implementation as part of the UNDP flagship initiative. The JSB component seeks to respond to the status and context of the country’s NDC process and advance the implementation of the country’s NDC measures and realisation of its targets under two key pillars: clean energy and net-zero pathways; and helping vulnerable and fragile settings to be more resilient to climate impacts. Through the two pillars, the most common targets for NDCs are addressed – mitigation, primarily through energy, and adaptation and resilience – as well as scaling-up innovation to create opportunities for further investment by the private sector. There is a strong demand for engagement of Japanese counterparts in this process.

Regional Context

The energy transition, the development of renewable energy sources and energy efficiency, boosting energy security and reducing the reliance on fossil fuels, carbon pricing, strengthening climate resilience, supporting mid- and long-term low emissions development, the enhanced transparency framework, climate action and disclosures, and increasing climate ambition, as well as ensuring engagement of all stakeholders in the climate policy development and implementation are particularly important in the Europe and Central Asia region where many countries are heavily dependent on the use of fossil fuel, while having energy-, and consequently carbon-, intensive economies. In addition, the Western Balkan countries and Eastern Partnership countries have a strong need to align and implement their legislation, policies and investments with EU priorities. The region is seeing more frequent and severe droughts and climate induced disasters, converging with situations of fragility, conflict and displacement.

Through Climate Promise and its affiliated initiatives, UNDP is currently active in 17 countries and the territory of Kosovo (as per UNSC Resolution 1244) in the Europe and Central Asia region, where it is supporting a variety of NDC-related work. The JSB coordinated by the Climate Strategies and Policy team provides direct financial and technical support to the aforementioned 12 COs as well as regional activities on NDC implementation in the context of national development priorities and regional knowledge generation and south-south exchange. As the Climate Promise enters this second phase, utilising new funding sources from Japan and other donors, UNDP is leveraging its extensive climate change portfolio, its Country Office network and global policy services to provide thematic and substantive technical support to countries/territories and ensure that NDCs are fully aligned with national sustainable development priorities and advance progress on delivering national targets.

Role

The incumbent will function as coordinator for the JSB and provide overall support for the Climate Promise portfolio in the region. This includes supporting COs as well as relevant thematic colleagues at the regional hub and HQ to deliver an integrated approach to support NDC implementation.

Institutional Arrangement

The Regional Climate Change Specialist will report directly to the Regional Technical Leader for Nature, Climate and Energy and will be part of the Nature, Climate and Energy regional team based at UNDP’s Regional Hub for Europe and Central Asia, in Istanbul, Turkey. The Regional Climate Change Specialist will also work closely with the global JSB coordinators and Climate Promise team in HQ, to ensure effective deliver of the JSB portfolio.

Duties and Responsibilities

Scope of Work

Country and Regional delivery and support

• Ensure alignment of JSB activities with other ongoing support and strategic guidance provided by JSB global coordinators, NCE Regional Team Leader, thematic advisors across the GPN, and regional advisors in the Regional Bureau Country Support Team
• Coordinate JSB-related support across the region, backstopping COs with technical advice, in concert with the global coordinators of JSB and the broader Climate Promise infrastructure
• Support JSB-supported COs in responding to information requested by the donor, as needed.
• Oversee the timely delivery and reporting of the CO-driven JSB projects and provide technical support as needed – particularly on key outputs related to the NDC, in coordination with the NCE Regional Team Leader and relevant regional technical focal points
• Contribute to overall technical support of the Climate Promise in the Europe and Central Asia region, by ensuring synergies between the JSB-supported projects and the broader portfolio, as well as other NDC-related support in the region
• Advise countries/territories on opportunities to leverage the NDC for economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic and linkages with gender-responsive NDC implementation.
• Review and provide technical guidance/oversight for quarterly and annual reports from targeted countries/territories

Knowledge management and peer-to-peer learning

• Coordinate peer-to-peer learning among JSB programme countries/territories and organize or coordinate with other regional teams to support webinars and a south-south exchange workshop to share information and experience with different regions

• Create knowledge products on NDC enhancement and implementation that draws on and showcases the results and experiences under the JSB portfolio in the region

• Contribute to and/or represent UNDP at regional and global NDC-related events to showcase the support under the JSB portfolio, as required

• Provide technical and strategic insights on the demand emerging from countries in the region, to inform the direction and evolution of the Climate Promise
• Contribute to relevant regional outreach, visibility, and reporting requirements, as requested by Regional Team Leader and global JSB coordinators.

Competencies

Cross-Functional & Technical competencies

Thematic Area

Name

Definition

2030 Agenda: Planet

Nature, Climate and Energy

• Climate Change Policies: Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC)

Business Managment

Customer Satisfaction/Client Management

• Ability to respond timely and appropriately with a sense of urgency, provide consistent solutions, and deliver timely and quality results and/or solutions to fulfil and understand the real customers' needs.
• Provide inputs to the development of customer service strategy.
• Look for ways to add value beyond clients' immediate requests.
• Ability to anticipate client's upcoming needs and concerns.

Business Managment

Project management

• Ability to plan, organise, prioritize and control resources, procedures and protocols to achieve specific goals

Business Managment

Communication

• Ability to communicate in a clear, concise and unambiguous manner both through written and verbal communication; to tailor messages and choose communication methods depending on the audience
• Ability to manage communications internally and externally, through media, social media and other appropriate channels

Business Managment

Resource management

• Ability to allocate and use resources in a strategic or tactical way in line with principles of accountability and integrity

Business Managment

Monitoring

• Ability to provide managers and key stakeholders with regular feedback on the consistency or discrepancy between planned and actual activities and programme performance and results, including support at the webinars and official events

Partnership management

Relationship management

• Ability to engage with a wide range of public and private partners, build, sustain and/or strengthen working relations, trust and mutual understanding

Minimum Qualifications of the Successful IPSA

Required skills

• Knowledge of climate change policy landscape (including the international climate regime), climate technologies and ability to apply this to strategic situations at the global, regional and national levels
• Substantive experience working with national governments and stakeholders on climate change initiatives, preferably in the Europe and Central Asia region
• Demonstrated experience advancing inter-disciplinary approaches through engagement and coordination of cross-team collaboration
• Direct experience designing, managing and implementing national or regional projects, particularly related to climate change adaptation measures and/or mitigation measures in the energy sector
• Demonstrated understanding of linkages between the Paris Agreement and 2030 Agenda
• Demonstrated ability to develop knowledge products and outreach pieces related to climate change policy and project implementation
• Experience with the work of multilateral, bilateral and civil society partners
• Demonstrated ability to work in an independent manner and minimal supervision
• Excellent analytical and communications skills

Desired skills in addition to the competencies covered in the Competencies section

• Demonstrated experience in or with OECD/DAC donor or Japan funded projects, with concrete reporting will be considered an asset.
• Experience supporting countries/territories in NDC formulation and implementation an asset
• Relevant relationships and networks in the area of climate change in the Europe and Central Asia region is an asset
• Direct experience advising countries/territories, programmatic partners and internal teams on green recovery approaches from the COVID-19 pandemic is an asset
• Experience supporting gender-responsive approaches to climate action
• Work experience in UNDP and knowledge of UNDP policies and procedures is desirable

Required Language(s)

• Fluency in English is required
• Fluency in Russian will be considered an asset

Professional Certificates

• N/A

Required Skills and Experience

Minimum Qualifications of the Successful IPSA

Min. Education requirements

• Advanced university degree (Master’s or equivalent) in climate change, environment, sustainable development, energy, engineering or related area.

Min. years of relevant work experience

• At least 5 years of professional work experience providing policy advice and programme support in the area of climate change or related area, with experience in the Europe and Central Asia region an asset.