Specialist in Carbon Markets and Project Development for the Capacity Building in Carbon Markets and Article 6 Readiness Proposal

Result of Service The Consultant will support the Climate Ambition and Transparency Team to achieve the following general goals: ¿ Collectively improve the overall knowledge of the scope and functioning of Article 6 of the Paris Agreement in Argentina, Panama, Costa Rica and Dominican Republic through a regional approach ¿ Support the relevant stakeholders from these participating countries to comply with the institutional, technical and operational requirements to establish or participate in new or existing carbon markets. This will not only support the participating countries to comply with the goals established in their NDCs but it also allows the national governments to increase their ambition and cooperation among parties in their commitments under the Paris Agreement.

Outputs and Deliverables

Output 1: Technical capacities of NDAs and key stakeholders to comply with the requirements for the implementation of carbon markets are strengthened and eligibility criteria for projects are defined to participate in article 6 in each country.

¿ Product No. 1: One detailed Work Plan enabling the efficient and effective execution of the tasks required for the elaboration of technical products 2, 3, and 4 of the consultancy.

¿ Product No. 2: One report per country for Argentina, Panama, Costa Rica and Dominican Republic with existing emissions reduction and carbon sequestration projects being developed in the territory.

¿ Product No. 3: One report per country (Argentina, Panama, Costa Rica and Dominican Republic) with eligibility criteria that make a project eligible under Article 6 (including information about: if it complies with certain standards, if it is developed in the voluntary carbon market or under the CDM of the Kyoto Protocol, or under the Warsaw mechanism of REDD+).

¿ Product No. 4: One report with results of a virtual regional webinar about the existing emissions reductions and carbon sequestration projects being developed in Argentina, Panama, Costa Rica and Dominican Republic and eligibility criteria that make a project eligible under Article 6.

Responsibilities and Activities

Under the direct of UNEP’s Programme Management Officer for Energy Efficiency of the¿Climate Change Unit, the consultant shall perform the following activities:

1. Identify existing emissions reduction projects in each country, in order to diagnose the type and profile of projects being developed and define eligibility criteria in terms of the objectives that carbon markets should meet in each country and in terms of the international standards and requirements from UNFCCC negotiations.

Work Location Home-based

Expected duration 10 Months

Duties and Responsibilities The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) is the leading global environmental authority that sets the global environmental agenda, promotes the coherent implementation of the environmental dimension of sustainable development within the United Nations system and serves as an authoritative advocate for the global environment. Its mandate is to coordinate the development of environmental policy consensus by keeping the global environment under review and bringing emerging issues to the attention of governments and the international community for action.

The UNEP Latin America and the Caribbean Office (LACO), located in Panama City, Panama, works closely with the 33 countries of the region and its activities are integrated into the Medium-Term Strategy and the Programme of Work approved by the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA).

One of the most relevant challenges the implementation of the Paris Agreement poses to countries is to count with strong Transparency Frameworks. Article 13 of the Paris Agreement establishes the need of Parties to implement national robust and transparent monitoring, reporting, verification and accounting systems to give clarity on action and support while providing clear information to stakeholders to be available to assess if the necessary is being done in relation to compliance with the commitments assumed to face climate change. As part of building and enhancing their Transparency Frameworks, Parties of the United Nation Frame Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) -will progressively implement better tools and institutional arrangements, many of them not sufficiently developed in the countries. This is especially true for developing countries.

The UNFCCC enhanced transparency framework demands substantial and immediate progress in the countries´ domestic Monitoring, Reporting, and Verification (MRV) and Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) systems and strategic de-carbonization and adaptation planning. This entails moving from often disintegrated and often different methodological approaches in data management to an integrated and robust system. The success of the Paris Agreement hinges on enhanced transparency of action and support, as a critical foundation to making its bottom-up country-led approach work, as well as mutual trust and confidence amongst Parties.

In this line, the UNEP Transparency and Climate Ambition Team has developed, together with eight (8) countries of the region, a Regional Readiness Proposal “Capacity Building in Carbon Markets and Article 6”. This proposal seeks to collectively improve: i) the overall knowledge of the scope and functioning of Article 6 of the Paris Agreement in Panama, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Honduras, Argentina, Dominican Republic, Costa Rica and El Salvador through a regional approach and, ii) support the relevant stakeholders from these participating countries to comply with the institutional, technical and operational requirements to establish or participate in new or existing carbon markets. This will not only support the participating countries to comply with the goals established in their NDCs but it also allows the national governments to increase their ambition, transparency and cooperation among parties in their commitments under the Paris Agreement.

Therefore, the Climate Ambition and Transparency Team is looking for a Specialist in Carbon Markets and Project Development to prepare deliverables related to existing emissions reduction projects and eligibility criteria that make a project eligible to under Article 6 for Argentina, Panama, Costa Rica and Dominican Republic, in close collaboration with the Team Leaders of each country, under the Regional Readiness Project in Carbon Markets and Article 6 (GCF).

The incumbent will be supervised by UNEP’s Programme Management Officer for Energy Efficiency of the¿Climate Change Unit and will work home-based.

Qualifications/special skills ACADEMIC:

¿ Bachelor’s degree in economics, finance, administration, political science, environmental sciences, international relations, engineering or related studies is required. ¿ A Master’s degree in environmental sciences, carbon markets, environmental economy or related studies is desirable.

PROFESSIONAL:

¿ General Experience: At least five (5) years of experience in climate change, climate change project development, environmental economics and climate policy is required. ¿ Specific Experience: at least three (3) years of experience in carbon markets, accounting related to carbon markets and knowledge of emission reduction or avoidance / CO2 absorption projects is desirable.

LANGUAGE:

¿ Fluent in Spanish is required. ¿ Confident level in English is required.

SPECIAL KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS:

¿ Works collaboratively with colleagues to achieve organizational goals; solicits input by genuinely valuing others' ideas and expertise; is willing to learn from others; supports and acts in accordance with final group decision, even when such decisions may not entirely reflect own position; shares credit for team accomplishments and accepts joint responsibility for team shortcomings. ¿ Develops clear goals that are consistent with agreed strategies; identifies priority activities and assignments; adjusts priorities as required; allocates appropriate amount of time and resources for completing work; foresees risks and allows for contingencies when planning; monitors and adjusts plans and actions as necessary; uses time efficiently. ¿ Strong analytical skills to examine complex data. ¿ Ability to detect opportunities for improvement and provide solutions for design processes and products. ¿ Excellent verbal, written, and interpersonal communication skills. ¿ Demonstrates integrity and ethical standards. ¿ Very high level of organizational, attention to detail, and time management skills. ¿ Ability to work with tight deadlines and deliver high quality results on time.

No Fee THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.