Climate Change Policy Advisor/Expert

The long-term goal of the Developing Policy-relevant Capacity for Implementation of the Global Environmental Conventions in Jordan “the CB-2 Project” (herewith referred to as “the Project” or “the CB-2 Project”) is to develop the policy and legal frameworks in Jordan to strengthen compliance with Global Environment (GE) Conventions, with emphasis on Rio Conventions (UN Framework Convention on Climate Change or UNFCCC; UN Convention on Biological Diversity or CBD; and UN Convention to Combat Desertification or UNCCD) by enhancing connectivity between the research and policy making for better GE management. The consulting assignment of this ToR (herewith referred to as “Consulting Assignment” or “Assignment”) sought from the selected consultant (herewith referred to as the “Consultant”) awarded the contract of this RFP will be to lead a team of two consultant of himself/herself and another local Senior Environmental Planning and Management Specialist (to be hired concurrently but separately for the same assignment with a definite ToR) for the sake of Developing a National Climate Change Policy for the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan to support implementing the UNFCCC and tied protocols/legal agreements in Jordan as well as to establish an overarching guidance umbrella for national climate change response actions (adaptation, mitigation, technology transfer, finance & market instruments, etc.) to protect and enhance human well-being in the face of climate change. 

•  THE CB-2 PROJECT:

The Ministry of Environment (MoEnv) of Jordan is currently implementing the “CB-2 Project,” with financial support from the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and UNDP and a partial contribution from the Government of Jordan (GoJ), the latter represented in the Project through the MoEnv, which is the implementing partner or executing agency of the Project. The Project aims at developing the policy and legal frameworks in Jordan to strengthen compliance with the three Rio Conventions (UNFCCC, UNCBD, and UNCCD). The Project’s main objective is to develop policy-relevant capacities for the implementation of the GE Conventions by enhancing connectivity between research and policy-making for better GE management. To achieve this goal, the project has three outcomes and eight outputs.

The CB-2 Project will allow the translation of the outcomes of applied research related to GE issues into policy and legal reform. However, it is well known that there are no standalone policies for climate change, biodiversity, and combating desertification in Jordan to link the scientific community with the process of revision/development of such policies to fulfil one of the main objectives of the CB-2 Projects. Thus, the CB-2 Project managed through the systematic activities it executed from its beginning in 2009 till now to reach a conclusion where the decision of the significance of developing such thematic (sectoral) polices was inevitable. After the CB-2 Project identified the line ministries and agencies with mandates related to the implementation of the three Rio Conventions in addition to the research institutions that are/were involved in the research pertaining to the implementation of the three Rio Conventions, the Project re-activated/re-structured three national (steering) committees to be in charge of supervising national implementation of provisions and obligations of the Rio Conventions in Jordan. Due to extensive efforts from the Project, the overwhelming majority of the National Committee on Climate Change in its meeting held on March 15th 2012 voted “Yea” to develop a national climate change policy for Jordan for the first time. The Project will develop such policy, through assignment in hands, based on effective contribution of research to accomplish its mission. By doing this, the Project would have accomplished one of its most important outcomes and that is Outcome 2: “Global environmental issues and provisions of the three Rio Conventions are integrated in policies and laws based on research.”

Assignment Context:

The three Rio Conventions, on Climate Change, Biodiversity and Desertification, which derived directly from the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, lie at the heart of the global environmental governance system. The three conventions form an intricate triangle for environmental management that responds to the real challenges facing the global environment. Jordan considered such conventions at the highest governmental level and was among the first developing nations to ratify and sign such international treaties. In 2011, the CB-2 Project re-activated the previously established (in 2001) National Committee on Climate Change and developed a mandate for the Committee after combining new members, most importantly research institutions who were absent in the membership roster of the original Committee structure. The Project, moreover, established a thematic Climate Change Research Group to function under the umbrella of the National Committee on Climate Change. This specialized group contains highly technical national research experts in climate change. The aim of the research group is to provide scientific and research-based advices to the national committee and to institutionalize effective participation of research in policy making. 

Having this in mind, the CB-2 Project managed to lead a systematic process of directing national attention towards the importance of developing a climate change policy for Jordan. The CB-2 Project from 2009 to 2012 steadily worked on pushing to convince policy makers and involved project stakeholders, most importantly the members of the National Committee on Climate Change, to brainstorm the crucial need of enacting a national climate change policy for Jordan. The Project in cooperation with MoEnv and UNDP held an intensive specialized two-day training on "Understanding the Science of Environmental Governance and Building Capacity of Skills of Development of Environmental Policies and Strategies Related to Implementation of Rio Conventions in Jordan and Integration of Conventions’ Provisions into National Development Planning” from Saturday 25th to Sunday 26th of February 2012. The three national committees of climate change, biodiversity and combating desertification, as well as the three thematic research groups, attended the training. During the training, the stakeholders concluded that the need for national overarching policies for climate change, biodiversity and combating desertification is inevitable. The Project in response held a very important meeting on Thursday the 15th of March 2012 with the National Committee on Climate Change to discuss the need and vote for developing a national policy on climate change for Jordan for the first time in history. The CB-2 Project made legacy at MoEnv on that day when the overwhelming majority, if not all members, of the National Committee on Climate Change voted “Yes” for developing a national climate change policy for Jordan. For that purpose, this ToR for the sought Policy has been developed. 

Assignment Objective:

The objective of the assignment is to develop a climate change policy for Jordan to support providing an overarching guidance for the GoJ in implementing the major objectives of the climate change governance system including, but not limited to, adaptation, mitigation, technology transfer, financing frameworks, market instruments, etc. This should result in processes to protect – and enhance – human well-being in the face of climate change and also to promote adaptation and mitigation practices in the country’s national plans. The sought policy should also address the special status of all vulnerable groups whose adaptive capacity is low and in particularly the poor, women and youth, recognizing that women and children are particularly affected from climate change phenomena. 

• Ability to translate scientific climate information into policy and practical guidance for non-technical audience and good knowledge in mechanisms of bringing together scientific, technology, and policy experiences;
• Skills and knowledge to build linkages between poverty reduction, MDGs, macroeconomic policies, general environment, water, energy, agriculture/food security, green economy, and sustainable development with climate change;
• Good communications and interacting skills;
• Multidisciplinary professional experience preferred and  ability to lead, manage complexity and contribute effectively to team work;
• Ability to write and speak clearly and convincingly, including strong presentation skills.

• A postgraduate degree or equivalent in any field of Environmental Studies, Environmental Science and Management/Engineering, Environmental Law and Policy, Political Sciences, Economics, Climate Change Sciences, Atmospheric Sciences, Climatology, Meteorology, Global Environmental Change or any Policy Development or Environmental Governance-related degree;
• Multidisciplinary educational background required.

• At least 10 years’ experience in the field of environment, including specialized experience in best industry practices in policy development with emphasis on climate change policies and strategies at the international and local levels;
• Proven technical experience in public sector governance, environmental governance and national environmental policies/strategies (and similar initiatives) development and enactment;
• Strong policy analytical skills that can be applied to the development and application of methods and tools for mainstreaming adaptation, mitigation, technology transfer, financing, etc;
• Experience in building policy-relevant capacity pertinent to providing decision-makers with the scientific data necessary to make informed policy decisions that conserve resources and protect our environment, preferably through scientific research;
• Good experience in local and international (especially Middle East and arid and semi-arid settings) environmental policies and strategies with special regard to enabling the ranking of priority policy actions in light of the magnitude of risks on environmental systems and the urgency of the actions needed;
• Good knowledge of local context (culture, politics, and geography);
• Experience in identification of gaps that would hinder the implementation of environmental policies;
• Proven knowledge of Global Environmental Conventions with emphasis on UNFCCC;
• Understanding of political issues under international climate negotiations;
• Fair knowledge of gender in relation to environmental themes.

• Full proficiency in English
• Some familiarity with Arabic is an extra credit but NOT a must.