Costa Rica Climate Change Advisor

POSITION DESCRIPTION

Climate Change Advisor

San Jose, Costa Rica

Management and Engineering Technologies International, Inc. (METI) under an agreement with the U.S. Forest Service, as a part of the US Department of State’s Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs, are seeking a full-time Climate Change Advisor to work with the Government Costa Rica to provide technical assistance on its Reducing Emissions for Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+) readiness efforts. 

Background

In the past few years, there has been an extraordinary increase in requests, interest and investment in national forest inventories, forest monitoring, forest carbon estimations, forest resource assessments, and related efforts toward REDD+ readiness.  Costa Rica is advancing in the design and implementation of its national REDD+ strategy. In March of 2013, Costa Rica’s Emission Reduction Program Idea Note (ER-PIN) was successfully included in the Forest Carbon Partnership Facility’s (FCPF) pipeline and Costa Rica became the first country to be provisionally allocated funding (up to $63 million USD) for the delivery of Verified Emission Reductions (VERs) to the FCPF.  However, there are a number of outstanding technical, social, and finance issues that Costa Rica will have to answer to fully implement their proposed Emissions Reduction Program.  The Climate Change Advisor will provide long-term technical support to build national capacity to implement REDD+, preserving forests and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.  Additionally, many of the same issues will need to be addressed by other countries in the coming years, so Costa Rica will serve as an important model for national and subnational-scale REDD+ programs. 

Past projects supported by the US government, including by the U.S. Forest Service, have shown the value in providing long-term capacity building and technical assistance to REDD+ country governments by providing an expert to work daily with partner country government staff.  These experiences have indicated a valuable model of support for partner governments looking to develop their own capacities on the various components necessary to move forward with forest protection through REDD+ and other sustainable landscape initiatives. 

The Climate Change Advisor would be expected to bring technical expertise to support the Costa Rican REDD+ program.  He/she will work day to day with the Government of Costa Rica, helping to advance the development and implementation of Costa Rica’s REDD+ strategies while developing the technical skills and knowledge of in-country partners, principally, the Department of Monitoring and Registry within the Fondo Nacional de Financiamiento Forestal (FONAFIFO) through the development of GIS tools to improve forest monitoring, and support to the REDD+ Committee on Remote Sensing in developing land use change maps, with other agencies providing support on the technical and social aspects of the national program.

Position Description

Responsibilities of the Climate Change Advisor include, but are not limited to working on a daily basis with designated counterpart staff in the Department of Monitoring and Registry of FONAFIFO and the REDD+ Committee on Remote Sensing on:

• Identifying potential needs for GIS tools to improve current monitoring of PES areas and solve potential monitoring gaps,
• Develop GIS tools to improve current monitoring while building capacity within FONOFIFO to operate and maintain the tools through trainings, workshops and other activities,
• Develop cost-effective guidelines to verify REDD+ activities to support FONAFIFO’s field visits and support establishing a common platform for verification,
• Develop cost-efficient guidelines to report carbon stocks and potential carbon stock gains/losses within PES areas, and pilot these guidelines while providing training to FONAFIFO staff on implementation,
• Participate in the the REDD+ Committee on Remote Sensing meetings and work sessions,  supervising the development of a protocol to estimate land use and land use change in Costa Rica
• Work with the Committee on Remote Sensing in applying the protocol for monitoring land use changes, and support in the preparation of maps and institutional reports,
• Identifying appropriate USFS technical assistance on REDD+ activities and coordinating short-term details, study tours, and other activities,
• Identifying relevant training workshops for the FONAFIFO and contributing substantively to the preparation and execution of the workshops,
• Planning and executing communications and prepare reports on status and progress for the Costa Rica REDD+ program.

Qualifications

The Climate Change Advisor should have the following skills and experience. 

• A master's degree or doctorate (preferred) in natural resource management, environmental science, or a related field,
• At least five years of international work experience in a natural resource or environment related field, preferably related to REDD+,
• Proven experience in GIS and remote sensing technologies for land use change estimation and forest inventories,
• Knowledge of core technical and policy issues pertinent to the development and implementation of Reducing Emissions through avoided Deforestation and Degradation (REDD+) policies and programs, including familiarity with IPCC Good Practice Guidance,
• Experience with working on projects or programs related to REDD+ or voluntary carbon methodologies (VCS, Plan Vivo, etc.),
• Demonstrated ability to provide technical coordination and leadership with a broad range of interested parties, across cultures, languages and varying capacity levels in order to catalyze improved conservation outcomes,
• Fluency in Spanish (written and spoken) preferred.

Location: San Jose, Costa Rica

 Successful candidates will have strong inter-personal and communication skills.  Experience living in a developing country is preferred.  Many tasks involve team work and flexibility to respond to unforeseen circumstances and opportunities. Salary will be commensurate with experience.  Health benefits and housing will also be provided.  This will be a one-year contract, with possible extension for an additional year.  Some travel within Costa Rica, in the region and in the US will be required.

To apply please send a resume and cover letter to Dana Moore, danamoorefs@gmail.com, no later than May 23, 2014.  The successful applicant will be hired on a contract through Management and Engineering Technologies International, Inc.