Junior Professional Officer (JPO) - Biodiversity and Community Development (Kuwaiti Nationals only)

Detailed Sector of assignment

The Equator Initiative Secretariat, along with its partners, is endeavoring to engage community leaders through a number of different channels and at a number of levels to help strengthen the voice of local and indigenous communities within the global biodiversity and poverty debate. In order to achieve this, the Equator Initiative is built upon three equally important pillars: • Equator Prize: Awarded biennially, the Equator Prize recognizes and advances local sustainable development solutions for people, nature and resilient communities. As local and indigenous groups across the world chart a path towards sustainable development, the Equator Prize shines a spotlight on their efforts by honoring them on an international stage. • Equator Dialogues: An ongoing series of community-driven meetings and exchanges, held in conjunction with related international forums (e.g. CBD COPs, IUCN World Conservation Congresses, etc.). Equator Dialogues provide opportunities for people to share experiences, develop capacities, and influence policy. • Equator Knowledge: A research, documentation and learning program focused on local best practice in sustainable development. The Equator Initiative works with partners to identify, document, and analyze the success factors of local best practice, and to catalyze ongoing peer-to-peer learning, knowledge exchange and replication of best practice. Local and indigenous communities are highly dependent on biodiversity and ecosystems. They are, however, also most affected by the adverse effects of climate change, which has dramatic impacts on biodiversity and causes a massive degradation of ecosystems worldwide. These communities therefore often implement ecosystem-based adaptation strategies that use biodiversity and ecosystem services in an overall climate change adaptation strategy. Examples for such strategies are sustainable management, conservation and restoration of ecosystems to provide services that help the communities adapt to the negative impacts of climate change. With the ongoing losses of biodiversity learning from the successes of local and indigenous groups becomes ever more important on the pathway to sustainable development solutions. The sustainable use of biodiversity through local and indigenous communities is becoming even more important in the frame of the implementation of the Nagoya Protocol on Access & Benefit Sharing and the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from genetic resources and linked traditional knowledge, which are commonly to be found in community-managed areas. Taking into account that there will be ongoing pressures on the existing staff of the unit, it has to be seen that despite its mandate, the Equator Initiative Secretariat is already under-resourced in its three programme pillars. Having a JPO support the Equator Initiative Secretariat in this environment will greatly facilitate delivery of the various tasks and allow the initiative to continue to effectively shine a spotlight on the success of local and indigenous groups that contribute so effectively to sustainable development and resiliency at the grassroots level. 
 
Supervision:

Title of Supervisor: Coordinator, Local Initiatives, Biodiversity Global Programme, EEG UNDP

Content and methodology of supervision: As part of the UNDP JPO programme overall framework, the JPO will benefit from the following supervision modalities:

• Structured guidance provided by the supervisor, especially in the beginning of the assignment, with the purpose of gradually increasing the responsibilities of the JPO
• Establishment of a work plan, with clear key results
• Effective supervision through knowledge sharing and performance/development feedback throughout the assignment
• Easy access to the supervisor
• Participation in Unit/Team/Office meetings to ensure integration and operational effectiveness
• Guidance and advice in relation to learning and training opportunities within the field of expertise
• Completion of the yearly UNDP Results and Competency Assessment (RCA)
• If more than one supervisor; clear agreement of the roles and responsibilities between the relevant parties
  In addition, the following specific supervision arrangements will apply:
• The JPO will attend the regular staff meetings and will have regular supervision meetings with the Programme Manager. He/she will also work closely with officers from other programme areas where required, including from the Biodiversity Global Programme, the Environment and Energy Group, and the Bureau for Development Policy.
• The standard Performance Appraisal System of the UN (e-PAS) will be used to agree an annual work plan and evaluate performance. He/she will thus gain a good overview of the work of the Equator Initiative, the Biodiversity Global Programme, and the Environment and Energy Group as a whole.

The JPO would support the work of the Equator Initiative in the implementation of the Equator Prize 2014 as well as in the development of key follow-up policy and dissemination products. The tasks would include, but are not limited to:

• Development of policy recommendations related to biodiversity and indigenous peoples and local community rights;
• Analysis of country-specific experiences, good practices and lessons learned at the interface of biodiversity and poverty reduction, and writing of case studies on new Equator Prize winners to complement the Equator Initiative Case Study Database;
• Assistance in the strengthening and servicing of EI’s strategic partnerships;
• Preparing and implementing a detailed outreach strategy for the Equator Prize 2014 (Direct outreach, Email outreach, Social media outreach, Desktop research on additional contacts, previous winner involvement, etc.);
• Handling of nominations for the Equator Prize 2014 (Digitalization of written applications, Management of translations and inquiries, etc.);
• Ongoing maintenance and enhancement of the website and Facebook page (Updates during prize cycle, Community management, etc.);
• Management of the Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) for the Equator Prize 2014 (Selection of TAC members, ensuring that all nominations are correctly evaluated, planning and organising of the TAC meetings);
• Taking care of due diligence and winners’ verification during the prize cycle;
• Servicing meetings of the Equator Initiative board, the Equator Initiative Technical Advisory Committee, Brown Bag Lunches in the headquarters and during Equator Initiative Community Dialogues;
• Other duties related to the programme as required.

Output expectations

Contribute to and draft documents on matters related to poverty eradication through the sustainable use of biodiversity; continue the compilation, analysis and distribution of tools, case studies and best practices through the various means including the website, Facebook and the EquatorNet newsletter; assistance in the organization of stakeholder events with the involvement of indigenous community leaders.

Core competences:

• Ethics & Value
• Working in Teams
• Communicating Information & Ideas
• Self-management & Emotional intelligence
• Decision making

Functional competences:

• Long term vision: support for the objectives of UNDP’s Environment & Energy Group in general and the Equator Initiative in particular.
• Technical skills: ability to understand the practices of indigenous communities with regards to the sustainable use of biodiversity and translate those into practical policies. Ability to have indigenous communities and other stakeholders understand the goals of the CBD and how they can incorporate them into their day-to-day practices.
• Communications: Excellent communication skills (spoken, written). Strong networking skills essential.
• Team Work: Strong interpersonal skills and ability to establish and maintain effective working relations with people in multicultural, multi-ethnic environment with serenity and respect for diversity.

Training and Learning: 
As part of the UNDP JPO programme overall framework, the JPO will benefit from the following training and learning opportunities:

• Participation in a two-week long Programme Policy and Operations Induction Course in New York within the first 3 to 6 months of assignment
• Use of yearly JPO duty-related travel and training allocation (DTTA)
• Other training and learning opportunities

In addition, the JPO will benefit from the following specific training and learning modalities/opportunities in the receiving office:

Training:

The JPO will attend seminars and conferences relevant to the topic of biodiversity conservation and local solutions to poverty eradication.

Learning elements:

• After one year the JPO will have a deep knowledge of the institutional set-up of UNDP’s Environment & Energy Group, as well as of relevant CBD processes and priorities and a detailed knowledge of the community and stakeholders’ needs and priorities in relation to the implementation of the CBD work programmes; he/she will assist in preparing reports on local sustainable development solutions of indigenous communities to CBD COP 12 to be held in 2014.
• After two years the JPO will have a broad knowledge base on issues regarding biodiversity conservation and the sustainable use of biodiversity for poverty eradication; he/she will be able to analyse and communicate key issues of relevance for this area to a variety of stakeholders; he/she will have improved communication and organization skills, in particular convening and communicating with key stakeholders (including indigenous community leaders and senior government officials)
• After three years (if applicable): The JPO will be able to play a key in role in the follow up of CBD COP 11 and COP 12 decisions and prepare reports on local sustainable development solutions of indigenous communities to COP 13 to be held in 2016. Throughout his/her stay, the JPO would contribute with relevant knowledge and outreach products to both the United Nations Decade on Biodiversity 2011-2020 and the post-2015 Development Agenda.

Required Education and Work Experience:

• Master's Degree or equivalent Advanced Degree in a related field of expertise
• A minimum of two years of paid working experience in a relevant field
  Alternatively, candidates with a Bachelor’s degree in a related field of expertise and four years of experience will be considered.

Language:

• Working knowledge of English. Knowledge of other UN languages is an asset., especially French and/or Spanish

Other desirable education and work experience:

• Experience in managing and implementing an international award scheme is an indispensable requirement.
• Experience in case study writing would be highly valued.
• Experience in proposal writing would be an important asset.

Duration of assignment:

• One-year fixed-term appointment, renewable at least once subject to satisfactory performance, recommendation by respective office and donor agreement.

Background Information:
Information on the receiving office:

The Equator Initiative office has six to eight international staff and usually hosts one or two interns. The UNDP Equator Initiative brings together the United Nations, governments, civil society, businesses and grassroots organizations to recognize and advance local sustainable development solutions for people, nature and resilient communities. The Equator Initiative seeks to: Recognize the success of local and indigenous initiatives, create opportunities and platforms to share knowledge and good practice, inform policy to foster an enabling environment for local and indigenous community action, and develop the capacity of local and indigenous initiatives to scale-up their impact. The Equator Initiative is a project of the UNDP Biodiversity Global Programme, which is part of the Environment and Energy Group (EEG) within the Bureau for Development Policy (BDP). Through EEG, UNDP strengthens national capacity to manage the environment in a sustainable manner to advance poverty reduction efforts. Through our country teams in 135 developing countries, we help our partners build their capacity to integrate environmental considerations into development plans and strategies, establish effective partnerships, secure resources, and implement programmes to support sustainable, low-carbon, climate-resilient development pathways.

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