Background

UNDP Country Offices are receiving an increasing number of national requests for assistance with understanding the implications of climate change on national development and preparing integrated strategies and plans to manage anticipated challenges and opportunities. UNDP has played an important role assisting countries to access and deliver climate change financing, as implementing agency of the Global Environment Facility (GEF), joint manager of the National Communications Support Programme and by delivering initiatives like MDG Carbon, Capacity Development for Policy Makers, the MDG Achievement Fund, CC-DARE, UN REDD, Carbon Neutral and Climate Resilient Territories, and the 2007 Human Development Report on climate change (activities totaling more than 220 million USD in catalytic funding). Yet at the same time, UNDP must further strengthen its climate change policy advisory capacity. At the national level the approval of the National strategy for Climate change adaptation, the disaster management law brings new challenges for an effective implementation and reinforcement at local level.
 
In light of the increasing urgency of climate change responses in every programme country, UNDP is now investing in strengthening its climate change services to all countries, in particular to Least Developed Countries (LDCs). Up to 26 Climate Change Specialists at the national level will be recruited to supplement existing Country Office staff capacity on climate change. The Climate Change Specialists will seek to strengthen UNDP’s climate policy capacity, improve coherence within UNDP and the wider UNCT, and promote strategic engagement on key climate issues for UNDP. The Climate Change Specialists will be fully integrated in the community of practice of climate change advisors and experts already working at national, regional and HQ levels. In addition to their integration into the respective CO structure, the Climate Change Specialists will work under the technical guidance of the Regional Centre EEG Practice Leader. It is expected that workplans and priorities will be fully aligned with corporate global and regional goals.

Duties and Responsibilities

Under supervision of the Head of Crises prevention, Recovery and Environmental unit (Programme), within existing climate change structures in the country office and guided by the climate team at the Regional Service Centre and HQ.

The National Climate Change Specialists will:
  • Promote a substantive and strategic policy engagement on climate change with government and development partners, building on and ensuring consistency with international policy guidance on climate change provided by HQ;
  • Support a UN-wide approach to climate change and promote UNDP’s role, including policy and programmatic; initiatives, ensuring consistency and integration with regional and global approaches, methodologies, and strategies;
  • Support strategic partnerships and knowledge management.

Competencies

Corporate Competencies:
  • Serves and promotes the vision, mission, values, and strategic goals of UNDP.
People Skills:
  • Recognizes and responds appropriately to the ideas, interests, and concerns of others;
  • Gives credit to the contributions of others.

Functional Competencies:

Managing for Results:
  • Plans and prioritizes work activities to meet organizational goals.
Partnering & Networking
  • Builds and sustains relationships with key constituents (internal/external/ bilateral/ multilateral/public/private; civil society).
Innovation & Judgment:
  • Conceptualizes and analyzes problems to identify key issues, underlying problems, and how they relate;
  • Generates creative, practical approaches to overcome challenging situations;
  • Devises new systems and processes, and modifies existing ones, to support innovative behaviors.
Communication:
  • Demonstrates excellent and effective written and oral communication skills;
  • Demonstrates effective communication skills in a multidisciplinary working environment;
  • Demonstrate respect to knowledge and culture and religion in a multidisciplinary working environment.
Job Knowledge & Expertise:
  • Applies the required depth and breadth of knowledge and expertise to meet job demands;
  • Uses Information Technology effectively as a tool and resource.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:
  • Master’s Degree in climate sciences, environmental sciences, earth sciences, natural resource economics, political science or related social sciences.
Experience:
  • At least 5 years of relevant work experience on issues related to climate risk, vulnerability reduction and capacity development;
  • Background in partnership building will be an essential requirement;
  • Experience in working with government, donors or the UN previously is an asset;
  • Experience in policy analysis, development work in the area of climate change and related issues;
  • Familiarity with and contributions to high-level policy dialogues and advisory functions involving high-level government counterparts and other stake-holders;
  • Thorough knowledge and understanding of the global debate on climate change and experience in multilateral environmental debates and dialogues and processes;
  • Experience in advising on climate change adaptation and energy policy development a major asset;
  • Proven experience and knowledge of the country’s institutional framework and policies of Climate Change is an asset;
  • Experience in development planning is a major asset.
Language:
  • Fluency in Portuguese is mandatory;
  • Fluency in English and other UN languages is essential.