Consultant - Disaster Risk Reduction Audit - Washington DC or Portland, OR

Location: Washington DC, Portland, OR or Remote**
Background**

Mercy Corps works in countries in transition, where communities are recovering from disaster, conflict, or economic collapse. With field programs in more than 40 countries, and an annual budget of more than $200 million, Mercy Corps is one of the largest international development NGOs in the US.

Mercy Corps exists to alleviate suffering, poverty and oppression by building secure, productive and just communities. We seek to catalyze civil society, public and private sector actors through interventions that are community-led and market-driven. The Environment, Energy and Climate Change team (EEC) is a small but critical technical team within Mercy Corps' Technical Support Unit (TSU), of which Disaster Risk Reduction is a core activity. The TSU is responsible for leading and supporting assessments, program design and field studies; providing technical support to field offices; helping the global agency set technical strategies; building strategic partnerships, and representation and coordination with other development, government and private sector actors.

PURPOSE / Project Description

The overall purpose of this consultancy is to increase the EEC's team ability to provide up-to-date technical support to our field teams which builds on our history of DRR work and current best practice. Specifically, this consultancy will provide the Environment, Energy & Climate Technical Support Unit with enhanced capacity to: 1) inventory and update technical guidance resources on Disaster Risk Reduction; 2) better design programs with said guidance; 3) improve our global capacity for DRR technical implementation, evaluation and impact; and, 4) increase influence and innovation opportunities with thought partners and donors.

CONSULTANT ACTIVITIES and DELIVERABLES

• Program audit & analysis (online desk research and staff interviews) of current and past 10 years of DRR programming, to inventory all DRR work we have done, to inform: 1) current core capacity in DRR; 2) technical rigor and cross-team/sector engagement; 3) our new approach; 4) our new guidelines.
• Develop a Theory of Change for DRR, including outputs, outcomes and strategies that syncs with what MC wants to achieve (Compass, Resilience 2020, TSU) to inform future program design
• Develop an updated DRR Approach document which describes Mercy Corps approach to DRR utilizing the Theory of Change and program audit findings.
• Develop a short 2-4 page guidance document outlining minimum standards, processes and tools across a DRR program lifecycle.
• Contribute to a technical brief on Ecosystem-inclusive DRR
• Conduct a funding landscape analysis in coordination with the Europe team & intern.

TIMEFRAME / SCHEDULE

The Consultant will commit to an estimated total of 35 working days (at a cost of no more than $500/day, total budget managed under $17,500), to take place during the months of March – May 2018.

REPORTING

The Consultant will work closely with the Mercy Corps Environment, Energy and Climate Change Technical Support Unit (EEC TSU)**. The Consultant will report to:**

• Director, EEC TSU
• Senior Advisor, EEC TSU

QUALIFICATIONS

• Significant field and/or academic experience working on issues related to Disaster Risk Reduction with particular focus on field level DRR program design and implementation.
• Master's degree in relevant area of study
• Strong writing and communication skills
• International NGO experience
• Strong writing, editing and researching skills
• Strong ability to organize, synthesize and package information from various sources
• Flexible work attitude: able to work productively in a team environment and independently
• Ability to multi-task and prioritize in a fast-paced work environment

Strong computer skills: must be able to work effectively and accurately with MS Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, email and internet applications including google maps & fusion tables, graphic design skills or coding skills are a plus.
Mercy Corps interns and volunteers represent the agency both during and outside of work hours and are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner and respect local laws, customs and MC's policies, procedures, and values at all times and in all in-country venues.

Diversity is powerful. To achieve transformational change, we seek out team members with different origins, beliefs, backgrounds and ways of thinking. Diversity helps us unlock complexity.

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