Environment & Climate Adaptation Coordinator

The regional office of DRC East Africa & Great Lakes (DRC EAGL) is looking for a dynamic, ambitious and well-experienced specialist on environment and climate change within the humanitarian or development sector who will support DRC’s progression towards becoming an organisation which proactively complies with sustainable and environmentally sound principles and practices.

The position is based in Nairobi / Kenya at the DRC EAGL office, which covers international humanitarian and development work and situations of displacement in whole East Africa and the Great Lake region. 

About the job
East Africa has always been prone to extreme weather conditions, namely droughts and floods, which climate change is expected to worsen in future and thus, make East Africa a “climate hotspot”. The impact of natural disasters is strongly interrelated with man-made environmental changes that may interfere with coping strategies traditionally applied and with natural resource-based livelihoods more generally. Thus, the importance of migration as a response to environmental and climatic stressors in combination with other societal developments is likely to grow in the future. It is expected that climate change will become the single largest root cause of displacement, increasingly undermining the capacities of local communities to achieve sustainable development pathways and resilience to shocks that force people to move. According to OCHA, climate change and environmental degradation could bring internal displacement figures to 140 million people by 2050.

Therefore, the intersection of climate change, environmental degradation and displacement requires comprehensive solutions to the multidimensional challenges it creates. DRC EAGL aims to strengthen its programming with more tailored approaches to meet these upcoming challenges and hence, is looking for a strong candidate to support this complex, future direction of DRC EAGL. 

Your main duties and responsibilities will be:

• Provide technical support and mentoring to program managers and team members in ensuring high-quality, impactful implementation in environment and climate change, documentation of technical strategies and learning, and taking initiatives to scale.
• Design and deliver technical support and mentoring to program managers and team members throughout the program cycle and especially at critical program milestones to embed a strong environment and climate change approach in programming, including: conducting risk and resilience assessments and analysis; refining program logic to incorporate environmental issues; designing interventions and activities that build resilience towards climate change at household, community and systems-levels
• Review programs' technical approaches and implementation strategies and develop customized recommendations to integrate environment and climate change
• Keep abreast of new thinking, research and innovations in environment and climate change and synthesize and regularly communicate findings for country teams in the EAGL region
• Facilitate cross-region environment and climate change learning groups to expand and deepen capacity and exchange across DRC EAGL teams and promote country teams' work within the organization.
• Contribute to regional environment and climate change knowledge management and communications and to raising our external profile regionally, regularly sharing out findings and updates through appropriate internal and external channels.
• Represent DRC EAGL in appropriate learning and policy forums. Support country teams to identify and participate in opportunities for external representation and thought leadership.
• Support country, regional and HQ teams with environmental-related research initiatives, and create and disseminate learning and advocacy documents that demonstrate our programs' impact, innovation and influence on environment and climate change
• Source and document new ideas and innovations from within country programs, private sector partners, researcher and academics and link them with appropriate implementing partners and funding sources to begin to scale up ideas that are proven in programs
• The scope will also ensure DRC compliance with the growing number of requests for more robust environmental safeguards by various donors and partners.

About you

To be successful in this role we expect the following experience and technical competencies:

• Advanced degree in environmental studies, geography, earth sciences or similar with a specification in climate change adaption and mitigation 
•  At least 8 years technical cross-sector (public / private sector and NGOs) working experience in the context of climate change, resilience and environment
• Strong understanding of environmental and climate change policy and practice 
• Well elaborated know-how and experience in humanitarian programming
• Experience designing and implementing disaster- and climate-resilience activities to support targeted households to better manage common risks, such as illness, as well as predictable disaster- and climate-related risks, such as flooding and droughts and other natural hazards
• Strategic thinking ability, to capacity to develop innovative policies, systems and new eco-systems
• Excellent communication and networking skills with existing relevant contacts among experts
•  Ability to work independently and as part of a team
• Strong interpersonal skills, flexibility and willingness to travel
• Strong organizational and work prioritization skills
• Demonstrated leadership, versatility, and integrity
• Fluency in English is required; the ability to speak French is beneficial
• Advanced training in spatial planning and development studies are considered a plus as well as work experience and knowledge of relevant fields such as nature-based solutions, ecosystem services, soil protection and agro ecology 

Moreover, in this position, you are expected to demonstrate DRC’ five core competencies: 

• Striving for excellence: You focus on reaching results while ensuring an efficient process. 
• Collaborating: You involve relevant parties and encourage feedback. 
• Taking the lead: You take ownership and initiative while aiming for innovation. 
• Communicating: You listen and speak effectively and honestly. 
• Demonstrating integrity: Upholding and promoting the highest standards of ethical and professional conduct in relation to DRC’s values and Code of Conduct, including safeguarding against sexual exploitation, abuse and harassment.

We offer

Duration:                        1 Year renewable subject to Performance and Funding.

Contract:                        Salary and conditions in accordance with the Danish Refugee Council’s Terms of Employment for Global Expatriates available at www.drc.dk under Vacancies graded as Band N.M.G level 1. For qualified Kenyans the terms of employment will be in accordance with DRC terms for National staff in Kenya.

Start Date:                     1st June 2020 

Duty Station:                  Nairobi with frequent travel in field offices in East Africa and Great Lakes Region.

Reporting:                     This position reports to Deputy Regional Director.

Commitments:               DRC has a Humanitarian Accountability Framework, outlining its global accountability commitments. All staff are required to contribute to the achievement of this framework (http://www.drc.dk/HAF.4265.0.html).  All DRC staff must be committed to the Red Cross Code of Conduct, as well as the Core Humanitarian Standards.

Gender Equality:           DRC is committed to achieving gender parity in staffing at all levels.  In light of this, women candidates are particularly encouraged to apply to bridge the gender gap. 

Equal Opportunities:     DRC is an equal opportunity employer.  We value diversity and we are committed   to creating an inclusive environment based on mutual respect for all employees.  We do not discriminate on the basis of age, sex, disability status, religion, ethnic origin, colour, race, marital status or other protected characteristics.

Applications 
Applicants must send a cover letter (max 1 page) and an updated CV (max 3 pages) in English. The cover letter should outline your personal motivation for applying and your key qualifications for the position. Apply online on our page Current Vacancies at www.drc.ngo. Applications sent by email will not be considered. 

Closing date for applications: 10th April 2020.

If you have questions or are facing problems with the online application process, please visit  drc.ngo/jobsupport