Research Intern - Economics

LOCATION: Groningen, The Netherlands

INTENSITY: 4 months, full time

ANTICIPATED START DATE: As soon as possible

APPLICATION DEADLINE: March 7 2023

COMPENSATION: 500 Euros per month gross

About GCA

GCA is an international organization, which acts as a solutions broker to accelerate action and support for adaptation, from the international to the local, in partnership with the public and private sector. Founded in 2018, GCA is hosted in Rotterdam by the Netherlands, with regional offices in Abidjan, Dhaka and Beijing and its Research for Impact hub (R4I) in Groningen. GCA engages in innovative solutions to drive adaptation at scale, high-level policy development, new research contributions, advocacy, communications, and work with partners to deliver action on the ground. GCA’s work focuses on those who are the most vulnerable to the effects of climate change including the poorest communities and countries, to help them withstand health, social and economic impacts of a climate emergency.

The Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program is GCA’s flagship program and aims to mobilize $25 billion to scale up and accelerate climate change adaptation actions across Africa. Through its four pillars - Climate Smart Digital Technologies for Agriculture and Food Security, the African Infrastructure Resilience Accelerator, Empowering Youth for Entrepreneurship and Job Creation in Climate Adaptation and Resilience and Innovative Financial Initiatives for Africa - the AAAP is slated to contribute to closing Africa’s adaptation gap, support countries to make a transformational shift in their development pathways by putting climate adaptation and resilience at the center of their critical growth oriented and inclusive policies, programs, and institutions. In the context of the AAAP, R4I engages in research activities that can support program and project design and implementation in three areas: efficiency of adaptation-related interventions; conditions for their sustained uptake and support for scaling.

About the assignment

The Research Intern AAAP (hereinafter the “Research Intern”) will report to the Director of Research while working closely with others in the Research for Impact team as well as Program Leads. The intern will play a crucial role in data collection and analysis and contribute to the design, implementation and evaluation of projects and program under the AAAP. Specific learning questions relate to macro-economic impact of adaptation investment plans and prioritization of interventions and/or sectors in NAPs; local economy-wide impacts of rural resilience projects and benefits of direct and indirect adaptation job creation through MDB investment projects and evaluation of the sustainability of these jobs.

Responsibilities

• Assist in the analysis of existing databases (e.g. LSMS and DHS as well as Social Accounting Matrices) that can contribute to the design, implementation or evaluation of a selected AAAP project or program.

• Contribute to development of sectoral models (infrastructure and water) as well as calibration of Computable General Equilibrium models.

• Assist in the outreach and engagement with partners in climate risk and adaptation research networks (including the CGIAR).

• Data collection through desktop research of project documentation for SDG-13 linkages in these projects and programs

• Contribute to and assist in any task that may arise concerning support to GCA’s program by R4I.

Learning Elements offered by the GCA:

• Understanding and application of the Economics of Adaptation toolbox

• Methodological skills through developing and conducting research tasks.

• Technical understanding of climate change adaptation through workshops, presentations, and content meetings.

• Interpersonal skills through working in a challenging international context and contact with colleagues from diverse backgrounds and geographies.

• Leadership skills through trainings, giving presentations, organizing events and oral presentations.