Communications Leader

Result of Service

Under the supervision of the UNEP Programme Management Officer of Climate Change Unit for Latin America & the Caribbean Office, the Consultant will be in charge of optimal communication and dissemination of the projects.

The consultant will support UNEP’s Programme Management Officer for Climate Change Unit and will be working directly with the unit team. The consultant will be responsible for achieving the following objectives:
• Create and lead the communication and dissemination strategy of the GCF Readiness project.
• Collaborate in the coordination of the Community of Practice of the GCF Readiness project by building Communication of Practice.
• Integrate and enhance the communication strategy and the Community of Practice.
• Contribute to the production of more effective and strategic communication products
• Contribute and liaise with UNEP’s communication teams.
• Enhance outreach and communication practices for knowledge sharing and online training.

Output 1: One (1) finished, edited and published 5th mobility report in Latin America and the Caribbean.
Product no 1. Edit and structure of the 5th electric mobility report in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Output 2: One (1) web microsite of the Route 28 initiative
Product no 2. Communication action plan to promote the results of COP28 Route: The implementation of Carbon Markets and Article 6 in the Latin American and Caribbean region

Output 3: One (1) manual of use and 1 document with the clearance of the communication strategy and 1 website for the climate change Unit called Climate Action
Product no 3. A manual of use of the brand and the clearance of the communication strategy of the Panama hydrographic basins project financed by Euroclima and
Product no 4. Structure the Climate Action Platform/Regatta to host information on the initiatives of the climate change Unit.

Output 4: Two (2) multimedia stories on the Climate Action website and 6 online webinars
Product no 5. Conceptualize, structure and create at least 2 special multimedia stories on the Climate Action platform and
Product no 6. Structure at least 6 live online webinars. Monitor its development and create small landing pages to inform about the event, the panelists, the resources and the agenda.

Output 5: One (1) microsite, one (1) communications strategy, and one (1) manual.
Product no 7. Develop the online platform for the regional course for attention to electrical emergencies for firefighters;
Product no 8. Create the communication strategy of the Climate Action Platform. Including developing a comprehensive plan to effectively convey your message, engage your target audience, and mobilize action towards addressing climate change.; and Product no 9. Report on the branding of the GCF Hydrogen Readiness Project. The report should evaluate the existing branding strategies, highlights strengths and weaknesses, and offers recommendations for improvement.

Specific tasks and responsibilities:

The consultant shall perform the following activities:
• Work proactively with project managers, team members and participants of the GCF Readiness Regional project to identify opportunities for capturing and sharing knowledge and disseminating information about major progress and results of regional project.
• Develop a strategy for the creation of a community of practice, keeping the connection within it, promoting it, and facilitating communication among participants.
• Collaborate with the organization and conduction of face-to-face meetings, webinars, Community of Practice’s related events, as well as other relevant events.
• Develop a strategy to attract and engage audiences to the community of practice, knowledge sharing tools, and trainings in general.
• Report to managers and the team about technical and marketing needs to create a successful community and communication strategy.
• Track and measure trends, working together with team members, in order to keep news, knowledge sharing, trainings, etc. up to date and aligned with the suggestions and needs of the rest of the team.
• Produce virtual content for the websites, social networks, newsletters, etc.
• Promote community advocacy and promotion of the GCF Preparedness project, the website and related projects.
• Coordinate the content and functioning of the communities of practice of the different projects.
• Produce stories for the projects’ newsletters, reports and notes to donors.
• Evaluate the engagement of participants of the project and the community and proposes techniques that suit the needs of the project.
• Help with the development of effective training materials and the proposal and management of the tools to make them technically possible.
• Research and identify stories, write and edit press releases and virtual content, and feature stories within tight timeframes that consistently meet agreed corporate standards, that respect institutional rigor and diplomacy, and with special care to gender equality and the consideration for diverse sensibilities and collectives of people.
• Ensure that the media is informed about key workshops/seminars and project outputs, working through and in close coordination with the project managers and team members.
• Manage, update and further develop internal databases; update unit website, to include drafting and editing content; generate a variety of standard and non-standard statistical and other reports from various databases.
• Prepare factsheets/case studies to promote projects’ results and activities.
• Coordinate with the UN Environment Communication Unit about the use of the organization´s logo and branding, and any activity directly related to external communication outreach and traditional (TV, newspaper, radio) or social media.
• Analyse tools and make recommendations in order to carry out an effective communication and community management strategy.
• Manage the website adaptation and community creation consulting companies as well as the relationship with key capacity building associates.

Work Location

Home based

Expected duration

6 months

Duties and Responsibilities

The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) is the leading global environmental authority that sets the global environmental agenda, promotes the coherent implementation of the environmental dimension of sustainable development within the United Nations system and serves as an authoritative advocate for the global environment.

UNEP’s Office for Latin America and the Caribbean (LACO), located in Panama City, Panama works closely with the 33 countries of the region and its activities are integrated into the Medium-Term Strategy and the Programme of Work approved by the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA).

According to UNEP (2019), transport has the highest fossil fuel-related emissions (15% of all regional GHG emissions in 2018) and, over the last decades, has grown faster than any other end-use energy sector. Greenhouse gas emissions from transport are expected to increase by almost 20% by 2030 and close to 50% by 2050 unless major actions are taken. According to the Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC), the transport sector was responsible for 22% of total reported short-lived climate pollutants (SLCP) in Latin American countries – which has a considerable negative impact on air quality. Moreover, air pollution is the main environmental risk to health in Latin America.

According to UNEP (2018), electric mobility deployment in the region could reduce 1.4 Gigatons of CO2 and has the potential to save nearly US$ 85 thousand million in the period 2016-2050. Nonetheless, decarbonization of transport systems comes hand in hand with the development of sustainable and low-emission energy systems to maximize benefits and ensure large-scale deployment.

The transition to low-emission and resilient economic development is a global priority for the United Nations Environment Programme.

In 2019, UNEP was been appointed as delivery partner of the project “Advancing a regional approach to e-mobility in Latin America” (“GCF Readiness project” hereafter), financed by the Green Climate Fund (GCF) under its Readiness and Preparatory Support Programme, with the participation of 14 Latin American and Caribbean countries, namely Argentina, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay and Uruguay. The objective of the project is to create favorable conditions to generate an aggregate demand for electric mobility in Latin America and the Caribbean, allowing countries to generate a new value chain and take advantage of economies of scale, as well as access to the best available technology, through the preparation of financing proposals that could be submitted to the GCF and other international financial sources to implement electric mobility initiatives at sub-national, national, regional or global levels.

For these reasons, the Climate Change Unit of UNEP’s Office for Latin America and the Caribbean is looking for a communication leader. This consultant will support the Climate Change Unit with the development and maintenance of the community for climate change unit projects including community promotion, content creation, projects follow up, web analytics, digital marketing and knowledge sharing, as well as other projects linked to this community in Latin-America. He/She will be supervised by the UNEP Programme Management Officer for Climate Change Unit for Latin America & the Caribbean Office and will work home-based.

Qualifications/special skills

Academic
• Bachelor’s degree in communication, Journalist public relations, international relations or related field is required.
• Master’s degree in International relations, journalist or related field is required.

Professional
• At least five (5) years of working experience in communication, including interviews preparation and delivery, editing or social network managementissues.(required).
• At least one (1) years project involving the creation of public or private institution communication strategy management is an asset.
• Familiarity with the global and national trends of climate change, mobility, urbanism, sustainability is an asset.
• Good knowledge of electric mobility will be an asset.
• Ability to develop, promote, implement, monitor and evaluate Communications Policies and Strategies is an asset.
• Working experience with the UN system, international organizations, or public institutions will be an added advantage.
• Proven experience in report writing and developing and leading communications strategies, drafting documents, and experience in coordinating publications, content edition and proofreading. will be an asset
• Proven experience on external consultant management. Will be an asset
• Proven experience in community management, social networks and digital strategies. will be an asset

Languages

• Fluent in English is required.
• Fluent in Spanish is required.

Additional Information

Competencies and Skills

Functional competencies:
• Demonstrates integrity and ethical standards;
• Mature judgment and initiative;
• Ability to think out-of-the-box;
• Ability to present complex issues in simple and clear manner; Demonstrates integrity and ethical standards;
• Ability to work under pressure and deliver high quality results on time;
• Initiative and independence
• Good communication and organizational skills, with demonstrated evidence of capacity to produce and present good reports.
• Analytic capacity and demonstrated ability to process, analyses and synthesize complex, technical information from different disciplines;
• Ability to innovate, combining methodological approaches and data from various levels and disciplines including economics, finance, development and conservation.

Corporate competencies:
• Ability to draft concise and informative documentation in English and Spanish for a range of uses from detailed progress reports to media releases including ability to analyses complex information and to draw out the key points and issues and to present these in a way that can be easily understood
• Strong knowledge / experience in results-based management and results-oriented approach to project implementation
• Strong inter-personal skills, communication, networking and team-building skills; competent in leading teams and creating team spirit, management of inter-group dynamics and conflicting interests of various actors, stimulating team members to produce quality outputs in a timely and transparent fashion.

No Fee

THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.