CARE Climate Adaptation Specialist At CARE Nederland

Why CARE Nederland?

We are CARE Nederland, part of CARE, an international development organisation active in more than 100 countries worldwide. Originating from American food aid to Europe after the Second World War, we have been committed for 77 years to those who need it most.

The CARE Climate Justice Center (CJC), hosted by CARE Nederland, has been assigned responsibility for leading CARE’s global commitment to Climate Justice, with CJC’s Director being one of six Global Programmatic leads who work directly with the CARE International Programme Director. The CJC is an endeavor of CARE International, endorsed and actively supported by various CARE members from the Global North. The CJC Director oversees the work and leads a team of 9 experts, based in different CARE offices around the world, that is responsible for the delivery of a joint annual work plan.

The position

The Climate Adaptation Specialist will ideally bring strong expertise in the area of locally led adaptation initiatives, especially in relation to Nature-based Solutions and Ecosystem-based Adaptation. They will contribute to the CJC by focusing on technical support, capacity strengthening and facilitating the collaborative engagement of CARE offices. The role will contribute directly to the realisation of the CJC’s annual workplan and thus the realisation of the CARE Climate Justice Strategy 2030. They will provide technical support and attract new funds, support global and regional initiatives and partnerships, strengthen the capacity of CARE Country Offices and Partner Organizations in the area of climate justice together with the CARE Climate & Resilience Academy and facilitate knowledge management and learning. The adaptation specialist will work closely with all team members of the CJC. Working experience in the LAC region and/or knowledge of Spanish are a plus as new programs in the LAC region are being developed.

The Adaptation Specialist is part of CARE’s Climate Justice Center and will report hierarchical and functional to the Director of the CJC. The specialist will attend CJC biweekly online team meetings, bilateral meetings and annual strategy meetings.

What will you be doing?

Providing technical support and attracting new funds (30%)

• Providing technical support related to Climate Justice issues to CARE staff, in particular:

1. in the design of proposals for new funding for Climate Justice related programming or for the integration of Climate Justice in sectoral initiatives;
2. to specific ongoing initiatives and programs that need support to implement their Climate Justice activities.

• Coordinating and/or participate in the continued development and updating of core technical content. Particular attention will be given to the tools and approaches related to Nature-based Solutions and Ecosystem-based Adaptation.
• Contributing to CJC’s efforts in attracting new funds and resources, including by working with staff with fundraising responsibilities in CJC and CARE members, to identify new opportunities for climate programming.
• Engaging in representation activities to key stakeholders of CJC.

Supporting global and regional initiatives and partnerships (20%)

• Driving the integration of Climate Justice across CARE and engages with colleagues from other CARE global impact area teams and with COs and CMPs to support aligned strategy development.
• Engaging directly with relevant existing and emerging CARE (sub-regional) strategies. They will establish linkages across CARE to ensure impact through learning and knowledge is amplified, with attention to specific regions and on a global basis where relevant.
• Leading the mapping and development of appropriate partnerships for CARE and the Climate Justice Center.
• Working with CJC Advocacy Leads by engaging in technical advocacy towards donors to influence their strategies and funding policies.

Strengthening capacity of Country Offices and Partner Organisations in the area of climate change and resilience (30%)

• Supporting the Climate Justice Center’s work on integrating Climate Justice in CARE’s programs and increasing the quality and quantity of Climate Justice programmes in collaboration and coordination with other CARE Climate justice advisors from CMPs and COs.
• Contributing to the CJCs efforts of assessing and responding to the needs of CARE offices and CSOs in terms of capacity strengthening.
• Contributing to the work of the CARE Climate & Resilience Academy by leading on the revision and development of (new) self-paced courses and customised trainings as well as the implementation and facilitation of the Academy’s online Learning Journeys.
• Designing and facilitating other Climate Justice trainings when relevant and upon request.

Facilitating knowledge management and learning (10%)

• Contributing to the work of the MEAL Specialist and Communication Coordinator by ensuring that MEAL tools, key learning pieces and technical documents, lessons, case-studies, data, communication messages, etc. are explained, shared and made available on our website and on CARE’s global knowledge platform (CARE Shares).
• Supporting the MEAL Specialist and Communication Coordinator to advance the CJCs thought leadership by exploring new external platforms for our publications, tools, data etc.
• Contributing to CARE’s internal Climate Champions Network and setting up and co-leading different regional Communities of Practice.
• Contributing to the work of the Communication Coordinator and MEAL Specialist by reviewing content and inputting where needed (eg quotes, Impact Stories, messaging and framing documents, website materials, opeds etc.) and by being a public spokesperson for the CJC on issues relating to adaptation.
• Leading, coordinating and representing the CARE Confederation/CJC in relevant Climate change forum and events such as the annual CBA conference and the Adaptation Futures conference.

Providing support to other team members (10%)

• Supporting the CJC team or CJC Director in other relevant activities.

Key Internal relations

• CJC’s other Climate Adaptation Specialist
• CJC team
• Regional and sub-regional directors and country programme colleagues
• Other (global) CARE teams where relevant

Key External relations and representation

• Academia and research bodies
• Donor partners – bilateral and multilateral

What do you bring to the table?

• An advanced academic degree in climate adaptation and resilience or any closely related area.
• A deep knowledge and experience of at least 7 years on Climate Adaptation.
• A good understanding of how Climate Justice can be integrated into different sectors.
• Experience in designing/managing and/or implementing climate adaptation initiatives or sectoral initiatives with a strong climate adaptation component.
• Experience in designing and implementing tools and approaches for climate adaptation, especially in relation to Nature-based Solutions and Ecosystem-based Adaptation.
• At least 3 years of experience in working at a regional or global level.
• Excellent training design & (online) facilitation skills.
• Excellent coordination, negotiation and representation skills.
• Knowledge on working in and with international NGO’s.
• An excellent command of English verbally and in writing.
• Proficiency in Spanish is a plus.
• Work experience in Latin America and Caribbean is a plus.
• A proactive attitude and the ability to work effectively and accurately under deadline pressure.
• A demonstrated ability to collaborate well with others across countries and cultures and in complex international networks and to develop and maintain positive working relationships both internally and externally.
• A team player mindset, where you understand the meaning of cooperation to realise the goals of the team, and experience in working with remote team members.
• The willingness to travel abroad.

CARE maintains a zero tolerance policy on sexual exploitation and abuse and child abuse and takes all concerns and complaints about sexual exploitation and abuse and child abuse involving CARE staff and related personnel seriously.

What does CARE Nederland offer?

• A 1 year contract with possible extension.
• A competitive salary based on expertise and years of experience.
• An international work environment in which you work with colleagues from different backgrounds to achieve CARE’s Vision 2030 outcomes.