Associate, Sustainable Tea at Rainforest Alliance

Position summary:

The Associate, Sustainable Tea (AST) is responsible for coordinating, implementing as well as advising on all tea production related activities for Rainforest Alliance Mount Kenya Sustainable Landscape and Livelihoods Program in Kenya. The AST is responsible for coordinating and managing relationships with all tea stakeholders to promote sustainable production, commercialization and competitiveness of tea and diversified enterprises for improved Livelihoods within the Mount Kenya Landscape. The AST will work in collaboration with Rainforest Alliance staff, partners, consultants and stakeholders to design and support integrated landscape Management (ILM) strategies within Mount Kenya Landscape. The position includes designing training interventions, training materials, and conducting trainings and advisory to tea extension staff, tea farmer groups tea plantations and tea farmers on good agricultural practices (GAPs) and Climate Smart (CSA) Regenerative Agriculture. The AST will coordinate and work closely with other program staff and Rainforest Alliance Tea Expert to share knowledge and learnings.

Responsibilities: 

• Hold program sensitisation workshops with key tea farmers groups and plantations and other tea sector stakeholders in the landscape as well as public and private sector including government officials to sensitize on ILM;
• Hold workshops with farmer groups for participatory climate risk mapping, regularly review the climate impact and adaptation needs and opportunities for tea farmers;
• Conduct training assessment needs and capacity development needs and approaches to climate and economic resilience building based on situation analysis and climate risks and opportunities assessment for tea;
• Develop training materials, digital tools and resources and support farmer groups to develop climate smart farm improvement plans that are aligned to group and landscape plans and the needs of tea farmers and effectively support their implementation with farmer groups;
• Conduct Training of Trainers (ToTs), extension officers and farmers training on CSA Regenerative Agriculture and GAPs and other best practices identified for the landscape;
• Support the program in developing the business case on the need to invest/secure long-term supply chains with the tea smallholder farmers to mitigate supply chain risks;
• Ensure tea farmers and groups and plantations are adequately represented and supported by the Landscape governance and development and management Plans (SLDMPs), support the Team Manager to closely connect tea farmer groups with specialty / differentiated markets through companies that rewards improvement adoption and quality tea through premiums and better trading terms;
• Work collaboratively with others stakeholders  to promote gender equality and youth inclusion in tea farming and diversified enterprises for livelihood improvement;
• Support in the assessment of progress toward achieving Land Degradation Neutrality (LDN) in the project site through estimating changes in carbon capture resulting from changes in farmers´ management practices towards adoption of CSA practices; and
• Support the Team Manager in the preparation of quality and timely Program performance technical reports as required by donors, as well as in the preparation of presentations to partners, landscape stakeholders and Rainforest Alliance.

Qualifications: 

• Bachelor degree in Agriculture, Agricultural Education and Extension, Horticulture, Natural Resources Management or related field;
• Minimum 3 - 5 years of experience in the tea sector, especially working with smallholder tea farmers groups and plantations and tea processing or marketing;
• Experience in project management in the tea landscapes will be an added advantage, demonstrated knowledge of the tea certification(s);
• Experience in ToT approach, Focus Area Groups, Farmer Field Schools and lead farmer training models, Experience in training on GAPs, Tea husbandry, CSA and Regenerative Agriculture is an asset;
• Demonstrated ability in designing and development of training materials, training curriculum and evaluation of training interventions;
• Demonstrated ability to build capacity for Programs among staff, partners and key actors in local communities; and
• Excellent verbal and written communication in English and Kiswahili. Knowledge of local language is plus;
• Ability and willingness to travel at least 30% of the time.

Salary:

Commensurate with experience.