Environmental Law and Policy Specialist at United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)

Duties and Responsibilities
Background:

• 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.
• The Law Division is the lead Division charged with carrying out the functions of UNEP in the field of environmental law, governance and related policy issues, including those related to multilateral environmental agreements (MEAs). To fulfil its mandate, the work of the Law Division focuses on: leading the international community in the progressive developmental of environmental law; supporting States in the development and implementation of legal, institutional and policy measures that address emerging and important environmental challenges; facilitating cooperation and coordination among MEAs and between UNEP and those agreements; working with MEA Secretariats to support Parties to the respective MEAs in implementing their treaty obligations; and facilitating policy dialogue among States on issues relating to international environmental law and governance.
• The United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA) through UNEA 5.2 resolution 5/2 on Sustainable nitrogen management, adopted on 2 March 2022, encouraged Member States to accelerate actions to significantly reduce nitrogen waste globally by 2030 and beyond through the improvement of sustainable nitrogen management. The co-chairs of the UNEP Working Group on Nitrogen are facilitating the implementation of the resolution and have come up with a Zero Draft voluntary action plan.
• The UN Environment Management Group (EMG) is a system-wide coordination body on environment and human settlements consisting of 51 specialized agencies, programmes and organs of the UN including the secretariats of the MEAs. The EMG identifies issues on the international environmental agenda that warrant cooperation, and finds ways of engaging its collective capacity in coherent management responses to those issues. UNEP, through the Fifth Montevideo Programme for the Development and Periodic Review of Environmental Law (Montevideo Programme V) supports countries to develop and implement legal responses to enhance compliance with and enforcement of legislation to address pollution.
• At the initiative of UNEP and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the EMG recently held a nexus dialogue on sustainable nitrogen management and recommended that a mapping be done of the mandates and activities within the UN to address nitrogen waste. In line with UNEA 5.2 resolution 5/2, the work of the UNEP Working Group on Nitrogen, Target 7 under the Global Biodiversity Framework, and the Montevideo Programme V, and with a view to supporting countries to strengthen, develop, and implement laws, policies, and regulations to accelerate actions to significantly reduce nitrogen waste, UNEP requires an environmental law and policy specialist to prepare a mapping of the international context in which excess nitrogen is addressed as well as specific guidance on legal, policy, and regulatory changes required to reduce the nitrogen footprint from sectors to lead to establishment of integrated regulatory and policy changes required to reduce nitrogen waste globally. The consultant will report to the Head of the Environmental Rule of Law Branch, and the Special Assistant to the Director, Law Division.

Responsibilities:

• Prepare an overview of UN mandates, activities and initiatives related to nitrogen.
  • Conduct a desk study followed by a survey and select interviews among EMG members.
  • Analyse the UN system-wide (actual and potential) contribution to support Member States in addressing nitrogen.
  • Draft and submit a report mapping out visually and in a narrative the UN’s engagement on nitrogen.
  • Organize a review and online consultation with stakeholders on the baseline information.
  • Finalize the analysis and present the findings to UNEP, FAO, EMG and others as requested.
• Conduct consultations and prepare guidance on legal, policy, and regulatory changes required to reduce nitrogen footprint from sectors to lead to establishment of the regulatory changes required to the reduction of nitrogen waste. More specifically:
  • Facilitate initial consultations on legal, policy, and regulatory changes required to reduce nitrogen waste, with specific attention to programmatic work under the Environmental Rule of Law Branch and Environmental Conventions and Policy Branch, to identify opportunities for action by the Law Division under the Medium-Term Strategy 2022 - 2025.
  • Draft and submit draft guidance on legal, policy, and regulatory changes required to reduce nitrogen footprint from sectors.
  • Organize consultations with legal and technical experts in the field to validate and get feedback on the quality of the guidance to identify legal, policy, and regulatory changes required to reduce nitrogen footprint from sectors drawing feedback from examples in select countries.
  • Finalise guidance on legal, policy, and regulatory changes required to reduce nitrogen waste.

Qualifications/special skills

• An advanced university degree (Master's, or higher degree) in environmental law, environmental policy, environmental sciences, or related field is required.
• A minimum of 10 years of progressive working experience in environmental law, environmental policy, environmental sciences or a related field is required.

Special Knowledge and Skills:

• Excellent research and drafting skills of legal, policy and regulatory changes in the field of the environment.
• Excellent organization and consultation management.
• Direct working experience in environmental law.

Languages

• Fluency in oral and written English is required.