Vacancies at United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)

• The role requires facilitating partnerships, mobilizing technical and financial resources, and ensuring the effective implementation of support in response to country needs.
• Provide technical guidance and oversee project development with stakeholders inside UNEP (e.g., Sustainable Mobility Unit, Cities Unit, UNEP-CCC, Regional Offices) and external partners (e.g., beneficiary government, international organizations and project stakeholders).
• Undertake missions for project development coordination and participation in project consultation workshops as needed.
• Oversee the drafting and review of GEF 8 CAG concepts, project concepts (PIFs) and documents for submission to UNEP’s project review committees and the GEF Secretariat.
• Conduct Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions and energy consumption calculations, addressing feedback from review processes. 

Qualifications/special skills

• Advanced university degree in one of the following fields is required: Engineering, Environmental Sciences, Economic, Environmental Policy, Law or in a related field is required;
• A first level degree with additional two (2) years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of an advanced university degree;
• Two (2) years of experience in working with managing international environmental projects, focused on Climate Change Mitigation is required.
• Experience in working with the Global Environment Facility (GEF) or a similar fund is required.
• Ability to review critically project design and revision/drafting of project concepts and documents; work plans and budgets is required.
• Experience in working with developing countries and/or international organizations is desirable

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Duties and Responsibilities:

• Under the supervision of the Head of the Montevideo and Delivery Unit (MDCU) of the Law Division, the consultant will:
• Collaborate in the development of updated legislation on national air quality standards, taking into consideration the UNEP Guide on Ambient Air Quality Legislation and the model legislation on air quality for Central America, as well as identified international priorities and good practices.
• Collaborate in the development of national regulations on stationary sources and vehicle emission standards, taking into account national circumstances and international and regional best practices.
• Help the organization of national stakeholder consultations, organized by the Ministry of Environment of Guatemala and in collaboration with other sectoral ministries, by providing input on the agenda, stakeholders list, and other materials (e.g., presentations), as well as by facilitating the collection of feedback and data and drafting of a final report.
• Integrate feedback received from the consultation process into revised version of the legislation, and contribute to the final drafts.
• Design a proposal to strengthen legal capacities of government officials at national and subnational levels for the timely implementation of the air quality regulations. The proposal should include an identification of key institutions and/or offices recommended for capacity building initiatives.
• Participate in regular meetings with the Ministry of Environment of Guatemala on project activities and progress and contribute as required.
• Communicate periodically with UNEP representatives, such as MCDU, UNEP Latin America and the Caribbean Office, through organizing and conducting team meetings to update on progress and milestones. Each payment will be disbursed upon timely delivery of products according to schedule and approval by the Head of the Montevideo Coordination and Delivery Unit (MCDU) of the Law Division or designated representative.

Qualifications/special skills

• A Master's Degree in law, environmental law, international environmental law or related fields is required.
• A minimum of five (5) years of progressive working experience in international law, environmental law, environmental policy, or a related field is required.
• Experience in working on environmental issues at the international and regional level, especially in Latin America and the Caribbean region, is required.
• Background in legislative drafting, development of legal and institutional frameworks, and legal analysis related to environmental management law, especially air quality law, is an asset.
• Experience on the environmental legal and institutional framework in Guatemala is an asset. Experience on air pollution issues is an advantage.

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Duties:

• Coordinate, author and lead of the mid-term review for the aforementioned project in accordance with GEF and UNEP policies.
• Overall responsibility for undertaking the review and preparing the final report in English
• Evaluation of all elements of the project in accordance with UNEP Evaluation Office guidelines, excluding the interviews (and the corresponding interview report which will be conducted by another consultant).
• Review content and quality of work of interview report, including related key findings and recommendations 
• Deliverables to be prepared in accordance with UNEP evaluation office templates. Other data collection tools: If needed, to be agreed upon between the Task Manager, the Project Manager, and the terminal review consultant at the inception phase.

Qualifications/special skills

• Advanced university degree in engineering, economics, environmental sciences, management, or a related discipline is required
• A first-level degree with an additional two years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of an advanced university degree;
• Minimum of 5 years of technical experience on housing and cities, including a strong background in urban planning, architecture, sustainability, green infrastructure is required
• Experience in working with national governments of Latin America is required;
• Experience in the evaluation and monitoring of development projects in Latin America is required, including assessments of project documents such as concept notes, progress reports, work plans, and financial documents (budgets and expenditure reports) is desirable;
• Experience working on projects funded by the GEF, multilateral development banks, other bilateral funding entities, or projects implemented by UNEP is desirable.

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• Desk based review of available project documents and secondary research
• Coordination and necessary guidance to other experts engaged for the purposes of project design
• Mission(s) • Analysis of the findings / reports shared by the national experts
• Synthesis reports based on collected data/information and analysis in the form of various reports and project design
• PowerPoint presentation for discussion with Task Manager and wider group of stakeholders
• Sharing of draft report(s) to Task Manager and wider group of stakeholders
• Preparation and completion of the final report(s) The lead government entity, CCS, MoE will facilitate meetings with key stakeholders. A web-based inception meeting will be organized. However, the consultant shall establish coordination with the national experts and lead government entitty to ensure that adequate consultations are held with appropriate stakeholders.

Qualifications/special skills

• ACADEMIC
• A master’s degree in architecture, Urban Planning, environment or similar through experience or related area is required
• A first level degree with an additional two years of qualifying experience maybe accepted in lieu of an advanced university degree.  
• A minimum of at least 7 years of working experience in the field of urban planning is required
• Demonstrable experience of undertaking situational analysis of urban development is required
• Experience in designing interventions for addressing the barriers and root causes to urban planning and development is required
• Good understanding of technical, financial and managerial aspects of implementation of urban development projects is required
• Experience in drafting project proposals and assessing project documents, including concepts, progress reports, work plans, and financial documents (budgets and expenditure reports) is required.
• Experience/knowledge on Environmental Science is desirable • Sustainable financing expertise with specific experience relevant to financing of sustainable urban development is desirable
• Experience of working on similar assignments on sectoral assessment and recommending interventions in projects especially in South Asia is desirable
• Good communication skills to manage/interact with government representatives and people inside and outside of the project team is desirable.
• Experience working with GEF or UNEP projects is a desirable.

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• The vision of the Digital Transformation subprogramme is to harness technological advancements to enhance UNEP’s capability to respond to the needs of member states in an agile manner as they undertake action to tackle the triple planetary crises of climate change, nature loss and pollution. It realizes a problem-based, user-centric approach to enable the design and development of digital products and services by pursuing three strategic intervention actions as outlined in the MTS 2022-2025:
• Catalyzing a digital ecosystem of data and platforms to monitor trends, commitments, and solutions to the triple planetary crisis: establishing data standards and digital platforms for the timely and transparent monitoring of environmental change, and risks as well as foresight and progress towards MEAs and SDGs at both global and national levels.
• Convening partnerships and multi-lateral engagements to influence markets, supply chains and consumer behaviors: transforming decision-making, choices and behavior of governments, businesses, and individual consumers to enhance environmental sustainability.
• Facilitating country-level engagement to strengthen digital literacy, digital capacity, and governance: supporting country-level needs within regional and global context to identify priority use cases, influence policies, and build capacities to advance national environmental sustainability goals.
• Number of digital applications and engagement platforms created with UNEP support to support electronic governance and enhance public participation in environmental monitoring, consensus building, decision making and digital transformation linked to climate, nature and chemicals and pollution actions, including the reduction of environmental digital technology inequalities in impact chains, consumer behaviors and policymaking.
• The rapid development of digital technologies and their integration into environmental governance is transforming how countries address and share environmental challenges like climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution.
• Transboundary data sharing, especially in regions like East Africa, is critical to fostering collaborative efforts and ensuring that countries can leverage data-driven insights for sustainable decision-making. While data sharing holds significant potential to address these challenges, it also brings risks related to data privacy, security, and governance must be addressed comprehensively. To meet these challenges, UNEP requires a Transboundary Environmental Data-Sharing Consultant to lead the development of a use case for transboundary environmental data sharing agreements for the East African region with focus on Tanzania, Kenya, and Rwanda.
• This use case will outline the legal, technical, and operational frameworks necessary for data sharing, while identifying key stakeholders and facilitating collaboration between regional and national actors. The consultant will work closely with UNEP’s Chief Digital Office, ensuring that the proposed frameworks address environmental data governance and support the countries' sustainability goals. This consultancy aligns with UNEP’s mandate to promote sustainable development through digital transformation and environmental governance. It ensures that transboundary data sharing enhances regional cooperation without compromising the security, integrity, and usability of environmental data.
• The consultant will also lead the use case validation process with stakeholders and contribute to UNEP’s Global Environmental Data Strategy (GEDS) to position the organization as a global leader in environmental data management. This post is remotely located with minimal travel to Nairobi, and reports to the Chief Digital Officer.

Qualifications/special skills

• Advanced university degree (master’s or equivalent) in Computer Science, environmental Science, International development, Law or a similar field.
• At least 8-10 years of experience in data-sharing initiatives, especially involving cross-border cooperation.
• Familiarity with environmental data and its legal/technical frameworks is essential.
• Technical expertise in drafting use cases, legal framework analysis, functional requirements, and leading validation processes is essential.
• Extensive, proven experience in collaborating with various stakeholders to drive data-driven insights and solutions is required.
• Experience with digital transformation projects, preferably within the UN system or international organizations is a strong asset. Proficiency in stakeholder engagement and facilitation.

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• Through three main areas of work:
• catalysing country level action by accessing international finance for adaptation on behalf of developing country governments and supporting governments to execute Ecosystem-based Adaptation (EbA) projects,
• distilling evidence for normative policy and programming guidance to catalyse more action on climate change and by strengthening networks and dialogue processes between people and groups engaged in adaptation, in particular on EbA. In so doing, UNEP promotes actions to improve the scientific basis of policy and planning processes particularly in relation to finding solutions to adaptation through the natural environment. Under the Medium-Term Strategy (MTS) 2022-2025, Climate Action is one of UNEP’s three strategic objectives.
• The expected 2030 outcome of this UNEP strategic objective is that government and non-government development action are compatible with the long-term mitigation and resilience goals of the Paris Agreement. UNEP has a mandate to work on EbA which comes from Resolutions passed by member states at UNEP Assembly (UNEA) 1/8 and 2/6.
• The UNEA 2 Resolution on the Paris Agreement requests the Executive Director, within the mandate of the UNEP and in collaboration with other relevant organizations and stakeholders, to strengthen collaboration between UNEP, relevant United Nations bodies and other relevant stakeholders on work related to adaptation, mitigation and the transition to a sustainable future; and to accelerating support to countries to build national readiness capacity to implement the Paris Agreement, implementation capacity and capacity to access finance and technology.
• The promotion and dissemination of adaptation knowledge, science and practice at UNEP is steered by the Global Adaptation Network (GAN). Founded by UNEP and partners in 2010, the GAN provides a worldwide platform to distribute and exchange climate change adaptation knowledge in a variety of ways. As an umbrella organization spanning most continents, the GAN compromises of regional networks and partners, each of which provides knowledge services in their respective regions. This GAN is a thriving network community that provides considerable benefits to member states and partners.
• The GAN Secretariat is composed of seven staff, consisting of Global, Regional, Communication and Administrative staff hosted by the UNEP. This assignment will contribute to advancing the key outcomes of the UNEP Medium Term Strategy 2022-2025, specifically enhanced assistance to capacity building, technology, and finance in support of the Paris Agreement.

Qualifications/special skills

• Master’s degree in resource management, forestry, environment, economics, development, development studies, international relations, public relations, Climate Change or a closely related field is required.
• Experience: at least 7 years of practical adaptation to climate change or international development experience working at the policy level is required.
• Experience in working and collaborating with multi-stakeholder partnerships is desirable.
• Working with organising policy roundtables and knowledge networks is desirable.
• Demonstrated experience in preparing, conducting and documenting is stakeholder engagement including surveys/interviews is desirable.

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Duties and Responsibilities:

• The consultant’s responsibilities will include:
• Technical analysis of the transversality and contributions of the Environmental-Economic Accounting potential monitoring indicators to the implementation of the Brazilian NBSAP.
• Preparation of meetings with government bodies (IBGE, Ministry of Environment, Ministry of Finance and others) to present applications of the EEA and development of a working plan with the prioritization of the EEA to meet economic-environmental policy demands on Bioeconomy Strategy and Ecological Transformation Plan.
• Supporting the formalization of an interministerial arrangement for the EEA of different government bodies.
• Coordination and articulation of updating the National Economic Activities Classifications (CNAE) aligned with the EEA and the Sustainable Taxonomy agenda.
• Technical and scientific support to the Public Policy Research Group (GPP/ESALQ/USP) for the development of the initiative “Bioeconomy Territories: multiple benefits of socio-biodiversity value chains in Brazilian Amazon protected areas”.
• Research on the practices and activities related to monitoring and facilitating sustainable use of timber and a deep dive into NTFPs in LAC. The scoping activity will cover the below items: • Define a framework for the chapter with a literature review, policy, regulatory, legal framework and socioeconomic data, about timber and NTFP value chains.
• Conduct a literature review of all timber and NTFP WBDE related activities (recognizing that these activities may be done under different names in different countries / regions) to gather data and source relevant materials.
• Identify relevant case studies and good practices from across the region to illustrate the state of the timber and NTFP WBDE in the region, including diversity in terms of geographic location, biomes, WBDE activities, policies and socio-economic context.
• Provide an overview of the policy, regulatory and legal framework governing the use of timber and NTFP, incorporating insightful case studies from selected countries.
• Identify country-specific gaps and opportunities pertaining to various types of use of timber and NTFP activities and practices, as relevant.
• Obtain facts and statistics rooted in science and knowledge that can enable informed decision making on the use of timber and NTFP, monitoring progress, and that can provide guidance for the successful implementation of the use of timber and NTFP.
• Identify the primary stakeholders engaged in activities related to the use of timber and NTFP, as well as any related terms, within the region.
• Produce a regional scoping report summarizing findings from above.

Qualifications/special skills

• An advanced university degree in Environmental Science, Social Science, Agricultural science or Public Administration, Economics or Environmental Economics, or a related field is required.
• A first university degree with a combination of two (2) years professional and academic qualifications may be accepted in lieu of the advanced degree.
• A minimum of two (2) years of professional working experience in programme and project planning and implementation in the field of sustainable biodiversity value chains, bioeconomy and of economic instruments for biodiversity and ecosystems conservation is required.
• Experience in stakeholder engagement at federal, state and/or municipal level is desirable.
• Experience with valuation of ecosystem services, Payment for Ecosystem Services and biodiversity would be an added advantage.
• An understanding of the Brazilian environmental, bioeconomy and economic political context, as well as the Brazilian environmental and economic institutional framework is desirable.