Professional Officer ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability

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Professional Officer: Energy & Climate Change
(2 year fixed term contract position with the potential of renewal)

ICLEI is a global network of over 1 750 cities and other subnational governments committed to building a sustainable future. ICLEI provides technical services, capacity building, networking opportunities and cutting-edge urban solutions to its network cities and their communities. ICLEI’s African Head Office, which serves ICLEI’s network cities from across Africa, is based in Cape Town (www.africa.iclei.org).

Over the past two decades ICLEI Africa has provided critical support to African cities and sub-national governments as they embark on their sustainability journeys.  

ICLEI Africa conducts sustainability work across Africa, and has done so over the past 20 years. Our programmes and projects are needs-based, they serve cities and towns across the continent, and contribute in tangible ways to local, national and international urban sustainability agendas. Our goals are significant: we promote the necessity for city engagement in the development of national and international sustainability agendas, and communicate in tangible ways how cities are contributing to the achievement of all major sustainability-related international agreements, such as the Paris Agreement, the New Urban Agenda, the Sustainable Development Goals and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction. We implement programmes and projects in cities across Africa, from inception and project conceptualisation to implementation of on-the-ground interventions. One of ICLEI Africa’s major strengths is that complimenting the significant technical expertise that our teams possess, who get deep technical work done in cities across the continent, we engage in sustainability journeys with our cities, over the long-term. ICLEI Africa prides itself in maintaining long-term and trust-based relationships with stakeholders in our cities and towns through serving our member and network cities via capacity building, technical support for policy development and action, and advocacy for the importance of local action and finance.

Leader in energy and climate change support

ICLEI Africa conducts a suite of climate change mitigation, adaptation, energy access and climate finance work, and harnesses ICLEI’s role on the international stage, such as the focal point for the Local Governments and Municipal Authorities (LGMA) constituency to the UNFCCC (held since 1995). ICLEI Africa staff often play the important role of knowledge broker between diverse stakeholders, bridging the gap between science and policy, and policy and practice, between sectors of society, such as civil society and government, and between the private sector and government. We provide platforms for cities to engage in multi-sectoral and multi-level engagements, essential for tackling issues such as climate change. ICLEI Africa aims to harness the skills, energy and expertise of diverse stakeholders, being at the forefront of transdisciplinary and co-production work. Playing this role, means that our team needs to have walked in the shoes of these various groups, and so we have team members that have worked for many years within sub-national and national government, the private sector, civil society organisations and as researchers, all on the continent of Africa.

The ICLEI Africa team

ICLEI Africa’s work is conducted by a dynamic and passionate team of well qualified and highly skilled professionals that work with cities to ensure a more sustainable future. As an office that deeply cares for the cities it works with, the team adheres to a strong set of values. There is a culture and ethos of openness and sharing, where staff are always willing to support each other where they can. There is diversity of skills and experiences in our team of over 40 staff that spans from those that have worked in research, carrying Masters and Doctorate degrees, to those that are experienced practitioners in the fields of urban planning, economics, sustainability, environmental science and engineering. Given the number of languages spoken across the African continent, ICLEI Africa has many bilingual and multilingual staff, and also supports staff development in adding more languages to their repertoire.

The position

ICLEI Africa is looking for a highly-skilled candidate to work with us in creating a conducive enabling environment to improve energy security and climate resilience, and utilising climate finance and market-led interventions for increased access to sustainable energy. An important area of work to be tackled by the successful candidate, will be to contribute to the creation of suitable conditions for local governments to engage with the private sector in planning and delivering sustainable energy services to households and social institutions.

The position is suitable for someone with a strong technical background related to climate change mitigation/ energy/ climate finance/ energy access/ energy poverty. Specific experience in data collection, handling big datasets and data analysis would be useful.
We are looking for someone to join our team to contribute strongly to the progression of our energy and climate change work on the continent; working with sub-national and national stakeholders to enable a reduction in future urban emissions and increased access to sustainable energy in African cities; energy that is utilised efficiently and comes from renewable sources.

Candidates, via their applications, should provide evidence of the following experience:

• Worked with stakeholders in Africa to develop policies and practices that promote climate change mitigation – in waste, transport, energy and agriculture sectors – and energy efficiency, renewable energy and/ or energy access. It will be advantageous if this experience is related to work with the public sector and at the sub-national level.
• Worked with stakeholders to unlock climate finance at the local level.
• Conducted planning, management and implementation of projects, with proven experience of working in multi-disciplinary project teams.
• Trained stakeholders on topics of energy access, climate change mitigation and/ or climate finance, having experience with workshop design and facilitation.
• Stakeholder engagement, development of strategic partnerships, business development and project acquisition, and resource mobilisation.

Requirements of this position:

• Relevant Honours, Masters or PhD degree in energy, engineering, economics, or a qualification from an equivalent numerate discipline.
• At least 3 years of relevant work experience.
• Proficiency in French and/ or Portuguese will be a strong added advantage.
• Proven experience in project management.
• Aptitude for working with numbers, and proficiency in Microsoft Excel.
• Excellent writing ability, and proficiency in Microsoft Word.
• Good public speaking and facilitation skills, and proficiency in Microsoft PowerPoint.
• Knowledge of/ experience with climate finance applications and processes, greenhouse gas inventory development, as well as energy related scenario building, target setting and monitoring, reporting and verifications processes, will be a strong advantage.
• Experience with developing and conducting online training, webinars and/ or virtual events will be an advantage.
• Ability to produce technical reports, academic papers, popular articles, promotional and social media material, and to promote, enhance and expand the projects and partnerships he/ she is involved in.
• Innovative individual with a ‘can do’ attitude who can think on her/ his feet and harness well-established networks to further build ICLEI’s good reputation and networks across Africa and internationally.
• Be located in Cape Town or able to relocate to Cape Town in the next 6 months

Further requirements for all ICLEI staff:

• Ability to work both independently and collaboratively in multiple and multi-disciplinary teams in a highly dynamic and creative environment, often engaging directly with high level political leadership, academic and technical experts, the United Nations and other international organisations, as well as the private sector on behalf of ICLEI. Good diplomacy skills are required.
• Proven ability to work remotely, as and when required.
• Ability to be agile and flexible about work responsibilities and thrive under pressure.
• Possess problem-solving and analytical skills, be well-organised, with attention to detail and quality, and have a structured and pro-active working style.
• Excellent command of the English language: written, presentation and verbal communication skills.
• Valid code B driving license, with at least one year’s driving experience.
• South African resident/ valid work or critical skills permit.
• A valid passport or the ability to obtain a valid passport within one month of appointment.
• Must have a passion for, and willingness to travel locally and internationally.
• Knowledge of the African and global geo-political context.

Please forward a comprehensive CV with a covering motivation letter, and:

• a copy of your ID and/ or documentation indicating your ability to work in South Africa,
• available starting date, and
• three contactable references

to Sonya Smith ([email protected]) by Tuesday, the 28^th of July 2020.

No late applications will be considered.
A market-related and competitive annual remuneration package (TCOE based) will be offered to successful candidates, taking into consideration qualifications and experience.

Applicants who have not been contacted within 60 working days after the closing date of this advertisement should regard their applications as unsuccessful.

ICLEI Africa reserves the right not to appoint an individual in relation to this job advert.

ICLEI Africa is open to applications for internships and volunteering in fields relevant to sustainability on an ongoing basis.

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