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Nature Based Solutions Manager

Employer
TechnoServe
Location
State Farm, Virginia, US
Salary
Competitive
Closing date
Oct 9, 2022

View more

Sector
Academic / Research
Field
Conservation science
Discipline
Climate Change
Salary Type
Salary
Employment Type
Full time
Everyone deserves the opportunity to build a better future. This simple idea has been at the heart of TechnoServe's work around the world for over 50 years. TechnoServe is a pioneer in leveraging the power of business and markets to create sustainable pathways out of poverty.

The low-income communities in which we work are full of enterprising people. Their small-scale farms and businesses are the keys to economic development. But they face many challenges: low literacy, lack of access to jobs and markets, unpredictable political dynamics and, increasingly, the effects of climate change. For many women and young people, the challenges are even more daunting. Working with TechnoServe staff, people around the world are lifting themselves out of poverty. The results are amazing...when incomes increase and living conditions for families get better, they are able to access health care and education previously out of reach. Communities and even whole countries are better off.

This is an incredible opportunity to use your background in Nature Based Solutions to improve livelihoods of local communities in Africa, Latin America and India and help save our planet.

Rated as the number one non-profit for fighting poverty, TechnoServe has formed partnerships with leading conservation organizations to support the rapid scale-up and roll-out of Nature Based Solutions. Our focus is on building a People, Climate and Nature positive economy that builds the resilience of local communities, helps them adapt to climate change and strengthens their ability to contribute to, and benefit from, climate mitigation and the regeneration of soils and ecosystems to improve their livelihoods.

Over half of the world's population is fed by 500 million smallholders. Small businesses make up 90% of firms globally and generate 70% of formal employment in emerging economies. These farms and firms hold the key to protecting and restoring nature, building their own resilience and showing the world what climate positive really looks like. We have no time to lose, yet many initiatives rely on farmers and small businesses radically changing their practices with no clear economic benefit or safety net. Living on razor thin margins, these actors need tangible economic benefits to change behaviors.

TechnoServe promotes regenerative business solutions that help millions of people to sustainably increase their incomes. The wellbeing of low-income communities depends on natural resources. These communities deliver ecosystem services that are increasingly valued by markets. To capture their full potential, TechnoServe helps clients build inclusive, regenerative business solutions that create living incomes and social wellbeing while cutting emissions and strengthening biodiversity.

Nature Based Solutions (NBS) have the potential to provide a third of the solution to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 as well as provide a wide range of other benefits; helping people and nature adapt to a warming world by preventing new and reducing existing climate hazards and strengthening resilience to future risk, ensuring people have access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food, protecting biodiversity and supporting sustainable livelihoods.

With 50 years of experience and boots on the ground in nearly 30 countries worldwide, TechnoServe is in a unique position to deliver nature based solutions to our partners, from smallholder farmers to global businesses.

Position Overview:

The Nature Based Solutions (NBS) Manager provides strategic leadership and coordination for all aspects of TechnoServe's climate change mitigation and adaptation work across the globe. The role will deliver the development and implementation of an ambitious NBS strategy that aligns with TechnoServe's global strategy of reducing poverty and improving livelihoods. The successful candidate will provide support to the design, delivery, monitoring and reporting of all our NBS work, and represent TechnoServe with donors and partners to raise the profile of Nature Based Solutions.

As a senior member of the Regenerative Business team, you will be responsible for advising a portfolio of NBS projects worldwide. This will involve using your expertise to inform work on systemic barriers and incentives for smallholder farmers, small businesses and local communities which could help transform the landscape for NBS and work with project teams and key stakeholder groups to support learning, collaboration and innovation.

The NBS Manager will report to the Director of Global Regenerative Business and work closely with TechnoServe's regional and country teams, as well as leaders from our Entrepreneurship, High Margin Agriculture, Coffee, and Food Processing global practices.

Primary Functions & Responsibilities:

The Nature Based Solutions (NBS) Manager will provide thought leadership and guidance on acceleration and scaling of NBS, including developing the business case for regenerative agriculture, improved rangeland management, avoided deforestation, improved forest management, reforestation, Circular and Green business models and the Blue Economy. He or she will provide useful lessons and experience to develop practice approaches and build an inclusive strategy to achieve NBS impact at a scale and ensure environmental impacts contribute positively to the climate resilience of our clients and improve the livelihoods of local communities across Africa, Latin America and India.

Program design and strategy

  • Provide cross-cutting advice on NBS to program development teams

Identify funding opportunities and support donor cultivation
Act as technical Manager on new business development
Support teams in assessing the carbon mitigation impact and potential of our programs and initiatives
Provide technical advice to program development and country teams on realistic metrics and targets related to Nature Based Solutions

Technical delivery and quality

  • Serve as a technical adviser for NBS on existing programs

Lead and provide high quality technical advice, reports and other outputs for specific, strategic projects
As required, empower, mentor and provide quality assurance of other staff and consultant technical inputs on project design and project delivery
Contribute actively to TechnoServe's learning agenda in terms of testing new ideas, building evidence, and learning from what works and what has not, to improve delivery and impact
Advise and support high quality data collection and analysis from our NbS interventions across the world to provide lessons and scale what works across sectors, countries and regions

Thought leadership

  • Lead or contribute to thought pieces and marketing materials to further highlight TechnoServe's strengths in creating win-win solutions for people, nature and the climate

Exploring and developing innovative funding mechanisms to incentivize Nature Based Solutions (Carbon finance, Green bonds, Debt-for-Nature swaps, Disaster Risk insurance, Payments for Ecosystem services (PES), etc.)
Develop Business cases for Nature Based Solutions across countries and geographies
Build and maintain strategic working relationships with key donors and partners
Contribute to building the capacity of technical and non-technical staff in key aspects of climate and environment programming

Basic Qualifications:

  • Bachelor's Degree with 7 years of relevant experience or a Master's Degree with 5 years of relevant experience in forestry, agriculture, natural resource management, sustainability, climate change, carbon mitigation or related fields

5+ years of work experience in Agriculture, Forestry, Sustainability Consulting, Climate Change Adaptation, Natural Resources Management, GHG measurements or related fields
Extensive understanding of the science and experience of implementing nature based solutions
Knowledge of the IUCN Global Standard for Nature-based Solutions, climate and natural based solutions policies (UNFCCC, REDD+, NDCs, NAPAs) and international initiatives (AFR100, Bonn Challenge, Nature4Climate)
Familiarity with different Payments for Ecosystem Services (PES) schemes and initiatives including the voluntary market for carbon finance and standards like ERF, CDM, VERRA, GS, etc.
Have an extensive network within the sector

Preferred Qualifications:

  • Multi- lingual and multi-cultural or cross-cultural experience appreciated

Experience developing practical applications of scientific concepts and technical innovations for conservation purposes
Demonstrable knowledge of and experience in evaluating carbon sequestration through nature-based projects
Practical understanding on energy audits and GHG measurements in compliance with international standards and guidelines
Experience supporting the implementation and management of emission reduction projects, which includes leading/drafting feasibility studies and project design documents, validation, monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV) support under different standards (ERF, CMD, VERRA, GS) among other local and international carbon schemes.
Experience working with methods and standards of biodiversity information systems and initiatives
Experience in implementing integrated livelihoods and NbS approaches particularly in the agriculture sector, ecosystem restoration and carbon offset projects
Strong research and knowledge mobilization skills

Required Languages: English Fluency required (with a preference for French, Portuguese or Spanish)

Travel: Willingness to conduct site visits and travels to project locations whenever needed (up to 25%)

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities:

  • Experience designing and advising multiple complex projects of strategic importance, and conceiving and implementing strategic and creative initiatives

Fundraising experience, including identifying donor prospects and donor cultivation and/or partnership development with non-profit partners, community groups and/or government agencies
Comfortable synthesizing complex information and translating it into impactful advice and communications
Excellent influencing, interpersonal and communications skills
Great at building strong relationships
Impact-orientated
Strong analytical skills

We encourage all qualified individuals who share TechnoServe'svision of improving the lives of others through proven business solutions to apply.

With our commitment to diversity, we are proud to be an equal opportunity employer andaffirmative action employerand do not discriminate on the basis of gender, race, color, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, HIV/AIDS status, protected veteran status, disability and all other protected classes.

We are also proud of our commitment to protecting staff, partners, and beneficiaries from abuse and exploitation and thoroughly vet all final candidates through rigorous background and reference checks.

If you have a disability that affects your ability to use our online system to apply for a position at TechnoServe please contact the Human Resources atrecruitment@tns.orgor call +1 202 785 4515.

#LI-REMOTE

Equal Opportunity Employer/Protected Veterans/Individuals with Disabilities

The contractor will not discharge or in any other manner discriminate against employees or applicants because they have inquired about, discussed, or disclosed their own pay or the pay of another employee or applicant. However, employees who have access to the compensation information of other employees or applicants as a part of their essential job functions cannot disclose the pay of other employees or applicants to individuals who do not otherwise have access to compensation information, unless the disclosure is (a) in response to a formal complaint or charge, (b) in furtherance of an investigation, proceeding, hearing, or action, including an investigation conducted by the employer, or (c) consistent with the contractor's legal duty to furnish information. 41 CFR 60-1.35(c)

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