Inclusive Climate Action Senior Manager, UKAID CAI/CFF

The C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group, now in its 16th year, connects 97 of the world’s greatest cities which have committed to tackling climate change. We bring mayors from around the world together to learn from each other in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and creating resilient, sustainable and low carbon cities. C40 cities represent more than 700 million urban citizens and their economies account for 25% of the global GDP. C40’s ‘Deadline 2020’ report sets out the critical role that the world’s major cities have to play in delivering the historic Paris Agreement to prevent catastrophic climate change. C40’s team of 300+ staff is headquartered in New York, with offices in London, Rio de Janeiro, Copenhagen, Beijing and Paris, and staff based across 25+ different locations, with the Office of the Chair based in London.  The strategic direction of the organization is determined by an elected Steering Committee of C40 mayors which is chaired by the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan. Three-term Mayor of New York City Michael R. Bloomberg serves as President of the C40 Board of Directors, which is responsible for operational oversight. A nine-person management team, led by Executive Director, Mark Watts, leads the day-to-day management of C40. C40’s three core strategic funders are Bloomberg Philanthropies, the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF) and Realdania.

Diversity Statement

C40 is committed to supporting and promoting equity and diversity and creating an inclusive working environment for everyone. We believe that when people with different life experiences are involved in decision-making, we deliver better. 

We believe having a diverse workforce ensures we connect better with all the different communities and people affected by the climate crisis. This enables us to make better decisions which lead to better outcomes in the work we do through increased creativity, productivity, greater global impact alongside a broader perspective and approach to our work.

We welcome applicants that are diverse in terms of age, gender identity, sexual orientation, physical or mental ability, ethnicity and perspective. Our goal is for C40 to be an environment where everyone, from any background, can flourish and can be themselves whilst contributing to our mission. If you identify as a person with a disability, we work to provide reasonable appropriate measures and any additional support needed to provide an equitable working experience. If you are living with a disability, chronic illness or neurodiversity please inform us, to provide you with the proper assistance in the application process.

C40 promotes a work culture where staff can input to improve equity, diversity and inclusion through staff-led groups and formal forums. We know that creating our ideal working environment is a learning process and we are committed to the ongoing effort.

Inclusive Climate Action (ICA) team.
Climate change affects communities differently, some more severely than others. Equally, in addition to reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and climate risk, investments in climate action have an array of benefits and, in some cases, negative impacts that can accrue unevenly and unfairly to different groups. Embedding inclusivity and equity in the design and implementation of climate actions helps to address these issues. It ensures that actions respond to social inequities and the needs of those who are most vulnerable, improves the effectiveness of climate policy and wins greater public support for your city’s climate agenda.C40’s ICA team provides mayors and local administrations with support to plan, build consensus and deliver bold climate action that is equitable and beneficial for all. The ICA programme deals with the links between the climate crisis and social justice in cities. The ICA work aims at ensuring that climate solutions are designed taking into account issues of equity, access and fairness and that throughout climate action  implementation the voices of vulnerable social groups, frontline and marginalized communities within the city are heard and taken into account at its core.         

Climate Action Implementation

The Climate Action Implementation Directorate oversees C40 programmes that support cities to accelerate implementation of actions from their Climate Action Plans (CAPs). The Directorate is responsible for ensuring strong cross-team coordination and delivery to support climate action implementation through funded programmes. It engages existing and potential funders to support climate action delivery in cities, while also showcasing the results cities are achieving through these programmes. This position is funded by the UK Government’s Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (UK FCDO) to work for the C40 UKAID Climate Action Implementation Programme and the C40 Cities Finance Facility (CFF) - also funded by other donors (see below).

UKAID CAI Programme

The UKAID Climate Action Implementation (CAI) Programme is a new C40 programme, which will support cities to accelerate implementation of actions from their Climate Action Plans (CAPs). The UKAID CAI Programme will support 15 cities in multiple regions, with an anticipated budget of £15m. The programme sits within the Climate Action Implementation directorate at C40, which promotes strong cross-team, global/regional coordination and delivery to support climate action implementation through funded programmes.

C40 Cities Finance Facility

The C40 Cities Finance Facility (CFF) is an award winning programme which was launched at the C40 Forum during COP21 in Paris in December 2015 and is currently funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), the French Development Agency (AFD) and the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO). The CFF is jointly implemented by C40 and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, with delivery responsibilities divided across both organisations. The CFF was selected as a winner of the 2020 United Nations Global Action Award in the category “Financing for Climate Friendly Investment”.

The CFF facilitates access to finance for inclusive and equitable climate infrastructure projects in urban areas in developing and emerging economies. Cities’ green and just priorities are developed into bankable investment proposals through the following:

1. Finance readiness
2. Linking to Finance
3. Replication and upscaling

The CFF is currently in its third phase and will be supporting approximately 15-20 cities in this phase.

Position Description

The ICA Senior Manager, UKAID/CFF will work closely with the three UKAID Regional Inclusive Climate Action Managers, with relevant UKAID/CFF staff (i.e. Regional Engagement Managers) and with the Inclusive Climate Action team to provide input, insights  and support on the adoption of inclusive, fair and just approaches to climate action planning and implementation based on identified needs from regional programme teams. C40 aims to provide cities with the adequate tailored resources they need so the implementation of climate actions have a transformative impact in urban systems, governance and socio-economic structure.

The position will serve as a liaison between the ICA, UKAID/CFF teams, and with strong emphasis on the collaboration and strong connection with Regions teams in LATAM, SE Asia and Africa. It will bring to programmes the most up to date and relevant resources, best practice examples and links to key global partnerships to ensure the successful delivery of the equity/ICA components and objectives of the CFF and UKAID regional programmes across the three regions, guided by the ICA priorities and support needs identified at regional programme level.  This role is integrated with a number of C40 teams, thus it requires working effectively across the organisation.

Responsibilities:

• Serve as key cross-programme technical and policy lead on ICA components delivery in UKAID CAI / CFF regional programmes - serving as key point of contact for other teams with regards to the UKAID CAI / CFF programmes.
• Provide technical, strategic and policy assistance that relate to ICA activities at regional level, as requested by Regional ICA Managers and Heads of Implementation, including insights and examples from ongoing ICA Technical and Policy Assistance.
• Ensure ICA tools, concepts and approaches, global best practices, and lessons learnt from previous or ongoing ICA workstreams are used when relevant, as requested and in the most appropriate way.
• Ensure overall C40 ICA strategy and theory of change is shared, owned and embodied by the C40 ICA regional staff , and that UKAID CAI and CFF lessons are shared and inform this strategy as well as shared with ongoing ICA initiatives and ICA team
• Actively participate and, where relevant and requested by regional programmes, support in the development and delivery of key technical and policy assistance; Actively participate and, where relevant, support in the development and delivery of key local and regional advocacy and campaigning efforts related to social and economic issues that may stem from the UKAID CAI programme of support to cities
• Serve as the main point of contact on timelines, KPIs, reporting and overall delivery of ICA components in UKAID CAI / CFF regional programmes.
• Support the CFF equity and inclusion working group (consisting of both GIZ and C40 members) in coordinating activities related to project preparation, project implementation and project finance, ensuring methods and approaches are in line with international best practice and ICA activities and approaches.

Activities include:

• Support the embedding of ICA in work plans for the UKAID and CFF projects across the regions as requested by CAs and regional ICA members of staff , based on regional ICA priorities
• Support understanding and use of ICA tools and resources in CAI and CFF projects, including support on equity assessments and policy design
• Working closely with the Regional ICA staff, support key city activities in UKAID and CFF like stakeholder mapping, stakeholder engagement strategies, benefits assessment activities as needed - ensuring integration of the ICA perspective.
• Assess and identify how ICA global partnerships and collaborations may be leveraged in support of identified regional outcomes
• In close collaboration with the ICA Forum, work with relevant teams and team members to support bilateral and multilateral city interactions and convenings, in order to leverage expertise and knowledge residing among cities on ICA for successful UKAID/CFF delivery and to showcase the work of UKAID cities through these activities where relevant
• Support the assessment and identification of key emerging trends (city resilience, economic growth, social justice) relevant for C40’s support to cities on Inclusive Climate Action in specific regions, in close collaboration and as requested by  regional teams
• Support C40 in developing a joint narrative, key messages, and common communications moments to highlight how ICA can be delivered, and is being delivered in cities and across regions through CFF/UKAID programmes.
• Draft guidelines for streamlining ICA components of various Terms of Reference for technical assistance in the UKAID/CFF projects;
• Support strategic regional and local meetings of the CFF/UKAID programmes as requested;
• In close collaboration with the ICA Global Leadership team, support the development of highly effective knowledge products for cities and mayors and opportunities to leverage ICA outcomes from across the CFF/UKAID projects.
• Provide support to the development of the overarching monitoring and evaluation structure/activities to ensure the goals are delivered and outcomes documented

Person Specification: . 

The candidate should demonstrate a deep passion for concretely addressing climate change, both at the personal and collective level to ensure long-term sustainability for the planet. Someone with a firm ambition to make a solid personal contribution, and be highly excited by this excellent opportunity to do so.

The candidate will be a motivated, self-starter who has the ability to handle multiple tasks and projects simultaneously and will enjoy working in a virtual but collaborative environment.

• Experience of working on policy areas like inclusive climate action, just transition, climate and equity, social and economic features of climate actions, climate justice, etc.
• Ability to communicate complex policy in a simple way to a non-technical audience
• Experience in managing or working in complex multi-stakeholder and / or multi-disciplinary processes and policies
• Working knowledge of cities and urban issues or working directly in or for municipal administrations.
• Project and partner coordination experience and track record of delivering projects in a challenging and evolving environment is essential
• A collaborative working style and experience of working across teams is essential
• Works well on their own initiative and can be relied on to get the job done in a busy working environment
• Excellent multitasking, organizational and time-management skills, and ability to work in a fast-paced environment
• Passion for environmental and climate issues; knowledge of global climate action is an advantage
• Experience working across multiple time zones and cultures is strongly desirable. This role will require willingness and availability to work on a regular basis across Southeast Asia, Africa and Latin America time zones.
• Experience working in regions/cities and knowledge of context in UKAID/CFF programme desirable
• Fluency in one or more languages (other than English) is beneficial but not essential

Other Requirements:

Applicants must already have the right to work in the country where they apply.

Some travel may be required as part of the role.

Reporting To: Deputy Director, Inclusive Climate Action

Term: Fixed Term to 31 March 2024

Location: Accra, Addis Ababa, Bogota, Dar es Salaam ,  Guadalajara , Jakarta, Johannesburg, Kuala Lumpur, Lagos ,Medellin,, Mexico City, Nairobi, Quezon City

Salary: : GHC 154,095 / Br1,020,216/ COP 124,060,918 / TZS 89,449,100  / MXN 825,474/ IDR 465,724,210/ R787,500/ IDR 465, 724, 210/ ?16,302,104/ MXN 825,474/ Ksh 5,103,035/: PHP 1,618,046

Application Process:

To apply, please submit an updated curriculum vitae and cover letter.

Closing date for applications is Monday 26, September at 9am BST. C40 reserves the right to close this job opening before the closing date for applications so please do submit applications early.

At C40, we are committed to creating an inclusive working environment, where diversity is valued and there is equality of opportunity. We therefore welcome applications from all sections of the community.

To learn more about the work of C40 and our cities, please visit www.c40.org, follow us on Twitter @c40cities and like us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/C40Cities.

For any queries about the role, please contact careers@C40.org

C40 is an equal opportunities employer