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UNICEF works in some of the world’s toughest places, to reach the world’s most disadvantaged children. To save their lives. To defend their rights. To help them fulfill their potential. 

Across 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, every day, to build a better world for everyone. 

And we never give up. 

For every child, HOPE

Vacancy Announcement: Consultant

Consultancy Title: Roster for Capacity-Building Consultants on Climate, Environment, Energy and Disaster Risk Reduction (CEED)

Section/Division/Duty Station: NY HQ - Remote

Duration:, 1 November 2024 to 31 October 2027

 

About UNICEF

 

If you are a committed, creative professional and are passionate about making a lasting difference for children, the world's leading children's rights organization would like to hear from you. For 70 years, UNICEF has been working on the ground in 190 countries and territories to promote children's survival, protection and development. The world's largest provider of vaccines for developing countries, UNICEF supports child health and nutrition, good water and sanitation, quality basic education for all boys and girls, and the protection of children from violence, exploitation, and AIDS. UNICEF has over 12,000 staff in more than 145 countries.

 

 

Purpose of Activity:

 

Climate change and environmental degradation are escalating global threats, disproportionately affecting children. Over a billion children worldwide are at risk due to climate-related hazards, such as heatwaves, floods, and cyclones. These threats not only jeopardize their survival but also hinder development progress. In response, UNICEF has prioritized integrating climate resilience and low-carbon strategies across critical social services like WASH, healthcare, education, and child protection. To achieve this, UNICEF’s Sustainability and Climate Change Action Plan (SCAP) 2023-2030 underscores the urgency of building internal capacity to mainstream sustainability and climate action into all areas of its work, ensuring that staff at all levels are equipped to support these critical efforts.

 

The establishment of a Capacity Building Consultant Roster on Climate, Environment, Energy, and DRR (CEED) will ensure that UNICEF can effectively respond to capacity needs at the headquarters, regional, and country office levels. This roster will consist of highly skilled and motivated consultants who will provide tailored technical assistance, training, and support to UNICEF staff and partners globally. The primary objective is to strengthen UNICEF’s ability to integrate sustainability and climate action into its programmes and operations. Key tasks will include developing and delivering tailored training sessions on climate and disaster resilience, sustainability, and emissions reduction strategies across all UNICEF sectors. Consultants will also assist in embedding climate-smart approaches into health, education, water, sanitation, nutrition, and child protection programmes, as well as providing technical support in integrating child-focused climate and disaster actions into national policies, plans, and budgets (e.g., NDCs, NAPs).

 

The Capacity Building Roster will serve as a human resources repository from which pre-vetted and well qualified capacity building experts can be drawn quickly and efficiently. Once accepted on the roster, consultants will be eligible for direct recruitment by UNICEF HQ Offices, Country Offices or Regional Offices for a period of up to three years. The length of the contract will depend on project needs and funding availability. 

 

Scope of Work:

Activities may include but are not limited to:

Objective 1: Strengthen UNICEF staff capacity in climate action and sustainability integration

1. Develop and deliver tailored training on climate and disaster resilience, sustainability, and low-carbon strategies for UNICEF staff across sectors such as health, education, water, sanitation, social protection, nutrition, and child protection.
2. Facilitate experiential learning opportunities through workshops and hands-on support to help UNICEF staff embed climate-smart solutions into programme design and implementation.
3. Create and implement a train-the-trainer programme to empower key staff to teach climate action principles to their peers and partners, ensuring knowledge cascades throughout the organization.

 

Objective 2: Support UNICEF programmes in embedding climate resilience and sustainability across all sectors

Provide technical assistance for integrating climate and disaster resilience and low-carbon strategies into programmatic areas, ensuring programmes are climate-informed and contribute to reducing vulnerability

1. Develop real-time, practical support mechanisms for UNICEF teams to integrate climate strategies into sectoral programmes and operational practices.
2. Assist in developing climate-smart programmes by providing concrete examples and best practices relevant to UNICEF’s mandate.

 

Objective 3: Strengthen external partnerships and advocacy for child-focused climate action

1. Provide technical assistance to national governments and partners to integrate child-critical social services into national climate and disaster risk reduction policies (e.g., NDCs, NAPs, DRMs) and budgets.
2. Support senior management in advocating for climate action by providing tools and resources to champion sustainability initiatives and promote equity and inclusion in climate action.

Facilitate workshops and knowledge-sharing sessions with partners to align efforts on climate and disaster resilience and ensure UNICEF’s work contributes to broader national and global climate goals.

 

Terms of Reference / Key Deliverables:

 

Objective 1: Strengthen UNICEF staff capacity in climate action and sustainability integration

Deliverable 1: Develop and deliver tailored training on climate and disaster resilience, sustainability, and low-carbon strategies for UNICEF staff across sectors (health, education, water, sanitation, etc.).

Deliverable 2: Facilitate experiential learning and workshops, supporting UNICEF staff to embed climate-smart solutions into programmes and operations.

Deliverable 3: Create and implement a train-the-trainer program to enable staff to teach sustainability and climate action principles across the organization

Objective 2: Support UNICEF programmes in embedding climate resilience and sustainability across all sectors

Deliverable 4: Provide technical assistance to UNICEF teams for integrating climate and disaster resilience and low-carbon strategies into sectoral programmes and operational practices.

Deliverable 5: Develop climate-smart programmes with practical, real-time support and best practices relevant to UNICEF’s mandate.

Deliverable 6: Provide hands-on technical assistance to ensure climate-informed programming in health, education, WASH, and other sectors.

Objective 3: Strengthen external partnerships and advocacy for child-focused climate action

 

Deliverable 7: Provide technical assistance to national governments and partners to integrate child-critical social services into climate and disaster risk reduction policies (e.g., NDCs, NAPs, DRMs) and budgets.

Deliverable 8: Support senior management in advocating for climate action and provide tools to promote equity and inclusion in climate initiatives

Deliverable 9: Facilitate knowledge-sharing sessions and workshops with partners to align efforts on climate resilience and sustainability.

 

Qualifications of Successful Candidates

Requirements:  Masters

 

• Advanced university degree in education, environmental sciences, international development, public administration, or a related field.

 

Knowledge/Expertise/Skills required

Minimum of 5 years of experience in capacity-building, learning and development, or similar roles, particularly in climate, energy, DRR, or environmental protection contexts

• Advanced degree in education, environmental sciences, international development, public administration, or a related field, with specialized knowledge in climate change, disaster risk reduction (DRR), energy, or environmental protection.
• At least 5 years of experience in capacity-building, learning, facilitation, and development within climate, energy, DRR, resilience, or environmental sustainability contexts.
• Comprehensive understanding of climate change, environmental sustainability, and low-carbon strategies, particularly in child-focused sectors such as WASH, health, education, and social protection.
• Expertise in integrating climate change adaptation, disaster risk management, and resilience-building into social services and development programmes.
• Familiarity with national and global climate and disaster risk reduction policies (e.g., NDCs, NAPs, DRMs) and experience advocating for child-centered climate action in governmental and international settings.
• Proven ability to embed climate-smart approaches across sectors such as health, education, nutrition, child protection, and water and sanitation.
• Demonstrated experience designing and delivering capacity-building programmes, workshops, and experiential learning on sustainability and climate action.
• Ability to provide practical, hands-on support for integrating climate action into programming and operations.
• Strong facilitation and communication skills for delivering tailored training sessions, facilitating workshops, and creating train-the-trainer programmes.
• Excellent interpersonal skills for working with diverse teams, including senior management, government counterparts, and external partners.
• Fluency in English is required. Knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish) or a local language is an asset.

 

Requirements: DO NOT EDIT

 

Completed profile in UNICEF's e-Recruitment system and provide your CV and cover letter, including:

 

1. All-inclusive daily rate in USD
2. Language(s) you are fluent in (written and verbal).
3. Preferred work locations/regions.
4. Indicate date of availability.
5. Contact details of three professional referees (email and telephone number).

 

Application missing above elements will not be considered.  An initial screening and short listing based on evaluation criteria will be done; only candidates under serious consideration will be contacted.  Successful applicants will be placed on a pre-approved roster which will remain valid for a period of 36 months.

• Any emergent / unforeseen duty travel and related expenses will be covered by UNICEF.
• At the time the contract is awarded, the selected candidate must have in place current health insurance coverage.
• Payment of professional fees will be based on submission of agreed satisfactory deliverables. UNICEF reserves the right to withhold payment in case the deliverables submitted are not up to the required standard or in case of delays in submitting the deliverables on the part of the consultant.

 

U.S. Visa information:

With the exception of the US Citizens, G4 Visa and Green Card holders, should the selected candidate and his/her household members reside in the United States under a different visa, the consultant and his/her household members are required to change their visa status to G4, and the consultant’s household members (spouse) will require an Employment Authorization Card (EAD) to be able to work, even if he/she was authorized to work under the visa held prior to switching to G4.  

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process

For every Child, you demonstrate…

UNICEF's values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, Accountability, and Sustainability (CRITAS). 

 To view our competency framework, please visit  here. 

UNICEF is here to serve the world’s most disadvantaged children and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, age, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, or any other personal characteristic.

UNICEF offers reasonable accommodation for consultants/individual contractors with disabilities. This may include, for example, accessible software, travel assistance for missions or personal attendants. We encourage you to disclose your disability during your application in case you need reasonable accommodation during the selection process and afterwards in your assignment. 

UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. UNICEF also adheres to strict child safeguarding principles. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles and will therefore undergo rigorous reference and background checks. Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check. 

Remarks:  

Individuals engaged under a consultancy or individual contract will not be considered “staff members” under the Staff Regulations and Rules of the United Nations and UNICEF’s policies and procedures and will not be entitled to benefits provided therein (such as leave entitlements and medical insurance coverage). Their conditions of service will be governed by their contract and the General Conditions of Contracts for the Services of Consultants and Individual Contractors. Consultants and individual contractors are responsible for determining their tax liabilities and for the payment of any taxes and/or duties, in accordance with local or other applicable laws. 

The selected candidate is solely responsible to ensure that the visa (applicable) and health insurance required to perform the duties of the contract are valid for the entire period of the contract. Selected candidates are subject to confirmation of fully-vaccinated status against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid-19) with a World Health Organization (WHO)-endorsed vaccine, which must be met prior to taking up the assignment. It does not apply to consultants who will work remotely and are not expected to work on or visit UNICEF premises, programme delivery locations or directly interact with communities UNICEF works with, nor to travel to perform functions for UNICEF for the duration of their consultancy contracts.