Communications and Advocacy Analyst (Home-based)

Remote | New York City

Organization: UNDP - United Nations Development Programme
Location: Remote | New York City
Grade: Junior level - IPSA-9, International Personnel Services Agreement
Occupational Groups:
- Legal - Broad
- Political Affairs
- Communication and Public Information
Closing Date: 2025-02-05

Background

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion are core principles at UNDP: we value diversity as an expression of the multiplicity of nations and cultures where we operate, we foster inclusion as a way of ensuring all personnel are empowered to contribute to our mission, and we ensure equity and fairness in all our actions. Taking a ‘leave no one behind’ approach to our diversity efforts means increasing representation of underserved populations. People who identify as belonging to marginalized or excluded populations are strongly encouraged to apply. Learn more about working at UNDP including our values and inspiring stories.

UNDP does not tolerate sexual exploitation and abuse, any kind of harassment, including sexual harassment, and discrimination. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks.

Office/Unit/Project Description

UNDP is the knowledge frontier organization for sustainable development in the UN Development System and serves as the integrator for collective action to realize the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). UNDP’s policy work carried out at HQ, Regional and Country Office levels, forms a contiguous spectrum of deep local knowledge to cutting-edge global perspectives and advocacy. In this context, UNDP invests in the Global Policy Network (GPN), a network of field-based and global technical expertise across a wide range of knowledge domains.

About the Crisis Bureau

Within the GPN, the Crisis Bureau guides UNDP’s corporate crisis-related strategies and vision for crisis prevention, response and recovery. The Bureau has the responsibility for support to prevention, crisis response, resilience and recovery work under the auspices of UNDP’s Strategic Plan. Crisis Bureau staff provide global strategic advice to UNDP management and technical advice to regional hubs and Country Offices; advocate for UNDP corporate messages, represent UNDP at multi-stakeholder and engage in UN inter-agency coordination in specific thematic areas. As part of the Global Policy Network (GPN), the Crisis Bureau works in an integrated manner with UNDP’s Bureau for Policy and Programme Support (BPPS) ensuring that issues are fully integrated into UNDP’s development programmes.

About the Disaster Risk Reduction and Recovery for Building Resilience (DRRR) team

The team’s overarching frame of work is risk-informed development. Through four interconnected workstreams, UNDP works towards strengthening resilience and reducing vulnerabilities by increasing risk governance capacity, refining and expanding the understanding of DRR, fostering access to risk information and enhancing prevention, preparedness and recovery processes. UNDP pursues a holistic, conflict sensitive, whole-of-government and -society, gender transformative approach that leaves no one behind. The four areas of work comprise:

Integrated Risk Governance: Strengthened disaster and climate risk governance capacities that set incentives for risk reduction and resilience building
Climate and Disaster Risk Information: Increased access to and application of climate and disaster risk information to support risk-informed development
Sustainable Recovery: Enhanced recovery assessment, planning and preparedness capacities that ensure resilience after disasters
Early Warning, Preparedness and Anticipation: Strengthened early warning and preparedness systems and capacities to support early action of affected populations

About the Bureau for Policy and Programme Support

Within the GPN, the Bureau for Policy and Programme Support (BPPS) has the responsibility for developing all relevant policy and guidance to support the results of UNDP's Strategic Plan. BPPS's staff provides technical advice to Country Offices, advocates for UNDP corporate messages, represents UNDP at multi-stakeholder fora including public-private dialogues, government, and civil society dialogues, and engages in UN inter-agency coordination in specific thematic areas. BPPS works closely with UNDP's Crisis Bureau (CB) to support emergency and crisis response.

The UNDP Climate Hub is the arrowhead of UNDP’s commitment to the “Climate Promise” that aims to support programming countries in designing and implementing pledges under the Paris Agreement, including ambitious National Determined Contributions, with climate change mitigation and adaptation interventions fully embedded in the national development planning and budgetary processes. The Climate Hub builds on UNDP’s existing portfolio of over US$4 billion in country-level climate action on Climate Change Policies and Strategies, Climate Change Adaptation, Climate Change Mitigation, Climate and Forests, covering over 142 countries, as well as on UNDP’s Nature portfolio, UNDP’s Sustainable Finance Hub, UNDP’s Digital offer and other relevant portfolios on youth, gender, health, climate security among others.

About the Climate Security Mechanism

Together with DPPA, UNEP and DPO, UNDP comprises the core capacities of the Climate Security Mechanism. As the largest implementer of peacebuilding and climate action within the UN system and beyond, including the Climate Promise, UNDP hosts the only global climate security team within the UN, with dedicated specialists/advisors covering all geographic regions. In particular, it supports hotspots and contexts underserved by the climate security agenda thus far in: Asia and the Pacific, Europe and Central Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean.

UNDP’s work on climate policy and finance for peace has catalyzed a new field of practice and practice-driven research on climate finance in conflict-affected and fragile contexts and has captured the interest, including of recent COP Presidencies, the Security Council, the World Bank, the Aswan Forum the Stockholm Forum for Peace and Development and Stockholm+50, and ASEAN. UNDP provides dedicated support to regional entities from the Global South on climate security, including the African Union Commission, the Lake Chad Basin Commission, the League of Arab States, the Liptako Gourma Authority, and the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat, including through the CSM.

The Communications and Advocacy Analyst will work within the BPPS/ Climate Hub - Climate and Security Risk and the Crisis Bureau/ DRRR teams and will contribute to the following areas of work:

Scope of Work

Lead the formulation and implementation of overall communications, outreach and advocacy strategies in on climate, peace and security (CPS) and disaster risk reduction and recovery (DRRR) and support Country Offices on campaigns and other communications efforts;
Support broader communications priorities of the Crisis Bureau, including communications support to Crisis Bureau Director
Contributes to the development of messaging to advocate to different audiences, around key events and milestones in the year and builds and maintains a content calendar;
Creates compelling content in multiple media formats with sharp messaging and eye-catching visual style for a variety of global and targeted audiences; including videos, blog posts, human stories, web articles, infographics;
Provides advice on advocacy materials and coordinate launching flagship initiatives and publications at headquarters, Regional Hubs and Country Offices;
Develops and implements social media content on CPS and DRRR for UNDP channels on Twitter and LinkedIn;
Contribute to outreach plans and promotional opportunities;
Coordinates with other teams and team members and supports interns in communications, advocacy and social media outreach;
Identifies and launches communications, knowledge management and advocacy opportunities, activities, approaches, and platforms and partners;
Develops brochures, factsheets, stories from the field to inform media and general public at the country level;
Contributes to Communities of Practice, including UN Community of Practice on CPS and Resilience
Regularly tracks and evaluates metrics of success and adapt strategies to grow audiences and improve outreach results over time;
Prepares presentations, talking points, workshop reports and periodic updates as requested by senior management, Member States and other partners;
Manage sensitivities and risks related to strategic communication, coordinating with team leader and relevant colleagues to avoid reputational risks;
Make sure information, produced products and relevant materials are properly organized and easily accessible to team members
Align overall communications approaches and processes with Climate Hub and Crisis Bureau
Provide ad-hoc support to wider Climate Hub and Crisis Bureau communications efforts as required
The incumbent performs other duties within their functional profile as deemed necessary for theefficient functioning of the Office and the Organization.

Institutional Arrangement

The Analyst will report to Crisis Bureau Communications Specialist with secondary reporting lines to:
Team Leader - Climate and Security Risk on climate, peace and security and coordinates with Communications Lead, Climate Hub on Climate Hub communications approaches and workflow
Team Lead, DRRT on DRR and Crisis Bureau matters

Competencies

Achieve Results:	LEVEL 1: Plans and monitors own work, pays attention to details, delivers quality work by deadline
Think Innovatively:	LEVEL 1: Open to creative ideas/known risks, is pragmatic problem solver, makes improvements
Learn Continuously:	LEVEL 1: Open minded and curious, shares knowledge, learns from mistakes, asks for feedback
Adapt with Agility:	LEVEL 1: Adapts to change, constructively handles ambiguity/uncertainty, is flexible
Act with Determination:	LEVEL 1: Shows drive and motivation, able to deliver calmly in face of adversity, confident
Engage and Partner:	LEVEL 1: Demonstrates compassion/understanding towards others, forms positive relationships
Enable Diversity and Inclusion:	LEVEL 1: Appreciate/respect differences, aware of unconscious bias, confront discrimination

Cross-Functional & Technical competencies

Thematic Area	Name	Definition
Business Management	Communication	Ability to communicate in a clear, concise and unambiguous manner both through written and verbal communication; to tailor messages and choose communication methods depending on the audience Ability to manage communications internally and externally, through media, social media and other appropriate channels
2030 Agenda: Peace	Conflict Prevention, Peacebuilding and Responsive Institutions	Conflict Analysis and conflict sensitivity
2030 Agenda: Peace	Conflict Prevention, Peacebuilding and Responsive Institutions	Sustaining Peace
Business Development	Knowledge Generation	Ability to research information and to turn it into useful knowledge, relevant for context, or responsive to a stated need. Ability to apply existing concepts to new situations, and to develop new concepts to generate workable solutions and new approaches. Knowledge of relevant concepts, conceptual models, and theories that can be useful in addressing new situation
Business Development	Knowledge Facilitation	Ability to animate individuals and groups, internally and externally, and to design and facilitate activities, to share and exchange knowledge, information and ideas. Knowledge of tools and approaches to stimulate active participation, contribution, and exchange
Business Management	Monitoring & Evaluation	Ability to systematically monitor results of strategies, programmes, and activities with a view to make sure that they are being implemented effectively; Ability to provide managers and key stakeholders with regular feedback and reporting on the consistency or discrepancy between planned activities and programme management and results. Ability to make independent judgment of the management and results of strategies, programmes and activities based on set criteria and benchmark, keeping in mind the needs and concerns of client, current and upcoming. Knowledge and understanding of monitoring and evaluation frameworks, concepts, methodologies, systems, processes, and tools. Ability to make an independent judgement based on set criteria and benchmarks. Ability to anticipate client's upcoming needs and concerns.
Business Direction and Strategy	System Thinking	Ability to use objective problem analysis andjudgement to understand how interrelated elements coexist within an overall process or system, and to consider how altering one element can impact on other parts of the system

Minimum Qualifications of the Successful IPSA

Min. Education requirements Advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in International Relations, Media/Journalism, Publishing, Climate Change, Environment, Security or related areas is required. OR
A first-level university degree (Bachelor’s degree) in the above mentioned fields with an additional 2 years of qualifying experience will be given due consideration in lieu of the advanced university degree

Min. years of relevant work experience

Minimum of two (2) years’ (with master’s degree) or four (4) years (with bachelor’s degree) of relevant experience in journalism, communications and advocacy, multi-media materials (i.e. print, media/social media, video, graphics, web page designing) is required.

Required skills

Professional experience with UN, government, bilateral/multilateral organizations, and/or international NGOs is required;
Proven ability to communicate professionally, sensitively, effectively, and creatively across different constituencies is required;
Proven experience of excellent communications, presentations, networking, and advocacy skills are required;
Demonstrated experience and knowledge of web-based communications and knowledge management systems, digital tools, and innovative approaches is required
Demonstrated experience in the production of multimedia materials for social media platforms and social media outreach is required;
Prior experience to workindependently and/or as a team member is required.
Desired skills in addition to the competencies covered in the Competencies section • Professional experience in journalism, video production, graphic design, and photography is an advantage;
Demonstrated knowledge of the media landscape, national and regional contexts is desirable;
Experience in working at the United Nations, and international
organizations is an advantage;
Practical and demonstrative experience in communications and advocacy on climate, conflict prevention, peacebuilding, climate security is desirable.

Required Language(s)

Fluency in English is required.
Good knowledge of other official UN languages is an advantage.

Disclaimer

Important information for US Permanent Residents ('Green Card' holders)

Under US immigration law, acceptance of a staff position with UNDP, an international organization, may have significant implications for US Permanent Residents. UNDP advises applicants for all professional level posts that they must relinquish their US Permanent Resident status and accept a G-4 visa, or have submitted a valid application for US citizenship prior to commencement of employment.

UNDP is not in a position to provide advice or assistance on applying for US citizenship and therefore applicants are advised to seek the advice of competent immigration lawyers regarding any applications.

Applicant information about UNDP rosters

Note: UNDP reserves the right to select one or more candidates from this vacancy announcement. We may also retain applications and consider candidates applying to this post for other similar positions with UNDP at the same grade level and with similar job description, experience and educational requirements.

Non-discrimination

UNDP has a zero-tolerance policy towards sexual exploitation and misconduct, sexual harassment, and abuse of authority. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles.

UNDP is an equal opportunity and inclusive employer that does not discriminate based on race, sex, gender identity, religion, nationality, ethnic origin, sexual orientation, disability, pregnancy, age, language, social origin or other status.

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