Environmental Sustainability Consultant

Background:

UN Women, grounded in the vision of equality enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, works for the elimination of discrimination against women and girls; the empowerment of women; and the achievement of equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action and peace and security.

UN Women has made substantial progress in establishing the policy guide on environmental initiatives in the programme area.  Now we need the policy guide on environmental initiatives in the operational area to be incorporated into the existing framework. 

The UN Women Environmental Sustainability Policy and the Social and Environmental Standards Procedure were promulgated in December 2023.  The purpose of this consultancy is to work on incorporating the operational (administrative, procurement, IST, facilities and finance) components to the policy. 

The consultant will be reporting to Administrative and Facilities Specialist, who will be the point of contact on the contract and payment issues.

Description of Responsibilities/ Scope of Work

The overall objective of the consultancy is to bridge UN Women’s operational environmental guidance’s, internal policies, and procedures into UN Women’s corporate environmental sustainability policy framework. 

Deliverables

• The consultant will be expected to conduct a thorough analysis/desk review of UN Women’s current environmental policies, frameworks and guidelines and their equivalent of other UN agencies, including, but not limited to, UNDP, UNEP, UNFPA, UNICEF as well as the work of the Environmental Sustainability working group Sustainable UN on environmental management systems.  The operational framework will serve UN Women internally in addition to guiding the work of UN Women partners. 
• The consultant will be expected to draft the environmental sustainability policy for UN Women Operations, including a gender lens across the framework and submit it for feedback, and then finalize the framework, ensuring that it is aligned to the UN systemwide advocacy and efforts at promoting environmental sustainability 

The consultant will work under the guidance of the Administrative and Facilities Specialist, Division of Management and Administration, and in close coordination with, and input from, relevant colleagues from administration, travel and conference services, procurement, management, facilities, IST and field offices. 

Project is to be completed within 32 days.  Deliverable schedule to be worked out and agreed upon together with Administrative and Facilities Specialist. 

Consultant’s Workplace and Official Travel

This is a home-based consultancy. 

Competencies:

Core Values:

• Respect for Diversity;
• Integrity;
• Professionalism.

Core Competencies:

• Awareness and Sensitivity Regarding Gender Issues;
• Accountability;
• Creative Problem Solving;
• Effective Communication;
• Inclusive Collaboration;
• Stakeholder Engagement;
• Leading by Example.

Please visit this link for more information on UN Women’s Values and Competencies Framework: 

Functional Competencies:

Job Knowledge/Technical Expertise

• Good understanding of gender equality and women’s empowerment issues
• Good understanding of, and experience in, environmental sustainability and policy development 
• Strong background in strategic coordination
• Proven ability to conduct research
• Knowledge of Environmental management systems according to ISO Environmental Management Systems
• Knowledge of project management
• Knowledge of the United Nations

Communications

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English Task Management 
• Proven ability to work under pressure and produce outputs that are accurate, timely and of high quality
• Ability to establish priorities and to plan, coordinate and monitor own work plan
• Ability to conduct research, synthesize information, and undertake gender analysis

Required Qualifications: 

Education and Certification: 

• Master's degree or equivalent in Environmental Sustainability or related discipline is required.
• A first-level university degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience my be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree. 

Experience: 

• Minimum of 5 years of relevant professional experience, including working on corporate policies and frameworks on environmental sustainability and development programmes is required.
• Experience in research, including conducting interviews and desk reviews is required. 
• Work experience with UN, including UN Women, or other development agencies is desirable.

Languages: 

• Fluency in English
• Knowledge of any other UN official language is an asset. 

Statements:

In July 2010, the United Nations General Assembly created UN Women, the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women. The creation of UN Women came about as part of the UN reform agenda, bringing together resources and mandates for greater impact. It merges and builds on the important work of four previously distinct parts of the UN system (DAW, OSAGI, INSTRAW and UNIFEM), which focused exclusively on gender equality and women's empowerment.

Diversity and inclusion:

At UN Women, we are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. UN Women recruits, employs, trains, compensates, and promotes regardless of race, religion, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, ability, national origin, or any other basis covered by appropriate law. All employment is decided on the basis of qualifications, competence, integrity and organizational need.

If you need any reasonable accommodation to support your participation in the recruitment and selection process, please include this information in your application.

UN Women has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UN Women, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to UN Women’s policies and procedures and the standards of conduct expected of UN Women personnel 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.)

Note: Applicants must ensure that all sections of the application form, including the sections on education and employment history, are completed. If all sections are not completed the application may be disqualified from the recruitment and selection process.