The UNOPS Global Portfolios Office (GPO) unites the New York Portfolios, including the Peace and Security team (PSC); the Geneva Office; and the Vienna-based Water, Environment and Climate (WEC) teams, to maximize global impact, foster efficiencies and streamline global programmes. Leveraging our collective expertise and networks, GPO supports UNOPS' strategic priorities and the SDGs across over 130 countries. We deliver project management, fund management, advisory services, project implementation, and HR services, working closely with major global partners. Our thematic focus includes sustainable development, climate action, health, peace & security, and humanitarian action.

As part of the Global Portfolios Office, UNOPS Geneva provides comprehensive solutions in secretariat hosting, operational support, and fund management. We manage global programmes, including the Water, Environment and Climate (WEC) Portfolio, offering project management, procurement, HR, and financial services. Geneva hosts the secretariats of eight global partnerships focused on health (RBM, Stop TB, ATscale), nutrition (SUN), water/sanitation (SHF), humanitarian leadership (GELI), urban development (Cities Alliance), and disaster displacement (PDD). We also provide fund management for EIF and UN Water, and operational support to Geneva-based partners like the Global Fund and UNHCR. The EU-UNOPS Lives in Dignity (LiD) Grant Facility is also based here.

WEC Background:

The Water, Environment and Climate (WEC) portfolio, based in Vienna, and with offices based globally is part of the UNOPS Global Portfolio Office. The Portfolio has built strong partnerships and is effectively managing a portfolio of over 500 million USD over the last 15 years to support key initiatives with fund management, project implementation and administrative support. WEC effectively operationalizes partners' agendas with global approaches, as well as regional and country specific activities focused on climate action, protection and conservation of the environment. Partners profit from WEC’s ability to operationalize and/or scale up their important substantive agendas, including in support of key multilateral environmental and climate agreements, such as the Paris Agreement, the Cartagena Convention as well as the Sustainable Development Goals.

The NDC Partnership:

The NDC Partnership is a global coalition, bringing together more than 250 members, including more than 130 countries, developed and developing, and more than 110 institutions to deliver on ambitious climate action that helps achieve the Paris Agreement and drive sustainable development. Governments identify their NDC implementation priorities and the type of support that is needed to translate them into actionable policies and programs. Based on these requests, the membership offers a tailored package of expertise, technical assistance and funding. This collaborative response provides developing countries with efficient access to a wide range of resources to adapt to and mitigate climate change and foster more equitable and sustainable development. The NDC Partnership Support Unit is jointly hosted by the World Resources Institute (WRI), the UN Office for Project Services (UNOPS) and the UN Climate Change Secretariat (UNFCCC). For this project, the Consultant will be contracted through UNOPS.

This position operates within a dynamic humanitarian and development environment supporting critical infrastructure projects across multiple regions. The role is essential to ensuring seamless coordination between field operations and headquarters, managing complex logistical chains in challenging environments where efficient resource allocation directly impacts project outcomes and beneficiary services.

The Chief Project Advisor is a strategic position overseeing high-level research issues, policy development, and financial innovation for implementing the country’s climate commitments, including the 2030 and 2035 NDC targets. This role demands a unique blend of economic expertise, strategic thinking, and climate policy insight.

The Chief Project Advisor will respond to the Undersecretariat for Sustainable Development and Circular Economy in the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources of Mexico (SEMARNAT), based in Mexico City and will supervise four professionals that will be part of the Economic Intelligence Unit (EIU). 

The Chief Project Advisor will coordinate closely with the Coordinator of the NDC for Mexico at the General Directorate for Policy and Climate Action (DGPAC), which is part of the Undersecretariat for Sustainable Development and Circular Economy at SEMARNAT.

Under the supervision of the Senior Programme Manager at UNOPS,  the incumbent will maintain fluid communication to effectively monitor the proper fulfilment of the objective by the consultants who will be part of the EIU.

• Provide strategic leadership and vision for the Climate Change Economic Intelligence Unit, ensuring alignment with national climate and development priorities.

• Provide strategic advice to senior policymakers on the economic implications of climate policies, instruments, and investment decisions.

• Supervise all studies, and technical reports developed by the Economic Intelligence Unit that analyze economic, financial, and budgetary barriers to the implementation of NDC 2030 and 2035 targets, ensuring methodological rigor and policy relevance.

• Validate/ propose innovative economic models that facilitate the mobilization of both public and private resources for NDC implementation, in close coordination with the Ministry of Finance, the Congress and Local Governments to ensure national public resources for NDC implementation and climate related policies.

• Design and propose financial vehicles to channel funds toward priority projects for mitigation, adaptation, and loss and damage projects, ensuring coordination among Federal Public Administration entities, subnational governments, development banks, and private sector stakeholder, to establish sustainable financing mechanisms for NDC implementation.

• Conduct comprehensive economic impact analyses on GDP and various sectors, trade impacts, and distributive effects on consumers and vulnerable populations, among others, to identify optimal pricing strategies for climate instruments.

• Oversee the development of pricing frameworks for key climate instruments such as the Emissions Trading System, the National Compensations Program, and the Circular Economy Strategy.

• Propose robust evaluation methodologies for investment projects requiring environmental permits, integrating GHG emissions valuation, externality assessments, and compensation mechanisms.

• Ensure the integration of climate risk and opportunity assessments into national economic planning and investment strategies.

• Supervise and mentor the Project Advisory Director and other senior staff, ensuring quality assurance and alignment across all outputs.

• Promote internal knowledge sharing, capacity building, and continuous improvement within the Unit.

Impact of Results 

This support will enable the Government of Mexico to rely on consultants to develop economic and financial models to ensure the economic sustainability and feasibility of priority decarbonization and adaptation projects for the implementation of the NDC.

• The Economic Intelligence Unit will deliver optimal price calculations to ensure the economic sustainability and feasibility of priority mitigation and adaptation projects under NDC 3.0, including the Emissions Trading System, the National Offsets Program, and the Circular Economy Strategy.
• Accelerated implementation of the 2030 and 2035 NDC targets through evidence-based economic intelligence and strategic coordination.
• The Government of Mexico will be equipped with robust economic and financial models to guide the implementation of climate policies and instruments, ensuring long-term viability and cost-effectiveness.
• Strengthened national capacity to mobilize and allocate climate finance efficiently across sectors and levels of government.
• Improved policy coherence and economic efficiency in climate-related decision-making, reducing fiscal and regulatory fragmentation.
• Enhanced integration of environmental externalities into investment and permitting processes, promoting responsible private sector engagement.
• Greater alignment between climate objectives and macroeconomic planning, trade policy, and fiscal reform.
• Increased credibility and influence of Mexico’s climate policy in international negotiations and partnerships.
• Strengthened institutional frameworks for sustainable finance and climate investment, enabling long-term planning and resilience.
• Improved stakeholder coordination and reduced duplication of efforts in climate finance mobilization.
• Enhanced transparency and accountability in climate-related economic decision-making.
• Institutional learning and capacity development that will persist beyond the 18-month assignment.

Required

• An advanced degree (Master's or higher) preferabley in  Economics, Public Policy, Environmental Engineering, Sustainable Development, Finance, Climate Change, Environmental Science, or related fields.
• Bachelor's degree in a relevant field preferably as outlined above, with an additional 2 years of relevant work experience (9 total), may be accepted in lieu of the education requirements outlined above.

Required

• Minimum 7 years of experience in economic policy, climate finance, or public sector advisory roles.

Desired

• Proven experience in macroeconomic analysis, financial instrument design, and inter-institutional coordination.

• Experience working with international climate finance institutions (e.g., GCF, World Bank).

• Familiarity with Mexico’s climate policy landscape, fiscal systems, and regulatory frameworks.

• Please note that UNOPS does not accept unsolicited resumes. 
• Please note that UNOPS will at no stage of the recruitment process request candidates to make payments of any kind.
• Applications to vacancies must be received before midnight Copenhagen time (CET) on the closing date of the announcement. Applications received after the closing date will not be considered. 
• Please note that only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process, which involves various assessments. 
• UNOPS embraces diversity and is committed to equal employment opportunity. Our workforce consists of many diverse nationalities, cultures, languages, races, gender identities, sexual orientations, and abilities. UNOPS seeks to sustain and strengthen this diversity to ensure equal opportunities as well as an inclusive working environment for its entire workforce. 
• Qualified women and candidates from groups which are underrepresented in the UNOPS workforce are encouraged to apply. These include in particular candidates from racialized and/or indigenous groups, members of minority gender identities and sexual orientations, and people with disabilities. 
• We would like to ensure all candidates perform at their best during the assessment process. If you are shortlisted and require additional assistance to complete any assessment, including reasonable accommodation, please inform our human resources team when you receive an invitation.

• For staff positions only, UNOPS reserves the right to appoint a candidate at a lower level than the advertised level of the post. 
• For retainer contracts, you must complete a few mandatory courses (they take around 4 hours to complete) in your own time, before providing services to UNOPS. Refreshers or new mandatory courses may be required during your contract. Please note that you will not receive any compensation for taking courses and refreshers. For more information on a retainer contract here. 
• For more details about the contract types, please click here.
• All UNOPS personnel are responsible for performing their duties in accordance with the UN Charter and UNOPS Policies and Instructions, as well as other relevant accountability frameworks. In addition, all personnel must demonstrate an understanding of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in a manner consistent with UN core values and the UN Common Agenda. 
• It is the policy of UNOPS to conduct background checks on all potential personnel. Recruitment in UNOPS is contingent on the results of such checks.