The United Nations Environment Programme (UN Environment) is the leading global environmental authority that sets the world's environmental agenda, promotes the coherent implementation of the environmental dimension of sustainable development within the United Nations system and serves as an authoritative advocate for the environment.
This role is for a Mountain Restoration Specialist - Level B, operating as a Consultant based in Nairobi. The Specialist will work under the guidance of the Programme Management Officer, in liaison with the UN Decade Multi-Country Mountain Flagship Focal Point for the Virunga Region. The primary purpose is to support the “Multi-Country Mountain Flagship” project under the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration by performing crucial research and analysis for mountain restoration and Ecosystem-based Adaptation (EbA) in the Greater Virunga Landscape (GVL) mountains (Uganda and Rwanda).
Duties and Responsibilities
Under the guidance of the Programme Management Officer, the consultant will carry out the following activities:
- Literature and project review of restoration in the GVL mountains (Uganda and Rwanda).
- Identification and analysis of restoration and EbA best practices.
- Identification of barriers and lessons learned from interventions that underperformed or lacked sustainability.
- Development of criteria for prioritizing solutions for upscaling, including ecological impact, cost-efficiency, social inclusion, co-benefits, and replicability in different contexts of the GVL.
- Preparation of a comprehensive report including:
- Annotated catalogue of best practices and case studies.
- Prioritized list of solutions for scaling based on validation by stakeholders.
- Recommendations for investment, policy support, and capacity development.
- The consultant is responsible for delivering/submitting the above mentioned deliverables via email to the supervisor in editable documents (except for final products) for review and input by the project team.
- Reporting lines: The consultant will report to the Programme Management Officer, responsible for the project: “Multi-Country Mountain Flagship” under the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration. Outputs delivered by the consultant will be evaluated by the supervisor in liaison with the UN Decade Multi-Country Mountain Flagship Focal Point for the Virunga Region.
Qualifications and Special Skills
Education:
- An Advanced University degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in environmental science, restoration ecology, climate adaptation, natural resource management, or a related field is required.
- A first level University degree (Bachelor's degree) with an additional 2 years of qualifying relevant working experience may be accepted in lieu of an advanced University degree.
Experience:
- Minimum of 5 years of experience in ecosystem restoration or climate adaptation, preferably in East or Central Africa, is required.
Knowledge:
- Familiarity with nature-based solutions, EbA, and community-based conservation approaches is desirable.
