Special Policy Advisor: Methane Initiative

Work Type: Full-time, 12 month fixed term contract 

Salary: Commensurate with experience 

Sector: Not-for-profit 

Location: Canberra, Sydney or Melbourne

 

About Investor Group on Climate Change 

Investor Group on Climate Change (IGCC) is the leading industry body representing institutional investors in Australia and New Zealand on climate risk and opportunity. Our 103 members collectively manage over $4.5 trillion in assets locally, including the retirement savings of more than 15.8 million Australians. We work to shape public policy and support investor action that reduces risk, maximises opportunity, and delivers long-term value for our members’ beneficiaries as Australia transitions to a net zero, climate-resilient economy. 

Role Overview

IGCC’s membership base has good relationships with policy makers and industry and direct and detailed engagement on greenhouse gas emissions reduction is an established norm. Investor interest and engagement on non-CO2 emissions, in particular methane emissions and key sources in metallurgical coal and LNG is growing.

With the bulk of coal and LNG customers in Asia, action on methane emissions in Australia could have impacts in the rest of Asia Pacific. Strong policy signals on regional methane emissions could further activate both Australian and Asian investors to strengthen corporate and sovereign engagement on methane abatement targets, measurement and disclosure, whilst potentially strengthening the case for methane financing instruments at the government and corporate level. 

In this landscape, IGCC has both the opportunity and responsibility to continue influencing policy and corporates to address methane emissions. This is necessary to unlock the billions of dollars in institutional capital to finance Australia’s net zero and climate resilience transition. 

The successful candidate will join some of Australia’s most experienced and well-connected policy and corporate engagement teams, backed by leading institutional investors. It is well-suited to someone motivated to contribute to systemic change and deliver lasting climate impact. 

 

Role description & responsibilities 

This newly created role will be responsible for implementing IGCC’s Asia Pacific methane initiative with the execution of high-priority projects and engagements focused on methane. These include: 

• Initial systemic analysis: conduct a methane emissions abatement systems analysis to identify key Australian and APAC stakeholders (governments, regulatory bodies, industry, financial institutions, non-profits/industry groups, researchers/academia, etc) and the most impactful interventions (based on influence/impact analysis). Stakeholder roundtables: curate and host stakeholder roundtables focused on the Australian industry and policy landscape, as well as the broader regional supply chain. The objective of these discussions will be to (i) educate attendees on the facts, stakeholders, issues and associated abatement incentives and opportunities (ii) refine the systems mapping analysis (iii) identify and explore consensus on effective points of intervention. 
• Publish and socialise systems analysis and socialisation: The finalised systems analysis, roundtable outcomes and supporting context will be published. Publication will be followed by targeted webinars and presentations to the most influential stakeholders. 
• Identification and planning of subsequent engagement and intervention activities: identify, prioritise and plan/cost any subsequent activities. The specific interventions and engagement activities will be identified by applying influence/impact analysis techniques to outputs of the systems mapping analysis. 
• Oversight and facilitation of targeted initiatives identified as the most impactful. Working with IGCC colleagues and members, these are expected to involve a combination investor engagements with Federal and State governments, large corporate emitters and associated stakeholders. 

The role has a strong focus on stakeholder management, including with IGCC members, industry, and policymakers.

About You 

1. You will be an experienced public policy, government relations or industry professional that is able to lead on strategic stakeholder engagement and identify and understand key system actors, relationships and dependencies. 
2. You will have excellent stakeholder engagement, communication and influencing skills that can be tailored to different audiences, with comfort and experience engaging at senior levels in industry and government. 
3. You have understanding and demonstrated success in federal and/or state policy advocacy and engagement, are able to develop and facilitate roundtables and develop strategic, actionable engagement plans, recommendations and outcomes for policy makers, investors, industry and other key stakeholders.
4. You will contribute to a collaborative, passionate team and work well across teams, ensuring effective communication across IGCC’s Policy, Corporate Engagement and Investor Practice workstreams. 

 

Essential Selection Criteria 

• a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in a relevant field such as public policy, economics, law, or social science.
• a minimum of ten years’ experience in a public policy, government relations, regulatory affairs, or relevant industry role 
• a good grasp of one or more of the following: economics, finance, climate change, public policy or key sectors critical to the net zero transition 
• strategic and systems-thinking ability to design and drive a coordinated strategy to reduce fugitive methane emissions 
• excellent written and oral communication skills 
• strong project management skills and proven ability to consult and facilitate a broad range of stakeholders on project development and execution 
• ability to work well independently and as a team member, and to ‘pitch in’ in a dynamic work environment. 
• desire to work in a mission-driven and non-profit environment. 

Work arrangements and salary 

• Salary will be commensurate with experience. 
• IGCC’s team is based in either Canberra, Sydney and Melbourne. Occasional domestic travel and potentially some international travel could be a requirement. 
• Note: it may be necessary to participate in some calls outside of standard business hours. 
• Working in an industry association is about working in a small environment where people's opinions are valued and listened to. We encourage open communication and transparency and promote a dynamic work environment. 
• IGCC is an Equal Opportunity Employer and will not discriminate against any individual based on race, colour, sex, national origin, age, religion, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, military or veteran status, disability, or any factors prohibited by applicable law.