Senior Technical Associate

The Rainforest Alliance is creating a more sustainable world by using social and market forces to protect nature and improve the lives of farmers and forest communities. To achieve our mission, we partner with diverse allies around the world to drive positive change across global supply chains and in many of our most critically important natural landscapes.

Our alliance spans 70 countries and includes farmers and forest communities, companies, governments, civil society, and millions of individuals. Together we work to protect forests and biodiversity, take action on climate, and promote the rights and improve the livelihoods of rural people.

As an international nonprofit organization with more than 30 years of experience in sustainability transformation, we understand that the social and economic well-being of rural communities is tightly connected to ecosystem health. This knowledge has shaped our rigorous programs to advance sustainable land-use and commodity production.

At the Rainforest Alliance we combat climate change, protect forests and biodiversity, promote human rights, and improve livelihoods. The enormity of the social and environmental challenges we are facing requires working together in a broad alliance. Therefore we bring farmers, forest communities, companies, and consumers together to change the way the world produces, sources, and consumes.

Why

To protect nature and improve lives it’s becoming increasingly urgent that we approach the way we use our land and produce food and other products in more sustainable ways. For this to succeed we need to fundamentally change the way that businesses operate and source, and the choices we all make as consumers.

How

Our growing global alliance aims to transform our relationship with our natural resources and each other, to create a better future for people and nature together.

The Rainforest Alliance encourages diversity and inclusion across the global organization. With this commitment to diversity, we are proud to be an equal opportunity employer and do not discriminate on the basis of gender, race, color, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, ages, disability and any other protected group.

Position summary:

Rainforest Alliance India is recruiting a motivated and results oriented Senior Technical Associate to lead field level implementation of the project in Karnataka, Transforming agricultural systems and strengthening local economies in high biodiversity areas of India through sustainable landscape management and public-private finance. The post holder will organize and lead all aspects of the work of partners and consultants in Karnataka landscape contracted to deliver project outputs and maintain close relationships with the relevant State government Departments and Commodity Boards. The position will be home-based and maintain very close coordination with senior leadership of Kodagu Model Forest Trust (KMFT) and other Civil Society Organization (CSO) partners within the state. The position reports to Senior Project Manager and works in coordination with the other team members, including Senior Associate, Monitoring, Evaluation Learning to ensure the smooth delivery of project outcomes.

Responsibilities:

• Organize and support technically sound project delivery in the project landscape, in accordance with the work plan and aligned with guidance from the Project Manager and Technical Committee;

• Ensure that the technical delivery of the project is socially inclusive, ensuring that women, tribal and other minority groups have equitable access to resources, activities and services that are generated by the project;

• Coordinate with Foundation for Ecological Security (FES) and KMFT and other CSO partners on the investigation, evaluation and selection of the project’s micro-landscapes, bringing to the table relevant land use data sets and maps;

• Agree the annual work plans and budgets of the CSO partners within their contracts, for approval by the Project Manager, and serve as the key interface with them for the project; provide them with technical support and monitor their delivery of their responsibilities and their adherence to gender equity and inclusion;

• Review the policies and legislative frameworks around land use planning in Karnataka and coordinate with the Policy advisor and partners to support the development of the project’s policy approach;

• Identify consultants for tasks specified in the project work plan, coordinate with the Project Manager and supervise their assignment, ensuring timely and complete reporting;

• Liaise with the Coffee Board, the Spices Board, State government Departments and other key institutional stakeholders to align with their programmes in the project landscape and cooperate directly in planning and implementation where possible;

• Attend meetings of the Project Management Unit and the Technical Committee; support the preparation of Technical Committee meetings.

Qualifications:

• Education: A post-graduation qualification in agronomy, agriculture, environmental sciences, natural resource management or similar.

• Work Experience: Five to seven years’ experience of Bachelor’s degree or three to five years’ of Master degree of technical project management in a subject related to landscape conservation, integrated natural resource management or community participatory work.

• Significant experience working in agricultural sectors; experience in natural farming or related farming systems desirable.

• Experience of leading a team and managing projects in rural environments.

• Very good inter-personal skills, including the ability to work with stakeholders at all levels, facilitate meetings, and keep stakeholders informed.

• Proficiency in the use of computer software applications, especially MS Word and MS Excel.

• Based in Karnataka or able to travel extensively to the project landscapes (up to 75% of the time); and

• Proficiency in written and spoken English and Kannada is a must.

Job LEVEL: 4

Salary:

Commensurate with experience.

Deadline: May 22, 2023

Notes:

Only candidates authorized to work in India will be considered.

If you have any questions about the job vacancy, please contact the HR department: recruitment@ra.org