Gender Specialist Base: Bangkok, Thailand
OVERVIEW
The U.S. Forest Service (USFS) is seeking the services of a gender specialist to work for up to one year, full-time with the Lowering Emissions in Asia’s Forests (LEAF) program based in Bangkok, Thailand. This is a consultant position with a competitive salary and a negotiable benefit package. The position is open to applicants from Asian countries.
LEAF is a USAID/Regional Development Mission for Asia (RDMA)-funded program being implemented by Winrock International and other partners. Started in January 2011, this five-year program is working on Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD+) implementation and capacity building both bilaterally and regionally, in line with USAID’s goals under its ‘sustainable landscapes’ global climate change pillar. Target countries for the program include Lower Mekong countries (Thailand, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia), Papua New Guinea, and Malaysia, with replication and outreach activities potentially in South Asia (Bangladesh, India, Bhutan, and Nepal), Indonesia, and the Philippines.
Achieving sustainability in REDD+ requires generating and sustaining emissions reductions at the local, sub-national, and national levels; developing the necessary capacity to measure and report on emissions reductions; building on lessons learned in forest management in developing countries; and equitable benefit distribution systems. Central to achieving such results is engagement with all legitimate stakeholders who manage or utilize forest resources.
Women have often been overlooked as a REDD+ stakeholder group, despite their significant responsibilities in forest resource management. Women’s knowledge of, and management strategies for, forests are directly related to their extensive use and dependence on forest resources in Asian countries. Though comprehensive data about differences in men and women’s use of forests is lacking, sufficient information is available to show that rural women play critical roles in the forestry sector, especially those whose lives depend on forest resources to meet their daily livelihood needs for food, fuel wood, fodder and other products that families use to generate income. Poor rural households, in particular, are known to have high levels of forest dependence, through the extraction, consumption, and sale of Non-Timber Forest Products (NTFPs), which often provide a crucial livelihood safety net. Recognition of women as a key stakeholder group and ensuring their meaningful participation in REDD+ planning and activities is important to ensuring the success and effectiveness of REDD+.
The Office of Women in Development (WID) and the Global Climate Change (GCC) Team at USAID are collaborating with USFS and USAID/RMDA to identify key entry points and strategic approaches to address gender issues and ensure women’s full participation in the LEAF program with the goal of improving the overall sustainability of REDD+ efforts in the Asia region. This effort builds on an analysis conducted and recommendations identified during a regional survey of gender and REDD+ issues carried out by a U.S. Forest Service team in late 2009. The findings and recommendations from this analysis will be shared with the Gender Specialist to support the implementation of LEAF by the Winrock team.
POSITION DESCRIPTION
The consultant would help ensure that LEAF effectively incorporates gender in its design and implementation. Overall responsibilities include:
• Work with the policy/market incentives advisor in assessing "provisions" of current policies/incentives in support of REDD+ safeguards and enhancing co-benefits.
• Provide a gap analysis with accompanying recommendations. The initial output will be an identification and brief analysis of "gaps" and "weak areas" with accompanying recommendations for addressing them.
• Serve as the gender specialist for LEAF in national, regional, or local REDD+ planning or strategy processes in which LEAF takes part, and promote appropriate representation and consultation of women as a stakeholder group in planning and strategy processes
• Conduct comparative analyses and engage in national and regional learning networks to identify key entry points and good practices for addressing gender in sustainable landscapes programming.
• Work with the LEAF team in developing, pre-testing, and implementing gender-sensitive criteria for inviting, screening, and selecting participants to program-implemented/organized training/workshop activities at the regional and country levels and to integrate gender into all workshops and activities
• Provide specific recommendations on how country counterparts/institutions may adopt or use gender criteria to enhance their existing policies and guidelines, building on the recommendations identified in the regional gender and REDD+ analysis conducted last year
• Work with and/or assist the LEAF implementation team to incorporate gender-sensitive strategies and activities in their planning and implementation of REDD+ activities that address appropriate social safeguards, setting up sound governance arrangements, participation in establishing baselines and monitoring annual changes in carbon stocks, and estimating carbon benefits, etc.
• Contribute to LEAF internal work planning processes and in the development and implementation of program monitoring and evaluation systems and procedures to ensure integration of gender-sensitive strategies and indicators.
• Provide a synthesis and comparative analysis of lessons learned and opportunities for strengthening gender-sensitive implementation arrangements and improving monitoring systems for gender-specific performance indicators for sharing with country counterparts and at regional workshops/training activities and with USAID/Washington staff
REQUIRED SKILLS SET
• In depth knowledge and work experience in the natural resources sector in Asia;
• In depth knowledge and work experience in gender issues in natural resources;
• Knowledge of REDD+ programs and concepts strongly preferred;
• Ability to work in a team, including effectively contributing to joint planning and implementation of trainings, workshops, and other program activities;
• Excellent organizational skills;
• Excellent written and oral communication and interpersonal skills;
• Required computer proficiencies: Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Internet;
• Language skills: English- fluent spoken, written. Fluency in a local language of one or more of the LEAF target counties is preferred.
REPORTING
The consultant will report administratively to the government contractor Management and Engineering Technologies, Inc (METI). Direct project supervision will be provided by Winrock International. The Gender Specialist is also expected to provide monthly reports to the Office of Women in Development at USAID, and USFS.
APPLICATION SUBMISSION
The applicants should submit:
- Cover letter
- Up-to-date curriculum vitae with contact information
- 2 Recommendation letters
Applications should be submitted to Gender.specialist.bkk at gmail.com by May 2, 2011. Final applicants will be invited to interview on May 16, 2011 and notification will be by telephone and email.
The U.S. Forest Service (USFS) is seeking the services of a gender specialist to work for up to one year, full-time with the Lowering Emissions in Asia’s Forests (LEAF) program based in Bangkok, Thailand. This is a consultant position with a competitive salary and a negotiable benefit package. The position is open to applicants from Asian countries.
LEAF is a USAID/Regional Development Mission for Asia (RDMA)-funded program being implemented by Winrock International and other partners. Started in January 2011, this five-year program is working on Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD+) implementation and capacity building both bilaterally and regionally, in line with USAID’s goals under its ‘sustainable landscapes’ global climate change pillar. Target countries for the program include Lower Mekong countries (Thailand, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia), Papua New Guinea, and Malaysia, with replication and outreach activities potentially in South Asia (Bangladesh, India, Bhutan, and Nepal), Indonesia, and the Philippines.
Achieving sustainability in REDD+ requires generating and sustaining emissions reductions at the local, sub-national, and national levels; developing the necessary capacity to measure and report on emissions reductions; building on lessons learned in forest management in developing countries; and equitable benefit distribution systems. Central to achieving such results is engagement with all legitimate stakeholders who manage or utilize forest resources.
Women have often been overlooked as a REDD+ stakeholder group, despite their significant responsibilities in forest resource management. Women’s knowledge of, and management strategies for, forests are directly related to their extensive use and dependence on forest resources in Asian countries. Though comprehensive data about differences in men and women’s use of forests is lacking, sufficient information is available to show that rural women play critical roles in the forestry sector, especially those whose lives depend on forest resources to meet their daily livelihood needs for food, fuel wood, fodder and other products that families use to generate income. Poor rural households, in particular, are known to have high levels of forest dependence, through the extraction, consumption, and sale of Non-Timber Forest Products (NTFPs), which often provide a crucial livelihood safety net. Recognition of women as a key stakeholder group and ensuring their meaningful participation in REDD+ planning and activities is important to ensuring the success and effectiveness of REDD+.
The Office of Women in Development (WID) and the Global Climate Change (GCC) Team at USAID are collaborating with USFS and USAID/RMDA to identify key entry points and strategic approaches to address gender issues and ensure women’s full participation in the LEAF program with the goal of improving the overall sustainability of REDD+ efforts in the Asia region. This effort builds on an analysis conducted and recommendations identified during a regional survey of gender and REDD+ issues carried out by a U.S. Forest Service team in late 2009. The findings and recommendations from this analysis will be shared with the Gender Specialist to support the implementation of LEAF by the Winrock team.
POSITION DESCRIPTION
The consultant would help ensure that LEAF effectively incorporates gender in its design and implementation. Overall responsibilities include:
• Work with the policy/market incentives advisor in assessing "provisions" of current policies/incentives in support of REDD+ safeguards and enhancing co-benefits.
• Provide a gap analysis with accompanying recommendations. The initial output will be an identification and brief analysis of "gaps" and "weak areas" with accompanying recommendations for addressing them.
• Serve as the gender specialist for LEAF in national, regional, or local REDD+ planning or strategy processes in which LEAF takes part, and promote appropriate representation and consultation of women as a stakeholder group in planning and strategy processes
• Conduct comparative analyses and engage in national and regional learning networks to identify key entry points and good practices for addressing gender in sustainable landscapes programming.
• Work with the LEAF team in developing, pre-testing, and implementing gender-sensitive criteria for inviting, screening, and selecting participants to program-implemented/organized training/workshop activities at the regional and country levels and to integrate gender into all workshops and activities
• Provide specific recommendations on how country counterparts/institutions may adopt or use gender criteria to enhance their existing policies and guidelines, building on the recommendations identified in the regional gender and REDD+ analysis conducted last year
• Work with and/or assist the LEAF implementation team to incorporate gender-sensitive strategies and activities in their planning and implementation of REDD+ activities that address appropriate social safeguards, setting up sound governance arrangements, participation in establishing baselines and monitoring annual changes in carbon stocks, and estimating carbon benefits, etc.
• Contribute to LEAF internal work planning processes and in the development and implementation of program monitoring and evaluation systems and procedures to ensure integration of gender-sensitive strategies and indicators.
• Provide a synthesis and comparative analysis of lessons learned and opportunities for strengthening gender-sensitive implementation arrangements and improving monitoring systems for gender-specific performance indicators for sharing with country counterparts and at regional workshops/training activities and with USAID/Washington staff
REQUIRED SKILLS SET
• In depth knowledge and work experience in the natural resources sector in Asia;
• In depth knowledge and work experience in gender issues in natural resources;
• Knowledge of REDD+ programs and concepts strongly preferred;
• Ability to work in a team, including effectively contributing to joint planning and implementation of trainings, workshops, and other program activities;
• Excellent organizational skills;
• Excellent written and oral communication and interpersonal skills;
• Required computer proficiencies: Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Internet;
• Language skills: English- fluent spoken, written. Fluency in a local language of one or more of the LEAF target counties is preferred.
REPORTING
The consultant will report administratively to the government contractor Management and Engineering Technologies, Inc (METI). Direct project supervision will be provided by Winrock International. The Gender Specialist is also expected to provide monthly reports to the Office of Women in Development at USAID, and USFS.
APPLICATION SUBMISSION
The applicants should submit:
- Cover letter
- Up-to-date curriculum vitae with contact information
- 2 Recommendation letters
Applications should be submitted to Gender.specialist.bkk at gmail.com by May 2, 2011. Final applicants will be invited to interview on May 16, 2011 and notification will be by telephone and email.
Post a Comment