Senior Associate - Energy Efficiency Programme ECF

The European Climate Foundation (ECF) was established in 2008 as a major philanthropic initiative to promote climate and energy policies that greatly reduce Europe’s greenhouse gas emissions and to help Europe play a stronger international leadership role to mitigate climate change. The ECF is funded by major multi-year commitments from donors in Europe and the United States. The ECF is part of the international ClimateWorks Network that shares goals, strategies and resources to address the global challenge of climate change mitigation with a global network of aligned organizations.

The Energy Efficiency Programme pursues a number of strategic initiatives to increase energy efficiency in the European economy. We aim to ensure that effective energy policies are adopted and implemented at the EU and national levels by leveraging a network of political contacts, grantees and other partners in Brussels and Member States.

Major initiatives include:

• Creating the regulatory and market framework for large-scale energy efficiency investments.
• Ensuring the implementation of the EU Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) and the financing and delivery of energy efficiency retrofits to existing buildings.
• Reducing the energy consumption of appliances and equipment via the Ecodesign and Energy Labelling Directives.
• Resources are prioritized around the most winnable political opportunities and innovative and replicable policies.

The ECF team is a highly dynamic group of individuals. The team combines ambition and passion with a rigorous, results-oriented and analytic approach to work. The ECF’s culture is one of intensity, enthusiasm and mutual support.

The ECF’s Energy Efficiency Programme is seeking to recruit a politically savvy Senior Associate to support the Energy Efficiency Director in a number of areas:

• Strategy: helping set programme priorities and budgets; co-developing and implementing political strategies with our network of grantees and partners.
• Grantmaking: soliciting and helping develop proposals from potential grantees; drafting recommendations for board consideration; managing consultants and occasionally commissioning studies; monitoring and evaluating progress and impact of initiatives and grants; and reporting to donors.
• Networking: building partnerships with stakeholders across the policymaking, business and civil society communities across Europe; convening meetings; representing the foundation at meetings.

The Senior Associate may manage specific initiatives directly. This position requires frequent travel between the Hague, Brussels, Berlin and other EU capitals.

Key competencies and characteristics

• 5-10 years of professional experience.
• Experience in an international organisation with a proactive, results-oriented culture. Experience as a civil servant in an European Member State Government a plus.
• Strong background in energy policy and/or climate change policy. Demonstrated understanding of policy implementation challenges a plus.
• Outstanding English writing and presentation skills. Additional languages a bonus.
• Incisive, independent, analytic, creative mind.
• Proven ability to initiate and manage projects.
• Enthusiastic personality; a positive, can-do attitude; teamplayer.
• Sense of humor.
• Willingness to travel.

Contact

To apply: please send your CV and cover letter to employment@europeanclimate.org, to the attention of Ms. Bianca Lepsa. Please indicate ´Recruitment – Senior Associate for Energy Efficiency´ in the Subject line.