Environment Associate At World Cocoa Foundation

Established in 2000, the World Cocoa Foundation (WCF) is the world’s leading organization for cocoa sustainability. WCF is an international non-profit membership organization whose members include companies from across the global cocoa and chocolate supply chain. We convene public private partnerships for a thriving and sustainable cocoa sector, where farmers prosper, communities are empowered, and the planet is healthy. WCF is headquartered in Washington, D.C., with offices in Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana, and operations across cocoa origin countries. WCF has an annual budget of about $8 million and a staff of about 35 people.

Position Summary:

WCF seeks an Environment Associate to provide management and coordination support to the WCF Healthy Planet Pillar and the work that WCF is leading to eliminate deforestation and address the impact of climate change in the cocoa sector. WCF’s work on the Healthy Planet focuses primarily on the successful implementation of the Cocoa and Forest Initiative (CFI), a joint commitment between leading cocoa and chocolate companies and the governments of Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana and Colombia to eliminate deforestation from the cocoa sector.

The Environment Associate will report to the Director of Environment based in Washington, DC and provide direct support to the Environment Team based in DC, Côte d’Ivoire, and Ghana. The Associate will be responsible for supporting strong coordination and communication in the Environmental team, management of the governance structures with the WCF members, effective communication with WCF members external stakeholders, and timely and quality reporting to donors and others. The associate will also provide direct support to WCF members and other partners as determined by the Director. The Associate will engage regularly with other WCF teams at the Global and country levels. In addition, the Associate with support the Environment Team to stay up to speed on key topics and discussions taking place in environmental sustainability in the cocoa sector, and participate in webinars, workshops and other meetings accordingly. The Associate will engage with a variety of public and private sector partners including companies, governments, NGOs, donors, and CSOs around the world.

Position Details:

This position will be based at the WCF Headquarters in McPherson Square Washington, DC. Initially the position will be virtual until the office reopens (to be determined). Applicants must be authorized to work in the United States. The salary for this role will be $45,000 to $55,000 annually depending upon experience with an immediate preferred start date.

Duties and Responsibilities:

Administrative (30%)

· Provide administrative, financial and logistical support to the Director of Environment and the Environment Team;

· Assist with the scheduling, running and notetaking of virtual and face2face meetings, webinars, workshops and phone/conference with companies, governments, NGOs, donors and other key stakeholders;

· Support the Director in the development and management of the Environment Team workplan and budget;

· Maintain filing of documents and folder management on the WCF server and assist in new staff orientation;

· Support the CFI Finance Manager with the timely processing of program related administrative documentation (timesheets, expense reports, and consultant invoices) consistent with WCF policies and practices;

· Keep relevant distribution lists up do date and track changes of participants of CFI Working Groups, Taskforces, etc; and,

· Participate in conference calls and meetings to expand understanding of partnerships and networks for CFI (e.g. Cocoa Forests & Peace, Colombia)

Programmatic (40%)

· Ensure timely coordination, development and support the development of program reports, company-wide reports, policy briefs, presentations and other relevant materials;

· Coordinate relations with industry, government, NGO, and other partners, including scheduling and arrangements for meetings, preparing briefing materials, and following up with questions from individual programs partners;

· Maintain database of private sector actions and programs to promote environmental sustainability in the cocoa sector;

· Keep up to date on key topics, programs, innovations, initiatives, etc. in environmental sustainability in cocoa and other relevant commodities (e.g. palm oil, coffee, soy, timber);

· Support communication and knowledge management for the Healthy Planet Pillar

· Maintain working knowledge of member company invoicing, sustainability staff contacts, program invoicing; and,

· Work across WCF teams as appropriate.

Monitoring & Evaluation (15%)**

· Support CFI monitoring, evaluation and learning commitment by ensuring the accurate and timely development of reporting toolkits, CFI action plans, progress reports, etc;

· Contribute to the alignment of CFI M&E with broader WCF communications strategy;, and,

· Support the implementation of the WCF learning agenda, identifying topics relevant to the success of the Healthy Planet pillar.

New Business Development (15%)

· Assist the Director in the research, design, and response to solicited and unsolicited requests for proposals and concepts notes; and,

· As necessary, and in conjunction with appropriate technical staff, act as the writer and developer of proposals, including the assembly of programmatic narratives, letters of support, and liaison with the cost proposal developers.

Other tasks as determined by the Director of Environment.

Desired Skills/Qualifications:

· Graduate degree preferred, preferably in Environment, International Development, Economics, Agriculture or related field;

· Experience working with a diversity of stakeholders (e.g. NGOs, companies, governments);

· 2-3 years of experience in international development work, training and overseas experience, preferably in a Sub-Saharan context;

· Excellent communication, analytic and problem-solving skills. Detail oriented is a must;

· Strong writing skills, ability to take complex topics and create succinct and professional communication materials, including development of Power Point presentations;

· Ability to develop and monitor project work plans and other management and reporting instruments;

· Strong computer skills (e.g. Microsoft Office, PowerPoint and Excel) as well as social networking and communications tool;

· Ability to work on multiple projects with multiple supervisors; and,

· Strong French language skills preferred, Spanish and Portuguese are a plus.