Mar 6, UNEP Knowledge Management Consultant Jobs in Kenya

The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) is the leading global environmental authority that sets the global environmental agenda, promotes the coherent implementation of the environmental dimension of sustainable development within the United Nations system and serves as an authoritative advocate for the global environment.

Its mandate is to coordinate the development of environmental policy consensus by keeping the global environment under review and bringing emerging issues to the attention of governments and the international community for action. UNEP’s Ecosystems Division works with international and national partners, providing technical assistance and capacity development for the implementation of environmental policy, and strengthening the environmental management capacity of developing countries and countries with economies in transition.

Land-based pollution has been widely recognized to impact the health of aquatic ecosystems, including coastal and marine ones. Over time, population growth has led to an increasing demand for water, food, and consumable goods. The rising number of anthropogenic activities and the intensification of productive sectors demanding growth in substance production and use has resulted in augmented pollution from point and non-point sources.

In many areas of the world, waterways and coastal areas are still being used as dumping ground to avoid costs for treatment and disposal. Also, extreme weather events and climate change pose additional stress on ecosystems and natural resources. Climate-induced natural disasters (e.g., floods) increase the risks of spillage of pollutants with major consequences on human health and ecosystems. UNEP’s Source-to-Sea Pollution Unit plays a crucial role in identifying and acting on the challenge of land-based pollution.

The Unit focuses on issues including but not limited to plastic pollution and marine litter, nutrient management, wastewater and physical alteration and destruction of habitat and its activities serve to help achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, specifically SDG 6 and 14. It also contributes to UNEP’s Medium-Term Strategy 2022-2025, and as well as to the implementation of UNEP’s Chemicals and Pollutions Action sub-programme.

The work of the Unit also contribute to the implementation of numerous United Nations Environment Assembly’s (UNEA) resolutions, including for example “Marine litter and microplastics” (UNEP/EA.1/6, 2/11, 3/7 and 4/6), “Protection of the Marine Environment from Land-Based Activities” (UNEP/EA.4/11), “Sustainable Nitrogen Management” (UNEP/EA.4/14, UNEP/EA.5/2), and “End plastic pollution: Towards an international legally binding instrument” (UNEP/EA.5/14).

To counter the challenges posed by land-based activities, the Unit is implementing the project titled “Protecting the Marine Environment from Land-Based Pollution through Strengthened Coordination of Global Action.” The project, with a duration of five years, aims to strengthen responses to land-based pollution, enhance co-operation and foster action to tackle the issues related to wastewater pollution, nutrient management, and marine litter also through the key role of global partnerships, including the Global Partnership on Plastic Pollution and Marine Litter (GPML), the Global Partnership on Nutrient Management (GPNM), and the Global Wastewater (GW²I) for which the Source-to-Sea Pollution Unit provides secretariat services. It also connects with the UNEP One Plastic Initiative and project.

The international consultant will support the work of the Source-to-Sea Pollution Unit, specifically with the delivery of key work items related to marine litter and plastic pollution, by : managing knowledge resources and training materials in the GPML Digital Platform; tracking progress of the partner countries and implementation partners in developing plastic national source inventories and

strategies; and supporting the organization of workshops, trainings and meetings related to the project “Capacity development to catalyze actions and commitments at the national and global level to reduce plastic pollution including in the marine environment”, as well as providing support to the GPML.

This assignment is within UNEP’s Ecosystems Division, under the overall supervision of the Chief of the Source to Sea Pollution Unit.

The consultant is expected to deliver the following outputs:

Follow up with partner countries’ progress in developing State of Knowledge reports, National Source Inventories and identifying capacity development gaps that can be supported through various capacity development modalities.

Review, update and finalize guidance materials, presentations, knowledge materials currently on the Workflow for the Development of National Source Inventories and the Plastic Strategies of the GPML Digital Platform or produced in the future by implementing partners, reflecting the needs assessment report, outputs and outcomes of GPML Communities of Practice and the work assignment 1 stated above. The consultant will also follow up on the use of the Workflow, identify issues and recommend countermeasures to promote and strengthen its further application.

Review knowledge resources on the GPML Digital Platform, remove outdated resources, add new knowledge resources (e.g., reports, case studies, webinar & training recordings, e-learning contents) and provide new tags according to the newly added categories.

Support the organization of coordination meetings and workshops related to the project “Capacity development to catalyze actions and commitments at the national and global level to reduce plastic pollution including in the marine environment”.

Organize GPML webinars and/or national technical sessions in coordination with implementing partners of the project, groups of scientists and other UNEP Divisions. .

Qualifications/special skills

Advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in Environmental Management, Environmental Conservation, Chemistry or in a closely related field is required.

A first-level university degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

A minimum of 5 years of experience in project monitoring and evaluation with experience in and extensive knowledge of the field is required.

At least 5 years of experience in waste/chemical management, plastic pollution issues or a related field with extensive experience in project management, conference/meeting/training/ workshop organizations is required.

Excellent writing and communication skills and an in-depth understanding the marine litter and plastic pollution issues are required too. Experience in the usage of computers and office software packages (MS Word, Excel, PowerPoint, etc.) is needed.

Experience in the United Nations or other international development agencies is regarded as an asset.

Languages

English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For this post, fluency in written and oral English and French is required. Working knowledge of Spanish or any other UN official languages is desirable.

How to Apply

For more information and job application details, see; UNEP Knowledge Management Consultant Jobs in Kenya

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