All Things Urban

WRI's mission is to move human society to live in ways that protect Earth’s environment and its capacity to provide for the needs and aspirations of current and future generations.

In this role, you will be a member of the WRI Ross Center for Sustainable Cities Urban Development team. You will work directly with both DC and Brazil office teams supporting the engagement with national and subnational governments to advance sustainable urban development agenda. Your main responsibility will be to act as SCIP’s Latin American Coordinator, reporting to the SCIP Senior Manager. You would work in Porto Alegre (Ideally) or Sao Paulo, Brazil and will act as the on-the-ground contact for SCIP in Latin America, liaising with SCIP cities in Brazil, Argentina and Costa Rica, GEF implementing agencies (UN Environment, UNDP, Conservation International and IUCN) and the SCIP Core Team, comprised of WRI, ICLEI C40 and UNEP. Additionally, you will work directly with the WRI Brasil team in integrated urban planning efforts with both national and local governments in a supporting role and responding to the Urban Development Manager in Brazil.

This position is remote due to Covid-19, but you will be based at WRI’s office in Porto Alegre, Brazil once restrictions have lifted.

City engagement and relationship building (80%)

• Act as the focal point between SCIP cities and the SCIP Core team in Latin America (Argentina, Brazil and Costa Rica)
• Present about SCIP to city and national government actors in addition to internal and external stakeholders
• Maintain an excellent relationship with SCIP child project teams and the GEF implementing agencies in-country staff in Latin America
• Build and maintain relationships, liaise and act as the interlocutor for SCIP cities and countries in Latin America
• Liaise with Latin American SCIP cities (Teresina, Florianopolis and Belem in Brazil; Buenos Aires, Mendoza, Mar del Plata, Ushuaia and Salta in Argentina and San Jose in Costa Rica) to raise climate ambition and guide cities on how to commit to international climate action targets
• Coordinate among SCIP organizations (C40, ICLEI, UNEP, WRI) in the Latin American region to ensure networks are utilized effectively
• Following guidance from the SCIP Core Team, engage with key urban development stakeholders in the region such as private sector and regional development banks as it relates to the project
• Organize and lead public commitments for SCIP cities in Latin America
• Mobilize and facilitate city participation in SCIP Global Platform events and initiatives
• Identify additional non-SCIP cities to be invited to learning opportunities Project management and events
• Work with the various component leads to develop events in the country, including Forums, City Academies, Peer Exchanges, finance related events, National Dialogues
• Maintain a schedule and timeline for all activities pertaining the countries, cities, coordinating with all experts leading on the various components of the SCIP
• Mainstream the gender approach in project deliverables and activities Research
• Conduct initial and final ISUDAs (Integrated Sustainable Urban Development Assessments) in Latin American cities Communications
• Work with SCIP Communications Lead to communicate SCIP events and knowledge products to SCIP cities WRI Brasil Cities

Engagement Coordinator (20%)

• City engagement and relationship building
• Work in alignment and support the national engagement strategy of WRI Ross Center in Brazil
• Conduct short research and assessments about current political and legal landscapes around urban development in Brazil
• Maintain regular communication with national and subnational governments in Brazil and support contact with strategic partners
• Provide technical and strategic support to the metropolitan integrated planning offer, with focus on metropolitan governance

• Minimum of 3 years of full-time relevant work experience
• Master's degree required (or Bachelor’s degree with minimum of 2 additional years of experience)
• Demonstrable experience working with city and national governments on urban development issues
• Technical expertise in urban planning, sustainable urban development, sustainability or climate action
• Exceptional interpersonal, relationship building and written and verbal communication skills, including presentation experience
• Excellent Project-management, strategic thinking and analytical capabilities, with MS Excel experience and data management skills
• Strong stakeholder engagement experience, as well as experience in developing or facilitating webinars and workshops
• Ability to travel to assigned cities and internationally
• Fluent in English, Portuguese and Spanish
• Candidates need to be Brazilian citizens or hold a work visa for Brazil

We’re not fully sure whether this role is open to international candidates. If you would need visa sponsorship or work authorisation, we recommend checking directly with the employer before applying.