Senior Program Officer, U.S. Programs

~ Founded in 1991, the Institute for Sustainable Communities (ISC) is a US not-for-profit organization that builds the capacity of local leaders and organizations to address important global issues including climate change, sustainable development, and environmental protection, resulting in embedded capacity and lasting change. Headquartered in the USA, ISC currently operates in the United States, China, Bangladesh and India. ISC has an international staff cohort of approximately 55 people. ~

ISC has been operating in India since 2012, leading improvements in urban sustainability and in sustainable manufacturing through capacity building in partnership with corporations, governments, educational institutions and civil society. ISC is currently implementing programs funded by USAID, Mahindra and Mahindra, the Rockefeller Foundation and the MacArthur Foundation. ISC has offices in New Delhi and Mumbai and partners with Symbiosis Institute of International Business (SIIB) to operate the EHS+ Center in Pune.

Position Overview

The Senior Program Officer (SPO) position provides strategic support and leadership to one or more Program Directors to advance equitable resilience and sustainability projects in communities across the United States. The position guides the design, development, and implementation of projects to accelerate locally-led solutions that tackle immediate problems while strengthening communities overall.

Working across a variety of U.S geographies, the SPO works with grassroots and other community organizations, institutional partners, and local and regional governments to foster collaboration to address climate impacts. The SPO coordinates between project partners and stakeholders, leads community engagement, designs and facilitates workshops, and analyzes data to best inform future project implementation.

This position will be remote, with a work-from-home or a shared office space arrangement, with supervision at distance, or in one of ISC’s U.S. offices (Washington, D.C. or Montpelier, Vermont). Extensive travel (up to 50%) within the U.S. is required.

Responsibilities

• Provide effective relationship management between ISC, project partners, and project stakeholders, to foster ongoing productive relationships.
• Provide effective partner/process management, including multi-stakeholder collaboration, analysis, and meeting facilitation.
• Provide virtual and in-person advice, assistance, and technical know-how to stakeholders; drawing from the incumbent’s professional training and experience; ISC’s extensive library of case studies and resources; and examples from other local, national, and international best practices.
• Use a variety of tools to support project management, data analysis, monitoring and evaluation, and overall project planning and implementation.
• Track the progress of partners, capture best practices and lessons learned, distill and synthesize those practices and lessons, and identify technical assistance or resources to support the partners’ achievements toward identified goals.
• Research and develop resources, tools, case studies, and other materials to support the identified goals of partners.
• Design and deliver workshops and other educational and capacity-building activities to policy makers, elected officials, businesses, and communities to increase support for and advance climate/resilience efforts.
• Inform the development and implementation of communications strategies and materials.
• Provide strategic support and leadership in identifying opportunities for advancing the project and its objectives, including analyzing trends in national and local sustainability and resilience action, identifying potential partnerships beneficial to advancing the project, and developing ideas for expanding and deepening the impact of the project.
• Manage project budgets in conjunction with the Senior Budget & Operations Officer and Program Director.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in a relevant field or equivalent experience.
• Seven to 10 years of relevant professional experience working with or for a local government, community-based/focused institution or public health, economic development, social service, or similar social profit organization.
• Experience working on sustainability, climate, environmental justice and other like subject matter is a plus.
• Strong program leadership skills including: Ability to listen deeply and learn quickly; Excellent interpersonal, oral, and written communication; Demonstrated experience in meeting and workshop facilitation; Strong research and analytical skills; Ability for rapid response to leverage strategic opportunities in the moment; Flexibility and willingness to adapt to changing priorities.
• Ability to work productively with diverse individuals from differing backgrounds (government, private sector, advocacy, social profit organizations, and community-based organizations).
• Knowledge of and experience serving underrepresented communities, neighborhoods, and populations most vulnerable to the impacts of climate related events.
• Experience working directly with and for communities of color to address and overcome systemic racism and the multitude of adverse outcomes that result.
• Experience in community resilience and sustainability solutions.
• Experience using data analysis to drive decision making and inform resilience approaches and strategies for a region.
• Ability to work and collaborate effectively within a highly distributed, highly matrixed team.
• Ability to work independently from a remote location.
• Strong work ethic and personal integrity.
• Ability to provide leadership and project management for team projects, prioritizing work assignments, managing to budgets and appropriate deadlines, and applying performance management frameworks for strategic learning in project delivery.
• Proficient in use of Google products, Microsoft Office suite, data processing, and other software.
• Project design and implementation experience.
• Willingness and ability to travel.
• Commitment to ISC’s mission and goals.

To Apply

Please click "Apply on Company Website" below to upload the following documents. Read this information carefully. Adhering to these instructions will ensure that your application is submitted as required for hiring committee review.

• A cover letter is required. Your cover letter should be no more than one (1) page in length.
• A resume is required. Your resume should be no more than three (3) pages in length and should include details about your relevant education, skills and experience as they relate to this role.
• Due to the volume of applications we receive, we will not be returning emails or phone calls inquiring about the status of an application. If the hiring committee selects your application for interview you will be contacted directly by a member of our team.

~ ISC is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to a diverse workplace. Women, persons with disabilities, and people from diverse racial, ethnic and cultural backgrounds are highly encouraged to apply. ~