Vacancies
Vacancies
Tool Development Expert (Infrastructure, Transport and Public Services)

Issue Date | 27 Jul 2016 | Closing Date | 01 Aug 2016 |
Grade | Consultant | Post Duration | |
Duty Station | Barcelona (Spain) | Organizational Unit |
Fast growing cities and urban areas of the world are engines of growth and wealth accumulation. This growth can have positive social, cultural and educational impacts. On the other hand, evidence demonstrates that fast economic growth, combined with fast population expansion in urban areas, also increases disaster vulnerability and exposure. The level of urbanization is far higher in the developed world; however, the annual ‘urbanization rate’ is much faster in the developing world.
VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT
Issued on 14 July 2016
Project: |
Making cities sustainable and resilient |
Duty station of assignment: |
Barcelona (Spain) |
Functional Title: |
Tool Development Expert (Infrastructure, Transport and Public Services) |
Contract type: |
Individual Contract (Consultancy Assignment) |
Duration: |
Six months (with possibility of extension) |
Closing date for applications: |
1 August 2016 |
BACKGROUND
Fast growing cities and urban areas of the world are engines of growth and wealth accumulation. This growth can have positive social, cultural and educational impacts. On the other hand, evidence demonstrates that fast economic growth, combined with fast population expansion in urban areas, also increases disaster vulnerability and exposure. The level of urbanization is far higher in the developed world; however, the annual ‘urbanization rate’ is much faster in the developing world. The primary urban agglomerations with the highest concentrations of people and economic activity mostly overlap with the areas of extreme or high risk related to disasters such as coastal areas, along rivers and in flood plains. This joint initiative with UNISDR, UN-Habitat and the European Commission aims at improving understanding of, and capacity to, address disaster risk at the local level in crisis-prone cities. UN-Habitat will focus on supporting local capacities from crisis-prone cities, and humanitarian partners, in measuring their resilience status and have an action plan in order to build resilience.
The action builds on the achievements of the Hyogo Framework for Action – Building the Resilience of Nations 2005-2015, and paves the way toward the implementation of the Sendai Framework for DRR 2015-2030 at the local level. The Action will also contribute to the European Commission’s Action Plan for Resilience in Crisis Prone Countries 2013-2020 and The EU Approach to Resilience: Learning from Food Security Crises.
The project will work with local government institutions, to plan, coordinate, implement and support the various outlined activities. The primary and most direct beneficiaries will be local stakeholders, city authorities and civil society. Women, children and other at risk groups, as local level stakeholders, often disproportionately affected by crises situations, will be engaged and receive additional attention.
MAIN OBJECTIVE
The overall objective of this project is to build more sustainable and resilient cities, by strengthening the capacity of key public, private and civil society stakeholders to measure, plan and act in building resilience to ensure that public and private investments are risk-informed and that early interventions in crisis-prone cities are linked to longer-term development goals. This joint initiative aims at improving local government and stakeholder understanding of, and capacity for, developing and implementing resilience action plans.
The expected results are:
- Increased commitments to build local-level resilience,
- Local Resilience and investments measured,
- Key issues and challenges identified in linking early interventions in crisis-prone cities to long-term sustainable development inputs,
- Capacity is built in cities and local governments to develop and implement integrated local climate and disaster resilience action plans and
- Crisis-prone cities have enhanced capacity to develop and implement plans to increase their resiliency.
UN-Habitat will work in coordination with the Commission and EU Delegations in each city to ensure consistency with the EC programming documents and complementarity between thematic and geographic actions; this will also ensure complementarities of activities funded by other programmes and initiatives undertaken by other partners operating at the local level and globally.
MAIN TASKS OF THE ASSIGNMENT
Under the direct supervision of the Chief Technical Advisor, the candidate will provide substantive professional support to the Programme and will undertake the following tasks:
- Support the creation and development of diagnostic tools; including the City Resilience Profiling Tool (CRPT) and Resilience Action Plan (RAP);
- Assist in all phases for the pilot implementation of the City Resilience Profiling Tool (CRPT) including the preparation of the Resilience Action Plan based on the CRPT findings;
- Support collection of data, process information and analysis of the results from the application of the CRPP methodology including tools and guidelines in pilot Cities with a specific focus on the resilience of infrastructure, transportation and public services;
- Assist the CRPP Team in facilitating cooperation and communications with pilot Cities and Partner Organizations of the Programme; and by providing support to out-posted Urban Resilience Officers;
- Assist in the research, review, analysis, and compilation of effective initiatives and best practices on building urban resilience, to be used by the Programme;
- Undertake any other tasks for the Programme, which are in line with the experience of the consultant.
COMPETENCIES
Professional: Knowledge and understanding of theories, concepts and approaches relevant to donor relations, public-private partnerships and private sector fundraising. Ability to identify issues, analyze and participate in the resolution of issues/problems. Ability to conduct data collection using various methods. Conceptual, analytical and evaluative skills to conduct independent research and the use of a variety of research sources. Ability to organize seminars, consultations, training workshops and special events. Ability to apply judgment in the context of assignments given, plan own work and manage conflicting priorities. Shows pride in work and in achievements. Demonstrates professional competence and mastery of subject matter. Is conscientious and efficient in meeting commitments, observing deadlines and achieving results.
Communication: Speaks and writes clearly and effectively. Listens to others, correctly interprets messages from others and responds appropriately. Asks questions to clarify, and exhibits interest in having two-way communication. Tailors language, tone, style and format to match the audience. Demonstrates openness in sharing information and keeping people informed.
Planning and Organizing: Develops clear goals that are consistent with agreed strategies. Identifies priority activities and assignments; adjusts priorities as required. Allocates appropriate amount of time and resources for completing work. Foresees risks and allows for contingencies when planning. Monitors and adjusts plans and actions as necessary. Uses time efficiently.
Client Orientation: Considers all those to whom services are provided to be “clients ” and seeks to see things from clients’ point of view. Establishes and maintains productive partnerships with clients by gaining their trust and respect. Identifies clients’ needs and matches them to appropriate solutions. Monitors ongoing developments inside and outside the clients’ environment to keep informed and anticipate problems. Keeps clients informed of progress or setbacks in projects. Meets timeline for delivery of products or services to client.
EDUCATION
Advanced university degree (Master’s degree) in Urban Management, Civil Engineering, or another field deemed relevant to the subject areas covered by the Programme. A first-level university degree in combination with qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.
WORK EXPERIENCE
A minimum of 2 years of experience in
- Urban planning, civil engineering, environmental engineering and/or sustainable urban development, with relevant experiences in developing countries. Part of the experience should be directly related to practical work on urban resilience and disaster risk reduction.
- Experience in project management, risk assessment and/or research in related fields will be considered an asset.
- Ability to work with minimal supervision and with good sense of initiative to keep the supervisor regularly informed of progress.
LANGUAGE SKILLS
- Proficiency in English (both oral and written) is required..
- Fluency in French and/or Spanish would be an additional asset.
SPECIAL CONSIDERATIONS:
The candidate should be:
- Familiar with, and committed to the goals of UN-Habitat
- Willing to take responsibility, act professionally at all times, and make sure tasks are fully completed
- Able to work under pressure in diverse environments with minimum supervision
- Sensitive to gender issues and issues of concern to vulnerable groups
- Able to meet deadlines for reporting and all project work
- Express enthusiasm and willingness to continue learning new skills and share experiences with other members of the team
HOW TO APPLY Interested candidates must submit an email quoting the post title and the duty station to the following email address: office@cityresilience.org
http://mirror.unhabitat.org/content.asp?typeid=24&catid=435&id=3867 Please be advised that since April 15th 2010, applicants for consultancies must be part of the UN-Habitat e-Roster in order for their application to be considered. You can reach the e-Roster through the following link: http://e-roster.unhabitat.org All applications should be submitted to: Deadline for applications: 1 August 2016 UN-Habitat does not charge a fee at any stage of the recruitment process. If you have any questions concerning persons or companies claiming to be recruiting on behalf of these offices and requesting the payment of a fee, please contact: recruitment@unon.org |