The position is located in the Law Division, at the Nairobi duty station. The Director will report to the Executive Director through the Deputy Executive Director and within delegated authority the Director will be responsible for the following:
Responsibilities
Advance international environmental governance and international environmental law, in line with the UNEP's Medium Term Strategy and subsequent Programme of Work, by ensuring that the Division
provides a suite of services that include providing technical and substantive support to intergovernmental processes, supporting countries in achieving commitments under multilateral environmental agreements, as appropriate, enhancing of national and regional capacities, as well as transparency and accountability in judiciaries, legislatures, and policy making institutions, advocating for environmental rights and combating of environmental crime, and overall safeguarding of the environment by building and promoting a body of knowledge on environmental governance and law;.
Catalyze action as part of UNEP's response measures that advance the implementation of the environmental dimension of sustainable development, and more broadly, the Sustainable Development Goals and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable development, especially in the areas of international environmental law and environmental governance;
Strengthen the role of the Division in providing a critical coordinating and bridging function between UNEP and UNEP-administered multilateral environmental agreements, especially in identifying further synergies and collaboration as well as enhance cooperation with all other relevant MEAs.
Oversee and manage the administration of the Division, including on issues related to human resources, budget financial resources, other operational and administrative matters, as well as management of overall project portfolio, and supervise the day-to-day management and administration of the Division.
Fostering an inclusive workplace, and building engagement and motivation among divisional staff towards meeting the organization vision and its goals;
Perform other related duties as required.
Competencies
PROFESSIONALISM: Knowledge of the environment and development field in general and in particular in the area of environmental governance and law and including international environmental conventions and protocols; proven ability to produce reports and papers on technical issues; ability to review and edit the work of others.
LEADERSHIP: Serves as a role model that other people want to follow: empowers others to translate vision into results; is proactive in developing strategies to accomplish objectives; establishes and maintains relationships with a broad range of people to understand needs and gain support; anticipates and resolves conflicts by pursuing mutually agreeable solutions; drives for change and improvements; does not accept the status quo; shows the courage to take unpopular stands. Provides leadership and takes responsibility for incorporating gender perspectives and ensuring the equal participation of women and men in all areas of work; demonstrates knowledge of strategies and commitment to the goal of gender balance in staffing.
JUDGEMENT AND DECISION-MAKING: Identifies the key issues in a complex situation, and comes to the heart of the problem quickly; gathers relevant information before making a decision; considers positive and negative impacts of decisions prior to making them; takes decisions with an eye to the impact on others and on the Organization; proposes a course of action or makes a recommendation based on all available information; checks assumptions against facts; determines the actions proposed will satisfy the expressed and underlying needs for the decision; makes tough decisions when necessary.
ACCOUNTABILITY: Takes ownership of all responsibilities and honours commitments; delivers outputs for which one has responsibility within prescribed time, cost and quality standards; operates in compliance with organizational regulations and rules; supports subordinates, provides oversight and takes responsibility for delegated assignments; takes personal responsibility for his/her own shortcomings and those of the work unit, where applicable.
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 audience; demonstrates openness in sharing information and keeping people informed.
Education
Advanced University Degree (Master's Degree or equivalent) in one or more of the following disciplines: Social sciences, Natural sciences, Business administration or Management finance, International Law, International environmental law, Natural resources management law, Economics, Environmental management or other relevant field is required. A first university degree with a combination of two additional years of professional and academic qualifications may be accepted in lieu of the advanced degree.
Work Experience
Over 15 years of progressively responsible experience in development and implementation of international law with emphasis on international and national environmental law or related area is required.
Experience in international environmental governance processes is required.
Proven management and leadership skills including on resource mobilization funding and human resources management are required.
At least five years of experience at the international level are desirable.
Proven knowledge and experience of institutional legal matters related to managing legal processes of international organizations is desirable.
Languages
English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For this position fluency in oral and written English is required. A good working knowledge of any other UN language is desirable.
Assessment
Evaluation of qualified candidates for this position may include a substantive assessment which will be followed by a competency- based interview.
Special Notice
This position is open for recruitment for an initial period of one year and may be subject to extension. Staff members are subject to the authority of the Secretary-General and to assignment by him or her. In this context, all staff are expected to move periodically to new functions in their careers in accordance with established rules and procedures.
