About Tara

Tara is a new philanthropic initiative in Asia. Tara’s vision is a just and thriving Asia powered by renewable energy. Our mission is to support a diverse group of partners to accelerate Asia’s energy transformation. Tara funds think tanks, civil society, research organizations and other non-state actors, and our mandate includes Southeast Asia, East Asia excluding China, and South Asia excluding India. Tara has a team of 15 people working across the region, including country leads in most of our key focus countries.

Tara is currently hosted at the European Climate Foundation, but with a mandate to localise into an independent regranting foundation in the future, with the strong backing of the ECF and other philanthropic foundations.

The European Climate Foundation (ECF) is a major philanthropic initiative working to help tackle the climate crisis by fostering the development of a net-zero emission society at the national, European and global level.

We support over 300 partner organisations to carry out activities that drive urgent and ambitious policy in support of the objectives of the Paris Agreement, contribute to the public debate on climate action and help deliver a socially responsible transition to a net-zero economy and sustainable society in Europe and around the world. The ECF is brings together diverse perspectives and backgrounds to find the best innovative solutions to tackle climate change. We are focusing on engaging and hiring great people from a wide diversity of backgrounds to strengthen the cause. If you share our values of respect, innovation, and collaboration, join us.

About the role

As the Japan Senior Programme Officer, you will work closely with the Japan Country Director to accelerate the Japan energy transition programme and expand its work across the country and the region by supporting think tanks, civil society organisations and other stakeholders.

Key responsibilities

Reporting to the Japan Country Director, the Japan Senior Programme Officer will have the following responsibilities:

• Support the Japan Country Director in continuing to build out the Japan country strategy and network of partners working within and outside of Japan to accelerate Japan’s energy transformation
• Create and implement network strengthening and organisational development strategies with Tara partners to support building their capacity and contribute to the overall strengthening of civil society in Japan
• Manage a portfolio of grants across the country to achieve the goals of the Japan country strategy and seek out new grantees and partners as necessary
• Guide and advise grantees, partners, and prospective partners on developing strategies and grant proposals
• Build and maintain a strong network across multiple in-country and regional stakeholders
• Assist with monitoring and evaluation of the program, reporting to funders and maintaining impact measurements
• Monitor Japan’s energy policy and the economic environment and provide regular updates to Tara team members and the funder community.

Experience and competencies

The ideal candidate will have more than 8 years of experience in environmental/social non-profit sector and/or in private sector focusing on sustainability. We are looking for a candidate who is excited at the prospect of working for a dynamic and fast-growing organisation with a mission to solve the climate crisis.

Additionally, you have:

• Strong motivation and understanding to address the climate crisis
• Demonstrated communication and networking skills that enable effective collaboration with a diverse group of partners
• Strong critical and strategic thinking skills
• Understanding of the political, economic and cultural context in Japan
• Demonstrated understanding of the role of non-profit organisations and mechanisms to create change in Japan
• Native level Japanese language skills and professional English language skills
• Strong administrative and computer skills (Excel, PowerPoint, Word)
• Used to working flexibly at a fast pace in remote settings across time-zones

What we can offer you

• The unique opportunity to work as part of a highly dynamic, international team who combine their passion to make a difference with a rigorous and results-oriented approach to work.
• A flexible work environment and a space to develop and challenge yourself.
• Competitive compensation commensurate with experience and country benchmarks.
• Initial one-year contract with strong possibility for renewal.

Location

Japan-The candidate must have a legal permit to reside and work in the country.

Start date

As soon as possible

How to apply

Please upload below:

1. CV
2. short cover letter expressing your motivation for this role
3. both in English
4. Apply before October 31

All applications will be treated confidentially. We will store your information in our internal database unless you specifically request otherwise.