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 1000 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 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.

The advertised position is with the Global Strategic Communications Council (GSCC) – a global network of communications professionals in the field of climate, energy and nature. GSCC is a collaborative project hosted by the ECF.

Through our work, we aim to contribute to a world with a safe and stable climate for current and future generations. We hope to build broad support for just, inclusive, and equitable solutions to the climate crisis.

Our philanthropically funded work focuses on media debate and public discourse at the global level and in major economies across Asia, Europe, Africa, Australia and the Americas. We support a diverse range of partners across sectors and geographies, helping them add their voices, views and insights to the conversation.

Thanks to increasing public pressure, a tightening regulatory environment and clear market demands, there is a growing amount of products, funds and business practices that have been labelled as “sustainable” or “aligned with ESG” (Environmental, Social and Governance).

The implementation of ESG principles has led to a growing number of divestment policies from investors, an increasing cost of capital for fossil fuel projects, new litigation risks and additional regulation to ensure that businesses are taking into account climate-related financial risks when making decisions about their business models. This has attracted intense lobbying and is leading to pushback in the United States against sustainable finance practices.

The Senior Communications Associate will be working as part of the Finance & Regulations team to track developments and intervene on this topic in the United States. This role will be responsible for developing and implementing a communications strategy to tackle the pushback on sustainable investment and responsible business practices (or ESG) in the US.

This role requires previous experience and demonstrable understanding of the political dynamics in the United States (ideally at both federal and state level), as the strategy that this role will develop will be heavily influenced by political developments at state-level. The Senior Communications Associate will be supporting the advocacy and campaigning efforts of a large number of think-tanks, shareholder groups and civil society, by providing strategic advice, communications materials, spokesperson support and proactive media and digital support as required.

We are looking for a strategic thinker that is keen to try different campaigning and communications tactics, seeding new narratives in the media debate and counteracting misinformation on ESG practices and investments.

Key responsibilities

• Develop and implement a communications strategy (across media and digital channels) to support the work of US-based partners on ESG-related topics.
• Manage multi-stakeholder relationships with external partners working across environmental, climate and social issues, to ensure that our strategy fits the needs of other partners and is additional to other organizations’ tactics.
• Act as the point person to coordinate with other teams (especially digital and research) within the network on potential campaign interventions.
• Independently commission research or campaign activities as part of the strategy implementation.
• Undertake proactive media work, e.g. expanding and maintaining media relationships in order to brief journalists, develop leads for investigative and news stories, as well as providing reactive media management.
• Present results of campaign interventions to other networks and organizations to share experience and learnings.

• An insightful communications strategist with experience working in the sustainable business/finance or ESG space, and demonstrable experience of working on US-focused campaigns
• Experience of independently managing workloads, stakeholder relationships, campaign strategies and budgets
• Demonstrated creative leadership, conceptualizing cutting edge projects in the space
• A good knowledge of digital platforms and social media, and experience in using these for strategic communications interventions
• The ability to liaise and negotiate with a wide range of stakeholders, including experts, funders, journalists and civil society
• Strong interest in climate and the environment;
• Excellent command of the English language (both spoken and written);
• The disposition to work generously with colleagues in a high-trust global community of peers;
• The versatile and adaptable skills necessary to flourish in a fast-paced and wide-ranging work environment and work across phone/video conferencing, time zones, Slack, email, Trello, etc.;
• A commitment to an inclusive and empowering approach to facing climate change.

What we offer

• The unique opportunity to work as part of a highly dynamic, international group of individuals 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;
• An employment or consultancy contract (dependent on location) for 12 months, with a possible renewal after one year. This position is ideally full-time but we are open to part-time arrangements.

Location

This position is remote. We are looking for someone within a North America and Europe-friendly timezone, as this role will require coordinating on a daily basis with organisations in both continents.

We may be able to offer co-working spaces in some locations.

You must have the right to work in your location.

Start date

As soon as possible

How to apply

Please upload your

• CV (in English)
• cover letter (in English).

Application Closing Date: 5th April 2023

Please note only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

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

We are committed to diversity and inclusion in our organisation. We strongly encourage candidates from historically disadvantaged or marginalised groups to apply.