Senior Programme Associate (Outreach & Engagement), Maharashtra- Just Energy Transition

JT/NCR-04-1/25

Role Summary

The International Forum for Environment, Sustainability & Technology (iFOREST), is looking for an experienced and dynamic professional to to support the organization’s engagement and outreach activities in Maharashtra.

The candidate will play a critical role in developing and implementing engagement and outreach strategies that enhance the organization’s stakeholder engagement and enhance public presence. This role involves building strong relationships with key stakeholders, including Government departments and agencies, industry, media, and civil society organizations. Thus, a successful applicant must have a proven aptitude for stakeholder engagement, as well as excellent verbal and written communication skills. Knowledge and engagement on climate change and energy transition issues are highly desirable to support informed engagement.

Job Location: The position will be based in Mumbai/Pune

About iFOREST and Engagement on Just Energy Transition in Maharashtra

iFOREST is an independent non-profit research and innovation organization. Our work is guided by a commitment to sustainability and equity, ensuring that our solutions are socially just and environmentally responsible. The core foundation of our work is rooted in regional priorities to accelerate environmental actions at the sub-national level and to improve national policies and plans to support it. At our core, we are a regional organization with a national focus and an international reach.

Maharashtra is a core state of our engagement on areas of just energy transition, climate change and air pollution. The organization is engaging formally (through MoUs) with the state government to provide the necessary knowledge and technical supporting on these issues. On just energy transition, the work focuses on policies, planning, finances and designing implementations measures to scale up change.

The Role

The engagement lead will be responsible for the complete set of activities for engagement with a wide range of stakeholders, including the government, industry, civil society organisations and other relevant expert groups. This would entail designing, liaisoning /organizing high-level one-on-one meetings, roundtables, workshops, conferences/major meetings. In addition, she/he will also be required to support the conceptualization and execution of communication strategy.

Specific tasks to be undertaken by the engagement and outreach lead would include:

• Support stakeholder engagement & relationship management:
  • Develop and maintain a comprehensive database of external stakeholders.
  • Nurture relationships and act as a primary point of contact for engagement, coordination outreach activities, responding to inquiries, and facilitating connections between internal teams and external partners.
• Outreach strategy & execution:
  • Assist in designing and implementing outreach strategies to amplify the impact of the organization’s research, publications, and events.
  • Support the development of stakeholder mapping and engagement plans for priority areas of research.
• Planning and coordinating high-level, high-visibility events/meetings:
  • Take the lead in planning and execution of events such as high-level roundtables, conferences, workshops, etc.
  • Speaker coordination.
  • Coordinate logistics for events, including venue management.
  • Ensure strategic alignment of event content with organizational objectives and target audiences.
• Content creation & communication:
  • Assist in the preparation of outreach materials, including presentations, briefing notes, and summaries.
  • Collaborate with the central communications team to produce content for websites, social media, and other public platforms.
• Media relations & public engagement:
  • Identify opportunities for media engagement to promote research findings and organizational initiatives.
  • Draft press releases, media advisories, and op-eds, and liaise with journalists to secure coverage.
  • Manage social media campaigns, working closely with the communications team to broaden the organization’s digital footprint.

Required Qualification & Work Experience

Primary qualification: Master’s degree from a reputed institution in Public Policy, Environmental Policy, Environmental Management, Economics, Social Sciences, Climate Change and Sustainability, and other related disciplines.

A minimum of 6 -8 years of work experience in reputed organizations is required.

Competencies & Responsibilities

The successful candidate should have the following competencies:

• Extrovert personality with excellent communication skills.
• Very good writing and editing skills.
• Experience in planning and executing events, with a track record of managing multiple projects simultaneously.
• Excellent interpersonal skills and the ability to build relationships with a wide range of stakeholders.
• Knowledge of relevant policy areas (energy transition energy, climate change, environment etc.) is desirable.
• Detail-oriented approach with strong organizational skills.
• Ability to work collaboratively in a team environment.
• Adaptability and willingness to take on new challenges.
• Willingness to travel as per requirement.

Why Choose iFOREST

• Purpose-driven work: Contributing from sub-nation to national and global goals.
• Professional development: In areas and sectors that are contemporary and pressing.
• Compensation: We offer a salary that is not only competitive but recognizes and rewards your commitment and talent.
• Inclusive Culture: Benefit from a supportive and diverse work environment.

Remuneration

We offer highly competitive salaries in a think tank space, and reward performance through annual appraisals. The final designation of a successful candidate will be based on qualifications and experience.

Application deadline & instructions

We prefer the candidate to submit an online application at https://iforest.global/careers/. In case of any difficulty, you may also send your application to contact@iforest.global.

Immediate opening. Position open until filled.