Land & Carbon Lab Director — WRI
The position can be performed from any WRI country office; the Director can be in the DC office, Hague office, London office, Africa office, Brazil office, or Mexico office are acceptable for location modality. Existing work authorization is required where this position is based. WRI is unable to authorize visa work authorization.
About the Program:
Land & Carbon Lab (LCL) is WRI’s innovation platform for geospatial data and monitoring of the world’s land and its nature-based carbon. Land is a finite resource under growing pressure. We won’t address climate change, biodiversity loss, food insecurity, or water scarcity without radically rethinking how humanity uses land and the forests, rivers, and other natural assets land supports. LCL’s mission is to build and deploy geospatial solutions that help governments, businesses, and communities worldwide achieve sustainability in the land sector. LCL works by connecting those at the frontiers of geospatial innovation with those at the frontlines of land use decision-making. Together, we create actionable monitoring solutions such as Global Forest Watch and transform geospatial data into impact at scale. Land & Carbon Lab is part of WRI’s Land Program, plugging geospatial solutions into WRI’s work on food system transformation, forest and nature protection, and landscape restoration.
Job Highlight:
Reporting to the Global Director of WRI’s Land Program. In this role, you will bring deep knowledge of the “data for impact” space to develop strategies and lead a large team to advance LCL’s mission and support the Land Program’s strategic goals. You will provide thought leadership, lead fundraising, and build partnerships internally and externally to execute the strategy. You will be the primary spokesperson for LCL, communicating compelling narratives about its vision, strategy, and results to diverse audiences. You will be supported by a team of experienced managers within LCL and collaborate with other leaders across WRI’s global programs and country offices.
What you will do:
Strategic Leadership (50%)
- Lead the development and continuous evolution of LCL’s vision, theory of change, and strategy, connecting pioneering innovations in geospatial monitoring to diverse audiences and “data to impact” pathways in the land sector.
- Engage internally, especially across the Land Program and WRI’s country offices, to position LCL’s work to support the Institute’s wider “protect, restore, and produce” strategies and initiatives.
- Communicate compelling narratives about LCL’s vision, strategy, and results to inspire and engage audiences, including WRI staff and leadership, partners, donors, journalists, and other external stakeholders and influencers.
- Strengthen LCL’s brand and strategic positioning as an engine of open geospatial innovation and experienced leader in harnessing geospatial data to drive impact at scale, expanding beyond the strong reputation of our Global Forest Watch platform in forest monitoring. Identify and cultivate partnerships that will help LCL pioneer innovative geospatial solutions and also deploy these solutions for uptake and impact at scale.
Fundraising and Donor Management (25%)
- Raise funds to support and grow a global initiative with an eight-figure annual budget. Oversee grant management and donor reporting; work in partnership with LCL’s donors to deliver results, measure impacts, and tell inspiring stories from our work.
- Cultivate external networks and relationships to drive fundraising; collaborate with other WRI leaders to identify and pursue new fundraising opportunities.
- Develop compelling written proposals, deliver persuasive oral pitches, and support and mentor team members to do the same.
Program and Team Management (25%)
- Oversee 6-8 direct reports and a team of 25+ staff, providing inspiring leadership, mentorship, and management expertise to a growing team and fostering a positive team culture.
- Provide overarching direction for program and project management systems and processes, including budgeting and financial management, to ensure effective execution on strategies.
- Provide “end of the line” accountability and quality control for the initiative’s outputs and results.
- Support managers to solve strategic, operational, and human resource issues as they arise.
What you will need:
- Education: You have a completed a Master’s degree
- Minimum of 15+ years of relevant work experience, including prior experience in leadership and/or management positions.
- Big ideas about how geospatial data and related technologies can be harnessed to catalyze greater sustainability in the land sector.
- Outstanding ability to communicate clearly, passionately, and compellingly to a wide range of audiences, especially high-level decision-makers from government, private sector, and civil society.
- Experience providing vision, developing strategies to realize the vision, and solving complex strategic and tactical problems as they arise.
- Past success raising funding from donors on a large scale.
- Experience motivating large teams and managing large budgets to reach their full potential and achieve results.
- Experience working collaboratively across departments/programs in a large and complex international organization.
- Strong network of relationships relevant to LCL’s work, from potential partners on data and research innovation to potential partners that could help us promote and scale uptake of geospatial data for impact.
- Willingness to travel internationally 4+ times per year
- Adaptability, flexibility and ability to lead in an entrepreneurial, face-paced, and rapidly evolving work environment.
Potential Salary: Salary is commensurate with experience and other compensable factors. WRI offers a competitive remuneration and benefits package.
How to Apply:
Please submit a resume with cover letter by the date of 1 July 2023. You must apply through the WRI Careers portal to be considered.
What we offer:
- Access to the WRI global network with the opportunity to exchange with and learn from passionate colleagues working at the cutting edge of their fields across Asia, Africa, Europe, Latin America and the US.
- Opportunity to provide impact and to develop your career within a mission driven organization with access to varied learning and training opportunities.
- A workplace that focuses diversity, equity, and inclusion in our work.
- The opportunity to join and get involved in different working groups and affinity groups to shape the future of WRI.
- Long-term commitment to hybrid working model with flexible working hours.
About Us:
Founded in 1982, World Resources Institute (WRI) is an independent, nonprofit global research organization that turns big ideas into action at the nexus of environment, economic opportunity, and human well-being. We are working to address seven critical challenges that the world must overcome this decade to secure a sustainable future for people and the planet: climate change, energy, food, forests, water, sustainable cities, and the ocean. WRI has a global staff of over 1,800 people with work spanning 60 countries. We have offices in Africa, Brazil, China, Europe, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Colombia and the United States, as well as a growing presence in other countries and regions.
The foundation of our work is delivering high-quality research, data, maps, and analysis to solve the world’s greatest environment and international development challenges and improve people’s lives. We work with leaders in government, business, and civil society to drive ambitious action and create change on the ground. Equally important, we bring together partners to develop breakthrough ideas and scale-up solutions for far-reaching, enduring impact.
Our mission and values:
WRI’s mission is to move human society to live in ways that protect our Earth’s natural resources and their capacity to provide for current and future generations.
Our values are shared ideals: Integrity, Innovation, Urgency, Independence, Respect.
Our culture:
WRI is committed to advancing gender and social equity for human well-being in our mission and applies this principle to our organizational and programmatic practices. We are committed to providing equal opportunities in employment, we embrace all diversity and encourage women, the LGBTQ+ community, persons with disabilities, Afro-descendants, and Indigenous people to apply. Recognizing our strong commitment to gender equality, WRI has also been awarded EDGE certification.
Human Resources carefully reviews all applications.
To learn more and apply, click here.
