Program Officer, Climate Action

Key Responsibilities

The Program Officer’s specific areas of responsibility include, but are not limited to:

Organizational Leadership

• Support the implementation of a grantmaking strategy for climate change mitigation, leveraging the Foundation’s historic investments in innovation, a growing network of partners with deep climate expertise, and unprecedented levels of domestic public investment in climate action.
• Provide insight and expertise to enable the growth and expansion of the Climate Action Fund portfolio in the US, India, Latin America, and the African continent with an emphasis on innovative approaches, risk tolerance, and urgency.
• Serve as a liaison with outside climate change experts and decision-makers.
• Represent the Foundation’s interests, affirm its reputation, and enhance its credibility among current and potential partners in the philanthropic and grantee communities, and within other sectors contributing to climate change research and action.

Portfolio Management

• Implement, expand, help manage, and monitor a $10M annual portfolio of grants, programs, contracts, and Program-Related Investments (PRIs).
• Partner with the Director to target emerging opportunities and adapt the Fund strategy to a rapidly changing climate context in the US and abroad.
• Collaborate with fellow program officers in other program areas to identify and develop emerging and potential opportunities for portfolio alignment, integration, and mutual program advancement.
• Help grantees access networks, funding, data, and other resources and opportunities to enhance their relevant capacities and capabilities, including their ability to provide quantitative and qualitative data relevant to the Foundation’s theory of change and impact.

Foundation Culture and Performance

• Participate in the Foundation’s evaluation and communication initiatives; engage with Foundation colleagues and partners to develop, understand, and communicate the impact of its collective portfolio.
• Contribute to strategic planning and other Foundation-wide initiatives, including efforts to make the Foundation increasingly accountable to its values of diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice.
• Contribute to the Foundation’s culture of ‘inquiry, learning, and collaboration’ to ensure prompt, accurate, and meaningful information is available to others in the organization.
• Participate in refining and implementing operational processes especially as they relate to grant making and management.

Ideal Candidate

The ideal candidate for the Program Officer role will be a highly skilled and innovative professional with advanced experience in building and executing complex, collaborative climate programs. They will bring a strong enthusiasm for the role of innovation, justice, and risk in addressing climate change. This individual will be adept at evaluating grant-making opportunities with a strong technical lens while also being comfortable seeking expert feedback when necessary. They will be able to see patterns and opportunities in a wide array of subject areas, examine the linkages among seemingly disparate priorities, and move from one subject area to another with ease. The ideal candidate will possess the ability to manage multiple tasks with precision, maintain composure in high-pressure situations, and work effectively with a wide range of stakeholders, bringing a culturally sensitive and inclusive approach to their work.

In addition to their programmatic expertise, the candidate will demonstrate advanced skills in critical analysis and relationship management. They will excel in communicating complex ideas to diverse audiences, both in written and verbal formats, and will be capable of translating technical and complex reports into actionable strategies. Strong strategic leadership skills are essential, as is the ability to effectively manage time and meet deadlines. The ideal candidate will exhibit professionalism, courtesy, and a conscientious attitude when representing the Foundation while fostering collaborative relationships within the team and with external partners.

Qualifications

With the understanding that no person will offer every desired skill and characteristic outlined below, compelling candidates will offer much of the following:

• 10+ years of professional experience with one or more complex organizations, networks, or systems
• 5+ years of recent experience working on climate-related issues, including two or more of the following: mitigation strategies, climate finance, Indigenous knowledge, resilience, climate philanthropy, climate diplomacy, methane abatement, renewable energy, climate science, movement building, and fossil fuel phaseout
• A record of public speaking at invited engagements and/or a record of publication (print or online) in areas of relevant expertise
• Conversant with issues, concerns, and perspectives of the climate justice movement
• Strong interpersonal skills to effectively build and maintain equitable, trusting funding relationships with community-based, state, regional, national, and international organizations, as well as other foundations.