Head of Global City Diplomacy and Advocacy

Company: C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group
Location: New York
Posted on: November 6, 2024

Job Description:

Background
C40 is a network of nearly 100 mayors of the world's leading cities, who are working to deliver the urgent action needed right now to confront the climate crisis, and create a future where everyone, everywhere can thrive. Mayors of C40 cities are committed to using a science-based and people-focused approach to help the world limit global heating to 1.5 -C and build healthy, equitable and resilient communities. Through a Global Green New Deal, mayors are working alongside a broad coalition of representatives from labour, business, the youth climate movement and civil society to go further and faster than ever before.
C40's team of 400+ staff is based in offices in London, New York, Johannesburg, Singapore, Delhi, Rio de Janeiro, Copenhagen, Beijing and Paris, and individual staff based across 25+ different locations.
The strategic direction of the organisation is determined by an elected Steering Committee of C40 mayors, which is chaired by Mayor Sadiq Khan of London and Mayor Yvonne Aki-Sawyerr of Freetown. Three-term Mayor of New York City Michael R. Bloomberg serves as President of the C40 Board of Directors, responsible for operational oversight. A regionally diverse management team, led by Executive Director Mark Watts, leads the day-to-day management of C40. C40's three core strategic funders are Bloomberg Philanthropies, the Children's Investment Fund Foundation and Realdania.
Our international staff work with the C40 network under the leadership of city governments to deliver this mission. Using a data-driven approach, our team identifies and promotes the exchange of proven programmes and policies developed by cities; provides world-class research, technical expertise and access to key partners to deliver new programmes and policies with cities; and communicates cities' individual achievements and collective leadership.
Diversity Statement
C40 is committed to supporting and promoting equity and diversity and creating an inclusive working environment for everyone. We believe that when people with different life experiences are involved in decision-making, we deliver better.
We believe having a diverse workforce ensures we connect better with all the different communities and people affected by the climate crisis. This enables us to make better decisions which lead to better outcomes in the work we do through increased creativity, productivity, greater global impact alongside a broader perspective and approach to our work.
We welcome applicants that are diverse in terms of age, gender identity, sexual orientation, physical or mental ability, ethnicity and perspective. Our goal is for C40 to be an environment where everyone, from any background, can flourish and can be themselves whilst contributing to our mission. If you identify as a person with a disability, we work to provide reasonable appropriate measures and any additional support needed to provide an equitable working experience.
C40 promotes a work culture where staff can input to improve equity, diversity and inclusion through staff-led groups and formal forums. We know that creating our ideal working environment is a learning process and we are committed to the ongoing effort.
Department Description
C40's department of Inclusion and Global Leadership aims at increasing C40's collective capacity to support mayors not only to deliver well-designed, science-based inclusive climate action, but to secure and maintain public support for it.
The Department reflects the centrality to C40 of ensuring all climate action is inclusive and socially just; building broad public and political support for urban climate actions, and influencing the global agenda by using the collective voices of C40's mayors and allies to move towards actions that address the climate, inequality, economic and health crisis. Our focus is delivering on C40's two key missions - to help get the world off fossil fuels in order to halt further climate breakdown, and to address the impacts and injustices exacerbated by climate breakdown already unavoidable. The new department is responsible for supporting cities deliver climate action that is fair and inclusive, mainstreaming inclusivity and equity across all C40's work, and for expanding platforms for mayors to win support and offer political leadership in tackling climate breakdown.
Team Description
The position sits within the External Engagement Team which helps increase the power of mayors to deliver and influence climate action by bringing together influential stakeholders and the collective voice of our mayors to influence ambitious climate policies, policymakers, and shift public opinion.
It supports bringing together cross-organisational campaigns on key topics, identifies key advocacy and diplomatic opportunities to win new allies and momentum, and brings together city and external political intelligence to inform strategic opportunities and threats on achieving climate action.
The City Diplomacy and Advocacy programme supports mayors to bring together their collective voice to set a clear global standard of inclusion, socially just and science-based climate leadership, demonstrating through city actions that this level of ambition is not only possible, but happening and improves the lives of people. It creates and utilises global platforms and brings together global actors to leverage influence moments that positively move the dial towards the solutions the world needs, and to create a positive context for more specific requests of decision makers to enable or remove barriers to climate action. It leads C40's global advocacy work in identifying the policies, opportunities, actors, and decision points to be targeted at multilateral or priority country level that could unlock the acceleration of urban climate action globally; and works closely with cross-organisational teams (including regions and mayoral engagement, policy teams, and broader external engagement and communications teams) on designing and delivering joined up strategies to influence.
Position Description
The Head of City Diplomacy and Advocacy is a senior member of the Inclusion and Global Leadership department that directly supports and advises the Director of Advocacy, Campaigns and External Engagement. Specifically, the Head oversees diplomatic engagement of mayors and advocacy opportunities at the global and multilateral level with a focus on priority processes including COP and Urban 20 initiative, as well as supporting C40 leadership including Executive and Managing directors in engagement with UN principles. The role is critical in ensuring coherent messaging and engagement at the highest level with politicians, global public figures and key UN and governmental stakeholders - consistent with C40's broader External Engagement strategy and our multi-faceted stakeholder mobilization and influence tactics.
Primary responsibilities include:

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• Oversee and/or co-lead the delivery of advocacy milestones, events, statements, advocacy outputs, workshops, ensuring robust and professional delivery plans in place, managing budgets where appropriate.
  
• Develop and lead city diplomacy staff to deliver the diplomatic engagement and global advocacy elements of the External Engagement team workplan, proposing clear outcomes & KPIs that support C40's broader organisational campaigns and goals.
  
• Lead the approach to engagement of C40's member city international affairs officials, working closely and in partnership with the regions and mayoral engagement team.
  
• Ensure the development and delivery of C40's City Diplomacy Strategy enables C40 mayors to collectively have a strong and clear voice on the global stage, working with campaigns and communications teams to deliver cut-through on key global climate and equity agendas.
  
• Lead on the identification, development and oversee the delivery of a small number of key advocacy goals and strategies to accelerate delivery of C40's key missions and campaigns, and overcome policy barriers to urban climate action, utilising political intelligence and strong political understanding to identify the strongest opportunities and recommend a clear focus for the work that will maximise impact.
  
• Track international climate politics (with support from the team and networks such as ICPH) and advise on trends, risks, and opportunities and strategic approaches following these developments.
  
• Oversee the multilateral and governmental engagement elements of C40's COP and U20 activities, ensuring they contribute to agreed organisational diplomatic and advocacy priorities.
  
• Support the building of coalitions and alliances, influencing global actors to adopt science-based and equitable climate leadership positions in support of C40 missions.
  
• Directly advise and brief the Director, External Affairs, C40 Executive Director and the Management Team as needed, on advocacy and political strategies relevant to global multilateral and intergovernmental processes & UN agenda and support on internal reporting to senior stakeholders.
  
• Develop and oversee the delivery of advocacy tactics to deliver identified campaign and/or broader political strategy goals.
  
• Work with the Regions and Mayoral Engagement team to design a model for the delivery of regional advocacy and jointly fundraise to expand this work, working closely with the Director of External Engagement.
  
• Support department fundraising strategy.
  
  Management
  
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  • Ensure the integration of city diplomacy and advocacy work into the key missions, campaigns and programmes of C40, working closely with other senior staff cross-organisationally to ensure aligned outcomes and smooth management of priority cross-team projects.
    
  • Manage the City Diplomacy and Advocacy Unit of the External Engagement Team (6 people), including work with other senior staff to agree clear allocation of staff to priority projects, draft work plans, ensure team wellbeing and monitor workloads/resourcing, flagging any issues promptly and suggesting solutions, and ensuring clear objectives and development opportunities for all team members, and managing performance.
    
  • Direct line management of 2 Senior Managers and 1 manager.
    
  • Build a cohesive and collaborative team, where wellbeing, responsibility, and real world impact are the drivers.
    
  • Encourage openness, trust and a supportive and transparent culture where colleagues are supported to deliver their goals and encouraged to collaborate, support one another, take action to ensure wellbeing and inclusively.
    
  • Promote a culture of continuous learning, taking responsibility for ensuring work is evaluated and C40's advocacy approach and ways of working continuously benefit from insights derived from team reflection and project evaluation.
    
  • Ensure the team supports the delivery of C40's overall organisational goals on diversity, inclusion and anti-racism.
    
    Relationships
    
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    • Working with the Chair and Executive Office and wider External Engagement team as necessary to ensure strong management of engagement with strategic, global public and multilateral stakeholder focal points, working with the Chair and Executive Office as necessary eg. UNSG, UNFCCC, COP Presidency, LGMA, G20.
      
    • Establish collaborative working relationships with other city networks, including coordinating closely with GCOM's Head of International Advocacy on C40 and GCOM's joint advocacy work.
      
    • Lead and ensure adequate integration and coordination with relevant teams internally at C40, eg. Regions and Mayoral Engagement, Communications and Events, etc.
      
    • Provide strategic diplomatic advisory to the MMC-C40 Taskforce on Climate Migration.
      
      Person Specification:
      
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      • Significant experience in diplomacy and/or advocacy, international relations, partnerships, with a proven track record of achieving impact, and working with other functions (communications, campaigns) to achieve organisational goals.
        
      • Experience of working with or for cities or local governments, or in a context that provides demonstrable experience of a strong understanding of the needs of mayors in international spaces.
        
      • Significant line management and team building experience, including ideally managing through changing organisational structures.
        
      • Significant experience of creating new partnerships and managing relationships at a senior level, including experience managing participation of high profile international leaders in activities.
        
      • Strong diplomatic and constructive coalition-building skills.
        
      • Strong communication skills, including the ability to coordinate well and find alignment across teams both internally and externally, including working with local and coalition partners.
        
      • Strong problem-solving, creative interpersonal and strategic thinking capabilities coupled with an outcome, delivery-oriented approach.
        
      • Experience of working in urban sustainability, climate change or a related field, preferably in a municipal or international context, with a solid understanding of climate change policy and politics at the global, national and local levels.
        
      • Be passionately committed to the mission and objectives of C40, in particular to environmental and social justice, and to the urgent delivery of inclusive and science-based urban climate action, and to the difference C40 and mayors can make to avoiding climate breakdown.
        
      • Experience in planning and leading high profile initiatives, balancing a self-starting attitude with timely check-ins and assessments.
        
      • Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
        
      • International experience, particularly working across different cultures, languages and time zones.
        
      • Demonstrable experience achieving positive change in municipal government, international agencies, and/or NGO/non-profit sector.
        
      • Desirable to have experience working for/with cities or the urban space.
        
      • Fluency in English and language skills in one or more languages from C40 cities.
        
      • Be willing and able to travel internationally as needed - around 4 times a year.
        
        Other Requirements:
        Applicants must already have the right to work in the listed locations. Travel will be required as part of the role.
        Reporting To: Programme Director, Campaigns
        Term: Indefinite
        Location: Johannesburg, London, New York
        Salary: (Grade 2) Johannesburg ZAR 1,358,208, London GBP -75,419, New York USD 125,419 (gross per annum)
        Application Process:
        Closing date for applications is Friday 15th November at 5pm GMT. C40 reserves the right to close this job opening before the closing date for applications so please do submit applications early.
        To learn more about the work of C40 and our cities, please visit , follow us on Twitter @c40cities and like us on Facebook at .
        For any queries about the role, please contact . Kindly note that this email address is for recruitment related queries only. We are unable to accept CVs and cover letters sent to this inbox. We can only accept and process applications that are submitted via our website.
        C40 is an equal opportunities employer.
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Keywords: C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group, Hartford , Head of Global City Diplomacy and Advocacy, Other , New York, Connecticut