Lead Expert, Centre of Excellence on Sustainable Post Harvest Management and Cold Chain (Haryana, India)

Result of Service

• Strategic coordination, project management, partnerships engagement, fundraising, communications, training and related efforts by the Lead Expert in coordination with the project team offers the technical assistance needed for successful building and opening of CoE core facilities and training for a well-functioning site that accelerates uptake of sustainable cold chain solutions in-market.

Work Location

home based (Haryana, India)

Expected duration

12 months, renewable

Duties and Responsibilities

Centres of Excellence (CoE) are being established to lead the way in the development and roll-out of affordable, sustainable, resilient and equitable on- and off-grid cooling and cold-chain solutions for food and health sectors in Africa. The first model addressing needs in Africa has been developed by the Governments of Rwanda and the United Kingdom; the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP); the UK’s Centre for Sustainable Cooling bringing together a consortium of leading UK and international universities, and the University of Rwanda with a range of further partners. CoE funding and support to date from the UK Department for Environment exceeds $25M. See https://cleancooling.org/ for further details. The project team is now establishing the Centre of Excellence on Sustainable Crop Post Harvest Management and Cold Chain (CoE-SPMCC) in Panchkula, Haryana, India on the same model and adapted for local needs. The Government of Haryana recently approved the Detailed Project Plan and budgeted 13.7 million USD of funding and 6 hectares of land for key facilities, and it is in process of hiring dedicated staff. The purpose of the CoE-SPMCC is to: • Conduct state-of-the-art applied research across key pillars of sustainable, equitable and resilient cold-chain and post-harvest management for food. • Provide capacity building, upskilling, and training for farmer producer organizations (see http://sfacindia.com/FPOS.aspx/co-op) and mobilisers and other supply chain stakeholders including, among others, agri-startups and entrepreneurs, equipment technicians and researchers. • Develop an innovation and business hub and technology testing/demonstration centre. • Connect indigenous, UK and wider experts, investors, agri-food businesses, farmer cooperatives, and energy or logistics providers, to support the delivery of affordable, resilient, low emission cold-chain systems in India in line with socio-economic and climate targets/national objectives. Working in collaboration with partners, a Lead Expert in Haryana is needed to support the development and delivery of the CoE-SPMCC.

Qualifications/special skills

University degree (Masters Degree required; PhD preferred) in energy, environment, renewable energy, engineering, natural/ physical science, public policy, economics. At least 10 years of full-time professional experience on projects in India and experience working on international policies and programmes, including energy and climate policies. Previous experience on sustainable cooling or cold chain technologies is an asset. At least 10 years of prior experience working with the public sector to support analyses, negotiations and setting policy targets with implementation thereafter. Past experience working in an international setup preferred. Self-starter who can work independently whilst thriving in an international research team, with a ‘can do’ attitude with ability to take on new tasks and drive to a successful conclusion. Experience working in conservation or international development, with international agencies, and with R&D are assets. Strong planning and organizational skills; ability to handle planning and budgeting of multiple concurrent projects/activities. Proven problem solving and management/leadership skills, including ability to provide high quality, relevant and timely outputs. • Excellent written and oral communications skills on technical and policy aspects of energy and climate policies and programmes, as well as proficient computer skills and use of relevant software and applications.

Languages

Fluency in spoken and written English is required, and fluency in spoken and written Haryanvi or Hindi are an asset.

Additional Information

Not available.

No Fee

THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.

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