International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED)

Natural Resources Group (NRG)

Job Description

Job title:Senior Researcher

Responsible to:Principal Researcher, Team Leader Legal Tools, Natural Resources Group

Main purpose:To contribute to IIED’s work on legal tools to strengthen local rights to natural resources and ensure that natural resource investments promote sustainable development

Main contacts:Internal: NRG colleagues; researchers in other Groups working on investment, rights and legal empowerment;other members of IIED staff

External:Partners in low and middle-income countries, government agencies, donors, consultants and members of the general public

Salary:£41,912–£46,169 per annum depending on experience (up to £50,746 for exceptional candidates), plus benefits

Contract:Full time (35 hours per week), permanent

Location:London or Edinburgh, UK

Overview

The International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) is a policy research organisation that provides expertise and leadership in researching and achieving sustainable development at local, national, regional and global levels. In alliance with others, we are helping to tackle the biggest issues of our times – from climate change and cities to the pressures on natural resources and the forces shaping global markets. With 106 members of staff working with associates and partners around the world, IIED has been at the forefront of policy-making in sustainable development for over 40 years.

The Natural Resources Group seeks to promote sustainable governance of natural resources by building capacity and promoting informed decision-making in communities in Africa, Asia and Latin America. Our priority is on local control and management of natural resources and other ecosystem services and on the necessary changes needed in national and international government to make this happen. The NRG consists of 6 teams inForestry, Agroecology, Biodiversity and Conservation, China Strategy, Water and Infrastructure, and Legal Tools, and is made up of the following members:

  • James Mayers, Group Head
  • Barbara Adolph, Principal Researcher – Team Leader, Agroecology
  • Nicole Armitage, Group Senior Coordinator
  • Lila Buckley, Senior Researcher – Team Leader, China
  • Lorenzo Cotula, Principal Researcher – Team Leader, Legal Tools*
  • Seth Cook – Senior Researcher, Agroecology and China
  • Geraldine Galvaing, Coordinator, Agroecology
  • Alessandra Giuliani, Researcher, Biodiversity
  • Marie Jaecky, Coordinator and Edinburgh Office Manager
  • Duncan Macqueen, Principal Researcher, Forests
  • Simon Milledge, Principal Researcher – Team Leader, Forests
  • Elaine Morrison, Researcher, Forests
  • Isilda Nhantumbo, Senior Researcher , Forests
  • Emily Polack, Researcher, Legal Tools
  • Christele Riou, Group Senior Coordinator
  • Dilys Roe, Principal Researcher – Team Leader, Biodiversity
  • Fiona Roberts, Senior Coordinator, Biodiversity
  • Leianne Rolington, Coordinator, Forests
  • Laura Silici, Researcher, Agroecology
  • Jamie Skinner, Principal Researcher – Team Leader, Water
  • Krystyna Swiderska, Principal Researcher, Agroecology
  • Khanh Tran-Thanh, Group Senior Coordinator
  • Hannah Reid – Consultant researcher (leads IIED’s work on biodiversity and climate change, based overseas)
  • Vacancy, Senior Researcher, Legal Tools

*The postholder’s line manager. Colleagues in bold are those postholder will be working most closely with.

Background

Pressures on land and natural resources are increasing in many low and middle-income countries – including as a result of large-scale investments in plantation agriculture (‘land grabbing’). As pressures increase, disadvantaged groups are losing out. Legal frameworks are often unfavourable to rural people, and progressive laws are difficult to implement.

But in many parts of the world, citizens and civil society groups are pioneering new ways to use legal tools to secure local land rights, help farmers get a better deal from investment, and promote public accountability. This includes, for example, innovative ways to scrutinise international investment treaties, contracts and arbitration, collective land registration and grassroots-level formalisation of land transactions, strategic use of public interest litigation, mobilisation of international human rights bodies, and various approaches for helping people exercise their rights (e.g. legal literacy trainings, paralegal programmes, radio broadcasts, local deliberation tools). These legal tools are often used as part of wider empowerment strategies to tackle imbalanced power relations.

Some governments are also stepping up efforts to get legal frameworks right and ensure they are duly implemented, for instance through introducing legislation that protects ‘customary’ land rights even if not formally registered,rethinking approaches to investment treaties and contracts, and creating strategic partnerships for capacity support in these areas.There is also growing momentum for a ‘rights’ agenda within parts of the private sector.

As natural resource investments increase pressures on land and natural resources, IIED’s Legal Tools Team works to develop and disseminate new ways to use legal tools to increase local control over resources, ensure that investments contribute to sustainable development, andimprove public accountability in investment processes. The Team’s work:

  • Draws on law, participatory approaches and the social sciences to address multiple legal arenas relevant to natural resource investments – from securing local land rights to interrogating investment contracts and treaties;
  • Combines high-impact research on ‘land grabbing’, investment law and accountability levers with capacity support and policy advocacy work at local to international levels;
  • Involves collaboration with an extensive network of partners in Africa and Asia, and feeds into international policy processes affecting natural resource investments in low and middle-income countries.

As part of its emerging Strategy 2014-19, IIED is now developing a bold ‘Rights Plus Action’ initiative that will draw on work across all four IIED Groups (Natural Resources, Human Settlements, Climate Change and Sustainable Markets) to promote realisation of rights in key change arenas, including securing land rights and rethinking legal frameworks regulating natural resource investments.

The postholder will contribute to advancing and further developing the work of theLegal Tools Team. The postholder will also support the development and implementation of IIED’s emerging Rights Plus Action initiative. S/he will be expected to develop new ideas and build new projects and initiatives over time that further enhance this portfolio of work.

Key responsibilities

The primary function of the post is to contribute to thedevelopment of IIED’s work on legal tools to strengthen local rights to natural resources and ensure that natural resource investments promote sustainable development , in close collaboration with other members of the Legal Tools Team.

Research & Project Management

  • Lead the development and implementation of policy-oriented research projects on investment law, land rights and legal empowerment.
  • Contribute to the publication of research outputs particularly through preparation and/or editing of research reports, workshop reports and briefing notes, as well as providing inputs and feedback on other forms of communication.
  • Develop and undertake lesson sharing, capacity building, policy advocacy and advisoryactivities on the topics above, and provide backstopping to the capacity-building work of partners.
  • Organiseand participate in seminars and workshops on issues of policy and practice, project development, dissemination of research findings and capacity strengthening.
  • Take full responsibility for managing work plans and budgets, making decisions on allocation of project funds, monitoring expenditure and making adjustments to work plans where expenditure diverges from amounts estimated. Ensure donor requirements are met and report to donors in connection with all of the above.
  • Represent the Legal Tools Team in external fora as required, and liaise with government, private agencies and NGOs.

Fundraising

  • Within the first year of appointment, prepare concept notes, funding proposals and grant applications, covering more than the post-holder’s salary, with only limited assistance from senior staff.
  • Contribute to the wider fundraising strategy of the Legal Tools Team, including through supporting the preparation of team-level annual work plans and budgets.

Strategising and internal processes

  • Play an active role in internal planning, review and operational activities that advance the strategic objectives of IIED, the Natural Resources Group and the Legal Tools Team, including sitting on working groups and committees, commenting on the research proposals and papers of colleagues and peers, and participating actively in meetings, workshops and retreats.

The job description defines the level of responsibility and area(s) of involvement of the post; the details of the duties may change over time and do not form part of the contract between IIED and the postholder.

Person specification

Essential Requirements

Academic Qualifications

  • Postgraduate degree in a relevant discipline, e.g. law, political economy, develoment studies.
  • Legal background would be a strong plus, especially in the area of the law regulating foreign investment and/orrights to land and natural resourcesin low and middle-income countries.

Relevant Experience

  • Substantial experience at a professional level with international legalframeworks, agreements and initiatives affecting foreign investment, land and natural resources in low and middle-income countries; and/or experience in facilitating participatory policy processes that enable the voices of those typically excluded to be heard, or in working with communities to develop tools for legal empowerment.
  • Evidence of impact and influence within academia and/or the policy agenda with respect to socio-legal dimensions of natural resource rights and investments.
  • Substantial professional experience, that demonstrates proven skills and high reputation in:
  • Interdisciplinary research, and active promotion of research findings
  • Knowledge of and, preferably, direct experience of engaging with multilateral institutions, international organisations, local and national environmentand development NGOs and civil society groups, government agencies in developing countries, UN agencies.
  • Fundraising – a sustained track record in securing funding for different projects from a variety of donors
  • Advocacy and external relations
  • Distilling information and writing effectively to engage a diverse audience
  • Project, people and budget management

Essential Skills

  • Fluency in speaking, reading and writing in English.
  • Excellent communication and interpersonal skills with the ability to inspire engagement among diverse partners, e.g. proven ability to deal with staff, collaborators and partners from a wide range of backgrounds and cultures and ability to communicate with and inspire both specialist and non-specialist audiences.
  • Excellent personal organisational and time-management skills (working to deadlines and under pressure, prioritising workload, multi-tasking, the ability to be adaptable and flexible in a challenging environment).
  • Ability to articulate and synthesise a broad range of issues and areas relating to sustainable development to external audiences.
  • Advanced knowledge of office software (word processing, spreadsheets, presentation software, databases and communications).
  • Willingness and ability to travel as appropriate to project commitments. The post requires extensive travelling (up fo four months per year) for collaborative work with partners in Africa and Asia and to participate in international events.

Desirable

  • PhD in a relevant subject.
  • A substantial track record of written work including a spectrum of peer reviewed articles, books or booklets, reports, policy briefs, tools or toolkits, products in other media formats such as film or radio.
  • Experience working with government and/or private sector.
  • Working knowledge of French.
  • Experience with building and sustaining international teams, including from a distance.
  • Experience of working in a developing country.

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Behavioural competencies

The top four most important behavioural competencies that will apply to this role are shown below. This does not mean that others are not important but these are the most important for this particular role. At Grade 3 postholders would be expected to demonstrate all 11 competencies at level 2/3.

Competency / Description / Level required
Communicating with Impact / The ability to influence, negotiate, build awareness and create credibility with others through the use of clear and effective communication / Level 2
Delivering Excellence / A concern for delivering high quality work and improving performance. Consistently looks for ways to add value to colleagues, partners and stakeholders. / Level 2
Develops Others
Empathy
Flexible Thinking
Information Seeking / A curiosity to find out more about people, concepts and issues. Asks questions to clarify understanding, conducts research or scans the environment for information that may be of future use. / Level 2
Initiative
Integrity & Commitment
Leading Others
Understands Context
Working Collaboratively / A desire to work co-operatively with others to maximise the effectiveness of IIED, build knowledge and understanding and minimise duplication of effort. / Level 2

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