Mission and objectivesUN Women, grounded in the vision of equality enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, works for the elimination of discrimination against women and girls; the empowerment of women; and the achievement of equality for women as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action and peace and security. Placing womenโs rights at the centre of all its efforts, the UN Women will lead and coordinate United Nations system efforts to ensure that commitments on gender equality and gender mainstreaming translate into action throughout the world. It will provide strong and coherent leadership in support of Member Statesโ priorities and efforts, building effective partnerships with civil society and other relevant actors. Based on UN legislative mandates and the UNW Strategic Plan, the Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific is tasked with providing strategic programme development, policy / technical advisory services and quality assurance support to Multi Country Offices and Country Offices. It undertakes or coordinates regional research and data analysis; advises on norms, policies and strategies for achieving the internationally and regionally agreed goals related to gender equality and womenโs empowerment issues. It acts as a knowledge hub at the regional level, collecting evidence on progress and emerging issues and sharing knowledge on innovative approaches and lessons learned in implementation. Over the last decade, increasing natural hazards, climate-related emergencies, mounting insecurity and crises in Asia and the Pacific are eroding development gains, posing significant challenges in the transition to low-carbon, resilient societies. Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, the world was off-track to meet the transformational environmental, social, and economic changes required to achieve gender equality, address climate change, and realize human rights for all. The pandemic set back sustainable development progress while further increasing inequalities. Women and girls, especially those facing multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination, have faced disproportionate fallout. Environmental degradation and climate and disaster impacts are unequally felt across the region. For women, people living in poverty and other marginalized groups, pre-existing discriminatory social norms and pervasive gender inequalities increase exposure to risks while undercutting the ability to cope and recover from shocks. Womenโs livelihoods are often the first to decline due to climate-related hazards and disasters. Further, inequalities in access to resources, finance and technologies leave women with greater challenges in coping and rebuilding after a crisis. The low-carbon transition and social transformation required to solve the climate crisis pose significant opportunities to redress gender inequalities and promote human rights. By placing women and other marginalized groups at the centre, this transition can advance gender justice and occur more quickly with empowered women and marginalized groups acting as change agents.
ContextUN Women, in partnership with the UN Environment Programme, is implementing the second phase of the EmPower: Women for Climate Resilient Societies Programme to scale up results and promote gender-responsive and human rights-based climate action by supporting key regional and country stakeholders to achieve a broader impact across the Asia-Pacific region. The project is a joint project implemented with the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), with financial support from the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency. The International Gender and Climate Action Specialist will contribute to regional efforts to advance gender equality and human rights in climate action across Asia and the Pacific. This role emphasizes strengthening the capacity of regional stakeholders, fostering womenโs leadership in climate-related decision-making, and enhancing the resilience of marginalized groups through climate-adaptive initiatives, including renewable energy solutions. Working under the guidance of the Programme Specialist on Gender and Climate Change, the UN Volunteer will support the implementation of key regional climate initiatives. Responsibilities include providing technical inputs for programme design, development, and evaluation, as well as assisting the Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific (ROAP) in aligning programme activities with broader regional strategies on gender and climate action. The UN Volunteers will focus on outcome-driven monitoring and reporting, ensuring efficient application of systems and identifying opportunities for improvement. In collaboration with regional and country programme teams and key partners including government representatives, donors, and civil society organizations, the UN Volunteer will drive the effective delivery of the EmPower programme as well as UN Women initiatives. This UN Volunteer will also involve coordinating activities and sharing insights to support UN Womenโs broader climate agenda in the Asia-Pacific region. The purpose of the UN Volunteer is to provide dedicated technical support to advance gender-responsive climate action under the โEmPower: Women for Climate Resilient Societiesโ programme, aligned with UN Womenโs broader mandate on gender equality and climate action in the Asia-Pacific region.
Task DescriptionUnder the direct supervision of the Programme Coordinator on Gender and Climate, the UN Volunteer will undertake the following tasks: 1. Technical Support for Programmatic Strategy and Implementation โข Provide time-bound, specialized technical input to refine and strengthen regional strategies on gender-responsive climate action, specifically under the EmPower programme and UN Womenโs broader mandate. โข Contribute to programmatic frameworks that embed gender equality and human rights in climate adaptation and mitigation, with a focus on enhancing the resilience of vulnerable communities. โข Prepare high-quality knowledge products, including policy briefs, technical guides, and strategy documents, that reflect best practices in gender and climate resilience. 2. Capacity Building and Knowledge Development โข Design and facilitate targeted capacity-building sessions for regional partners and stakeholders, focusing on gender-responsive approaches in climate action and disaster risk reduction. โข Create concise, user-friendly knowledge resources such as toolkits, case studies, and best practice guides to strengthen stakeholderโs capacity for gender and climate action, e.g. youth, womenโs organizations, civil society, governments, entrepreneurs. โข Organize and lead knowledge-sharing events and regional convenings to promote cross-learning on gender and climate resilience across the region. 3. Monitoring, Reporting, and Evaluation โข Assist with data collection and provide input into monitoring templates as required, ensuring consultant-led tasks are aligned with Results-Based Management (RBM) principles. โข Submit detailed quarterly reports that track progress on specific EmPower programme outputs, outcomes, and milestones, with insights into opportunities for improvement and alignment with regional strategies. โข Deliver a final report summarizing achievements, key lessons learned, and recommendations for sustaining and scaling gender-responsive climate action under the EmPower programme and broader UN Women climate agenda. 4. Resource Mobilization and Partnership Development โข Identify potential funding opportunities related to gender-responsive climate action and prepare three concept notes or proposals to support resource mobilization. โข Provide technical inputs and support the drafting of funding proposals or concept notes targeting gender-responsive climate action initiatives, detailing potential impact and scalability. โข Prepare background materials, project summaries, briefs, and donor briefings to support UN Womenโs visibility and advocacy efforts in the region. 5. Advocacy, Communication, and Knowledge Management โข Draft advocacy materials, including talking points, presentations, and briefs, to advance gender-responsive climate action in Asia and the Pacific. โข Coordinate the development of knowledge-sharing resources and events to highlight success stories, best practices, and innovative approaches within EmPower and related UN Women initiatives. โข Document lessons learned and best practices to contribute to the broader knowledge base on gender and climate action. 6. Stakeholder and Partnership Coordination โข Act as a point of contact for key stakeholders within the scope of the consultancy, preparing specific stakeholder engagement plan and facilitating structured dialogues and delivery of outputs โข Coordinate engagement with Programme team, including UN Womenโs partners, to ensure alignment in messaging, strategy, and activities. Results/expected outputs: Contribute to the following outcomes through the efficient, timely, and high-quality delivery of their functions: โข Technical and Strategic Support โข Capacity Building and Knowledge Development โข Monitoring, Reporting, and Evaluation โข Resource Mobilization and Partnership Development โข Advocacy, Communication, and Knowledge Management โข Stakeholder and Partnership Coordination
Competencies and valuesโข Awareness and Sensitivity Regarding Gender Issues โข Accountability โข Creative Problem Solving โข Effective Communication โข Inclusive Collaboration โข Stakeholder Engagement โข Leading by Example
Living conditions and remarksThe living cost in Thailand is relatively low, as compared to many other capitals in Southeast Asia. Housing is widely available in various sizes and at various price points. Private healthcare in Thailand is of excellent standard and there are numerous top hospitals in Bangkok which fall far below countries like the US in terms of price. There are numerous high quality international schools available in Bangkok with English as the language of instruction. Bangkok has different public transportation options including the BTS skytrain and MRT underground, metered taxis, mobile based ride hailing services (Grab, All Thai Taxi, etc.), taxis, buses, and boats. As this is a national UN Volunteer assignment, the UN Volunteer will be responsible for arranging his/her own housing and other living essentials.