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OAK Foundation

Campaign Leader Environment

The Environment Programme at Oak Foundation has already made a positive impact on our oceans and you will be expanding on those successes. You will be fostering collaboration between NGOs to focus on issues and establishing a network of funders to support the work. Although you will not be on the front line, your campaign experience will be important and you know how to engage NGOs, funders and government at a high level. You will contribute knowledge and advice, and although your role leading from behind will also require a dose of humbleness, you will be making a significant difference in the sector.

About Oak Foundation

Oak Foundation commits its resources to address issues of global social and environmental concern, particularly those that have a major impact on the lives of the disadvantaged. With offices in Europe, Africa and North America, Oak Foundation has an annual grant-making budget of over USD 250 million and makes grants to organizations located in 41 countries worldwide.

The Environment Programme at Oak Foundation has three areas of focus: Climate Change; Marine Conservation; and Wildlife Conservation and Trade. Oak hope to contribute to mitigating greenhouse gases emissions in line with the global objective of keeping average temperatures well below 2°C, particularly in the energy and transportation sectors, while promoting low-carbon and liveable cities. In the marine domain, they seek to increase the sustainability of industrial fisheries, improve the management of small-scale subsistence fisheries, and drastically reduce the leakage of plastic debris into the oceans. Finally, in Wildlife Conservation and Trade, their objective is to help disrupt the illegal trafficking of wildlife and implement innovative people-centred wildlife conservation models.

About the Role

Oak Foundation’s Environment Programme supports the development and implementation of public campaigns and mobilization in selected issues of global relevance. Oak Foundation understands its role to be that of a “shaper”, not a “doer”. Typically, they support the convening of major civil society actors working around a campaign theme, the designing of the campaign strategy, the regimenting of the donor community interested in co-financing the campaign and mobilization work, and the definition and deployment of the governance mechanisms. The following areas are of particular interest: oceans plastics, low-carbon urban development, food, health and the environment, and climate.

Purpose of the Role

The Oak Foundation is looking for a Campaigns Leader to shape new global campaigns in one or more of the above areas. As the Campaigns Leader, you will be reporting to the Environment Programme Director and working closely with the trustee and the entire environment team to develop concepts and campaign strategies that will lead to fundamental positive changes across the environmental sector. These campaigns will be built and implemented on the strength of existing or new networks and collaboratives.

Duties and Responsibilities

Strategy Development and Implementation:

  • Lead the development and implementation of campaigns within the Environment Team at Oak Foundation from a philanthropic perspective: convening donors, civil society and other actors as needed.
  • Conduct external landscape mapping of an issue area in relation to the current abilities of NGOs and their collective impact; as well as donors and their grantmaking patterns.
  • Assess impact, scope, barriers to success and gaps in the field or funding.
  • Develop Oak’s approach to specific issues, including designing potential interventions with a range of actors including NGOs, donors, and stakeholders such as governments and academics.
  • Initiate and lead specific NGO circles for building trust and collaboration, aligning goals and objectives and building a shared sense of mission.
  • Technically support other programme officers in the environment team with the development of campaigns within their respective domains.

Grant Management:

  • Perform a marine programme officer function in the development and management of Oak Foundation’s grant portfolios in the areas of large-scale industrial fisheries, as well as reducing plastic pollution in our oceans.
  • Maintain primary responsibility for management of a grant portfolio, from point of initial inquiry to assessment, and make final recommendations to the President, Trustee and Board; including conducting due diligence on grants/grantees, as well as researching information, context, structure and objectives of grants.
  • Monitor and evaluate grants, including site visits.
  • Perform due diligence on grants/grantees.
  • Work with outside reviewers and experts, analyze issues and problems and provide advice to grantees and partners.
  • Coordinate activities and funding with peer philanthropists, convening grantees or other donors when required.
  • Travel, including internationally, up to 25 per cent of the time during the course of the year.
  • Perform other duties as requested by the Director or the Trustee.

Skills and Experience

You can demonstrate strengths in:

  • Collaboration, relationship building and networking: A proven capability of building partnerships and relationships externally and internally, as well as maintaining and expanding existing relationships
  • Campaigning: Experience in creating, developing and implementing regional and global campaigns.
  • Self-awareness: High degree of empathy, a healthy ego and the ability to work collaboratively.
  • Sector knowledge: Clear picture of actors and stakeholders in the global environmental protection sector as well as gravitas to introduce and inspire new campaigns, collaborations and working groups.
  • Entrepreneurial spirit: Display innovative thinking and a record of transforming ideas into (collaborative) action.

In addition, you have:

  • Excellent written and spoken English (French and other foreign languages would be a plus).
  • Tact, maturity and a good sense of humour.
  • A commitment to the values of the Oak Foundation.
  • The right to live and work in Switzerland.