The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is the world’s largest and most diverse environmental network, bringing together governments, civil society, scientists, and experts to conserve nature and accelerate the transition to sustainable development. Effective communication is essential to IUCN’s mission, ensuring that its projects, programmes, and knowledge products reach and inspire decision-makers, partners, and the wider public.
IUCN seeks a Communications Advisor (Project Strategy and Training), P2, to strengthen the organization’s ability to communicate with impact. This role will focus on two key priorities: ensuring IUCN projects embed robust communications strategies from the outset and building staff capacity across the Union through a self-service model of communications guidance and training.
The Communications Advisor will (1) provide strategic communications support to IUCN projects, ensuring communications are effectively integrated and resourced at the project design stage, and (2) develop and lead a self-service communications support model, equipping colleagues across IUCN with the skills, tools, and confidence to become more effective communicators.
Strategic Communications Support for Projects (45%):
• Provide guidance to project teams during the design and proposal development stage to ensure communications objectives, strategies, and budgets are appropriately embedded.
• Advise on the identification of target audiences, key messages, channels, and activities tailored to each project’s objectives and with IUCN’s overall communications strategy.
• Co-create communications strategies with project leads
• Support project communications leads in sourcing images, data and stories to illustrate concrete project results on the ground.
• Review and quality assure project communications plans, ensuring they are realistic, resourced, measurable, and focused on impact.
• Serve as a focal point for integrating lessons learned from past projects into new communications approaches.
• In collaboration with senior members of the Global Communications Unit, prepare proposals to apply for funding for communication projects to support IUCN conservation goals.
Capacity Building and Self-Service Model (45%):
• Lead the design and implementation of a self-service communications model, providing IUCN colleagues with accessible guidance, toolkits, templates, and resources, in coordination with the Global Communications Unit team.
• Design and deliver communications training programmes (online and in-person) for IUCN staff, including project managers, technical experts, and regional offices.
• Establish a framework for continuous learning in communications, including knowledge-sharing sessions, webinars, and internal communities of practice.
• Develop and maintain a library of best practices, case studies, and training materials to support consistent, high-quality communications across the Union.
• Evaluate training outcomes and adapt methodologies to meet evolving needs.
Other activities (10%):
• Carry out other activities to support the communication objectives of IUCN