APP Outreach and Engagement Lead

About the Asian Disaster Preparedness Center:

The Asian Disaster Preparedness Center (ADPC) is an autonomous international organization established for scientific, educational, developmental, and humanitarian purposes with a vision of safer communities and sustainable development through disaster risk reduction and climate resilience in Asia and the Pacific.

Established in 1986 as a technical capacity-building center, ADPC has grown and diversified its expertise across social and physical sciences to support sustainable solutions for risk reduction across a broad range of specialist areas, with over 100 staff from 19 different nationalities and a wide range of professional expertise from atmospheric scientists to social scientists with experiences from all levels of engagement typically required for Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) and Climate Resilience (CR) effectively. ADPC has six strategic themes supported by seven departments, namely the ADPC Academy, Risk Governance, Climate Resilience, Urban Resilience, Health Risk Management, Preparedness for Response and Recovery, and Geospatial Information. These are supported by Finance, Human Resources and Administration, and Strategic Planning departments. In addition to the departments, ADPC also works on three cross-cutting themes: Gender and Diversity, Poverty and Livelihoods, and Regional and Transboundary Cooperation through permanent working committees.

ADPC Strategy 2020 guides the organization in providing comprehensive risk reduction support to countries and communities in Asia and the Pacific. ADPC recognizes the importance of examining the linkages between disaster risk management, poverty reduction, gender equality, sustainability, rights-based approaches, climate change, and regional cooperation. For details, please refer to the ADPC website at http://www.adpc.net/

Department Introduction:

The Preparedness for Response and Recovery (PRR) Department of ADPC focuses on enhancing the preparedness and response management capacities of governments, response organizations, volunteers, non-governmental organizations, the private sector, communities, and other traditional and non-traditional actors of the Disaster Risk Management Ecosystem. It also strives to strengthen the capacity of institutions and at-risk communities for faster and more efficient disaster recovery. The department works with the above-stated actors to ensure that the regional, national, sub-national, and local disaster preparedness, response, and recovery frameworks and implementation plans are in place well before disaster strikes.

Purpose and Objectives:

ADPC has been implementing the Asian Preparedness Partnership (APP) since 2017. The APP is a multi-stakeholder regional partnership comprised of national and sub-national governments, local NGOs, civil society organizations, media, the academia, and the private sector in Cambodia, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, Sri Lanka, and Lao PDR with support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The APP promotes and supports locally-led actions to prepare for, respond to, and recover from disasters, commonly referred to as “localization.” The APP Phase 3 will focus on consolidating and sustaining a multi-sectoral partnership model at regional, national, and sub-national levels to prepare for, respond to, and recover from disasters.

The Outreach and Engagement Consultant for the APP will be responsible for building and maintaining the profile of the APP to promote ‘Localization’. This will be done through impactful outreach, establishing connections with the target audience, stakeholders, funding agencies, other regional and global networks, and the broader humanitarian community. The consultant will be instrumental in building the public image for the APP and showcasing its work on regional and global platforms to garner support and mobilize resources. The consultant will develop strategies that reinforce the contribution of the APP, promote south-south learning, and network with other intra and inter-regional networks. The consultant will also coordinate with other thematic departments of ADPC to link APP with other ongoing initiatives within ADPC.

The consultant will be based at ADPC’s head office in Bangkok**.**

Expected Outputs:

• Identified and mapped key stakeholders, donor agencies, development partners, and networks relevant to the APP and Localization.
• Developed strategies to engage with stakeholders, donor agencies, INGOs, and others;
• Identified and built partnerships with organizations and networks for localization;
• Developed strategies and plans for higher visibility and outreach;
• Managed public image for the APP;
• Developed and executed advocacy campaigns for APP to garner support;
• Identified possible business avenues and donors to mobilize resources and funds for the work of APP;
• Developed press releases and other outreach materials;
• Engaged with media outlets for positive coverage;
• Represented APP at national, regional, and global events;
• Developed sessions on localization under the APP for pitching at regional and global events;
• Mobilized stakeholders to advocate for localization;
• Documented outreach activities, feedback received, and outcomes;
• Evaluated the effectiveness of outreach and engagement strategies;
• Assisted the APP countries in developing outreach plans for visibility and resource mobilization;
• Facilitated south-south learning and knowledge exchange between the APP countries.

Duties and Responsibilities:

• Identify and map key stakeholders, networks and consortia relevant to the APP and analyze their interests, concerns, and potential contributions;
• Facilitate the development of strategy/ strategies for APP and engage with the stakeholders such as the funding agencies, networks, UN and INGOs, and the local partners;
• Build and maintain relationships with stakeholders and development partners;
• Facilitate collaboration and engagement among partners within the APP countries and beyond;
• Manage APP’s public image and visibility;
• Plan and coordinate events, workshops, and other engagement activities
• Develop and execute advocacy campaigns to garner support and mobilize resources for the sustainability of the APP;
• Identify suitable regional knowledge-sharing networks/institutions and foster partnerships for south-south learning exchange;
• Conduct research and analysis to identify new outreach opportunities;
• Design & deploy products and protocols for outreach including but not limited to web portals, social media, online discussion fora, etc.;
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to ensure alignment and integration of APP outreach efforts across ADPC programs
• Monitor and engage with online communities and networks for wider outreach for APP;
• Oversee development of press releases, articles, and other outreach materials for public relations; engage with media outlets to ensure accurate and positive coverage.
• Build the capacity of the stakeholders in APP countries on outreach and engagement;
• Communicate outreach and engagement goals and progress to internal and external stakeholders.
• Stay up-to-date with industry trends and best practices in outreach and engagement
• Track and evaluate the effectiveness of outreach and engagement strategies; collect and analyze data to measure the impact of engagement activities;
• Other duties and responsibilities as assigned by the Director, PRR and Program Lead, Localization.

Working Principles:

The Outreach and Engagement consultant will work closely with and report to the Program Lead, Localization, under the overall guidance of the Director of preparedness for Response and Recovery.

Qualifications:

Education:

• Master’s degree in Disaster Management, Emergency Preparedness, Public Health, Mass Communications, International Relations, or related disciplines is essential.

Work Experience:

• Overall professional experience of 10 years, out of which at least six years in outreach and engagement or similar roles in Disaster Management or a related field;
• Excellent English language skills, both oral and written;
• Demonstrated success in managing outreach programs and building effective partnerships;
• Proven ability to support the development of high-quality outreach products;
• Ability to tailor outreach and communication to diverse audiences, including local partners, donors, INGOs, development partners, the media, communities, etc.;
• Ability to develop and implement strategic outreach plans that align with APP’s goals;
• Analytical skills to assess the impact of outreach and engagement efforts to enhance engagement;
• Ability to establish new partnerships and collaborations;
• Previous experience in working with international organizations and other development partners and
• Knowledge of working ethics of national government agencies, NGOs, private organizations, and international organizations in the Asian region.

Personal Qualities:

• Self-motivated, pro-active, and takes initiative;
• Demonstrated ability to plan and organize work & time independently;
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills, team-oriented work style, and experience in working in a multi-cultural environment;
• Strong networking capacity and understanding of humanitarian and development nexus at local and regional levels;
• Strong desire to learn, undertake new challenges, must be a creative problem-solver, and must have self-confidence;
• Willingness to work hard, good sense of humour but with seriousness about the quality and excellence of work.

Languages

• English is the working language of ADPC. For the post advertised, fluency in English is required. Knowledge of another national or global language is an advantage.

General Requirements:

• Operate within all ADPC Guidelines and procedures/ Policies.
• Operate within specific program needs.

Duty Station: Bangkok, Thailand

Duration: 12 months with the possibility of extension subject to performance.

Itinerary: During official missions outside the duty station, the Consultant will be entitled to local/international travel, daily subsistence allowance, accommodation, Visa, communications, and other related travel costs as per ADPC financial policy.