Project Officer (CRC Resilience Officer, Legazpi-based)

About CRS

Catholic Relief Services is the official international humanitarian agency of the Catholic community in the United States. CRS works to save, protect, and transform lives in need in more than 100 countries, without regard to race, religion or nationality. CRS’ relief and development work is accomplished through programs of emergency response, HIV, health, agriculture, education, microfinance and peacebuilding.

CRS Philippines, established in 1945, is the longest-running, continuous CRS country program with extensive programming in peacebuilding, emergency response and recovery, disaster risk reduction, and climate change adaptation. The Philippines country program has over 100 staff members in Manila, Davao, Cotabato, and Tacloban offices. CRS Philippines is committed to collaborating with our strong network of church partners, national and subnational government agencies, and secular NGOs throughout the country, strategically advancing local leadership to achieve sustainable development goals in the Philippines.

Job Summary:

CRS is implementing a 5-year USAID-funded Climate Resilient Cities (CRC) project. As the Resilience Officer of Legazpi City, you will provide city-level support to the five-year USAID-funded project CRC, which will improve resilience by strengthening the adaptive capacities of cities in the Philippines to manage the impacts of climate change and access climate finance and to enhance stakeholders’ knowledge on climate information for planning and decision-making. Embedded in the Legazpi LGU and working closely with the City Coordinator and Nature-based Solutions Specialist, you accompany the LGU to develop their enhanced CDRA and LCCAP, and ensure LGUs will be supported to formulate plans that consider different ecosystems, exposure of different sectors, renewable energy technologies, and adaptive capacities.

You will support, monitor, and report on all project activities in support of Catholic Relief Services’ (CRS) work serving the poor and vulnerable. Your thorough and service-oriented approach will ensure that the project consistently applies best practices and constantly works towards improving the impact of its benefits to those we serve.

Responsibilities for External Candidates

Roles and Key Responsibilities:

• Support the coordination and implementation of all assigned CRC project activities as outlined in the detailed implementation plan in line with CRS program quality principles and standards, donor requirements, and good practices.
• Assist with the engagement and communication with the LGU on project implementation initiatives, and agreements.
• Monitor and report any challenges and/or gaps identified to inform adjustments to plans and implementation schedules. Assist LGU and consortium partners in their efforts to reflect on project experiences.
• Prepare presentations and meeting documentation, and coordinate project communication needs through writing and editing communication resources, such as case studies, social media posts, brochures, briefs, peer-reviewed articles, or technical reports, for both internal and external audiences, on climate data, climate finance, and nature-based solutions.
• Support accountability through coordinating project evaluation activities and assisting consortium partners in their efforts to collect and analyze project data per specified mechanisms and tools. Collaborate with LGU and consortium partners to prepare reports per established reporting schedule.
• Provide technical and operational support in the conceptualization, preparation and delivery of various capacity building workshops and project reports for the city.
• Collect information on staff capacity needs and technical assistance needs of LGU and consortium partner organizations and monitor capacity building and technical support activities to ensure effective impact.
• Complete project documentation for assigned activities. Assist with identifying information for case studies and reports on promising practices.

Qualifications for External Candidates

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree holder in Social Sciences, Development, Environmental Science, Urban Planning, Public Administration, or similar fields required
• Minimum of 4 years of work experience in project support. Experience in the field of disaster and climate resilience, nature-based solutions, ecosystem management, urban planning, or public administration and working for an LGU or NGO would be a plus.
• Knowledge of project design and proposal development.
• General knowledge of principles and concepts in local climate action planning, climate finance, climate proposal development, and nature-based solutions.
• Strong English writing skills.

Required Languages – English, Tagalog, local language of project site a plus.

Travel – Must be willing and able to travel up to 20%.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

• Attention to detail, accuracy, and timeliness in executing assigned responsibilities
• Good relationship management skills with ability to work collaboratively as part of a multidisciplinary and multicultural teams
• Strategic, analytical, problem-solving and systems thinking capacity and skills
• Good writing skills
• Strong data collection and research skills and ability to interpret and analyze data
• Proactive, resourceful, and results-oriented

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in participatory action planning and community engagement.
• Experience monitoring projects and collecting relevant data preferred.
• Experience using MS Windows and MS Office packages (Excel, Word, PowerPoint).
• Knowledge on Geographic Information Systems a plus

Agency REDI Competencies (for all CRS Staff):

Agency competencies clarify expected behaviors and attitudes for all staff. When demonstrated, they create an engaging workplace, help staff achieve their best, and help CRS achieve agency goals. These are rooted in the mission, values, and guiding principles of CRS and used by each staff member to fulfill his or her responsibilities and achieve the desired results.

• Personal Accountability – Consistently takes responsibility for one’s own actions.
• Acts with Integrity – Consistently models values aligned with CRS Guiding Principles and mission. Is considered honest.
• Builds and Maintains Trust – Shows consistency between words and actions.
• Collaborates with Others – Works effectively in intercultural and diverse teams.
• Open to Learn – Seeks out experiences that may change perspective or provide an opportunity to learn new things.

Agency Leadership Competencies:

• Lead Change – Continually looks for ways to improve the agency through a culture of agility, openness, and innovation.
• Develops and Recognizes Others – Builds the capacity of staff to reach their full potential and enhance team and agency performance.
• Strategic Mindset – Understands role in translating, communicating, and implementing agency strategy and team priorities.

Supervisory Responsibilities: None

Key Working Relationships:

Internal: Chief of Party, Deputy Chief of Party, CRC Program Manager, CRC MEL Officer, CRC Legazpi City Coordinator, CRC Legazpi Nature-based Solutions Specialist, CRC Finance Officer, CRC Procurement Officer, and CRC Communications Officer.

External: LGU Partners, Consortium Partners, and Consortium Resilience Officers.

***Our Catholic identity is at the heart of our mission and operations. Catholic Relief Services carries out the commitment of the Bishops of the United States to assist the poor and vulnerable overseas. We welcome as a part of our staff people of all faiths and secular traditions who share our values and our commitment to serving those in need. CRS’ processes and policies reflect our commitment to protecting children and vulnerable adults from abuse and exploitation.

Disclaimer: This job description is not an exhaustive list of the skill, effort, duties, and responsibilities associated with the position.

CRS’ talent acquisition procedures reflect our commitment to protecting children and vulnerable adults from abuse and exploitation.

CRS is an Equal Opportunity Employer

Same Posting Description for Internal and External Candidates