Ukraine Response Researcher

Contract length: 6 months, with the possibility of extension

Hours: full-time
Location: home-based, available on Central European time zone

Travel: extensive, to locations receiving IDPs or refugees; non-travel time will be home-based

Reporting to: Ukraine Response Research Coordinator, with technical support from CLEAR Global’s Global Researcher

Salary range: 3,800-4,300 USD/month
Application deadline: May 2, 2022*****

*Due to the urgency of this vacancy, screening and interviews will commence immediately and the candidate can be selected at any stage before the closing date.

CLEAR Global is an equal-opportunity employer, committed to having a diverse team where individuals of all backgrounds collaborate and learn from one another. We believe we can be most effective with diverse experience and expertise in our team. We recruit on merit, actively seek diverse applicant pools and encourage candidates of all backgrounds to apply. We do not discriminate on the basis of disability, age, gender identity and expression, national origin, race and ethnicity, religious beliefs, marital or parental status, or sexual orientation, and welcome all types of diversity.

We offer in addition to salary:

• an innovative work environment with a diverse and passionate team
• the flexibility of home-based/remote work
• accommodation and per diems when on deployment
• annual leave and floating holidays

The Role

The people displaced by conflict in Ukraine, and those trapped by it, find their situation compounded by a crisis of communication. Speakers of minority languages among the 20+ spoken in Ukraine, as well as third country nationals, face particular challenges accessing vital information and making themselves heard. CLEAR Global/Translators without Borders is developing research to inform more effective two-way communication between those affected by the crisis and those aiming to support them.

CLEAR Global will work as part of a consortium of organizations specialized in communication and accountability to improve two-way communication with affected people in Ukraine and in host countries. This will include informing and supporting responders individually and collectively to improve practices, building a strong evidence base for action is a key part of this initiative.

The Ukraine Response Researcher will design and deliver a package of mixed-methods research to improve the capacity of people fleeing the crisis in Ukraine to access information and make themselves heard, whatever their language. The Researcher will recruit, train and oversee research teams in carrying out a complex program of research activities in Ukraine and refugee hosting countries. They will analyze the findings to provide evidence that will guide responding organizations and support the development of CLEAR Global’s programs and advocacy efforts on behalf of people shut out by communication barriers. The Researcher will prepare clear analytical reports, in English, on key findings and develop policy and practice recommendations in collaboration with CLEAR Global’s Ukraine response program and global teams.

The research will provide an evidence basis for CLEAR Global’s Ukraine response, which involves working with other national and international responders across three pillars:

1. to ensure that IDPs and refugees have easy access to the actionable and safe information they need and want in their preferred language
2. to inform responding organizations of the language and two-way communication needs and preferences of refugees and IDPs and improve communication practices
3. to protect refugees by ensuring that host families in transit and final destination countries effectively communicate with them and understand their responsibilities towards them

The research will build on CLEAR Global’s findings on language and communication barriers in humanitarian action from other contexts. It will be operational research, geared to identifying and correcting gaps and issues in policy and practice on the basis of targeted consultation of those directly and indirectly affected by the crisis. The outcomes will be reference data, practical guidance, and other tools to enhance two-way communication, particularly for marginalized and at-risk groups. The Researcher will also liaise with advocacy and program colleagues on using key research findings to advocate for wider changes of policy and practice.

The Researcher will report to the Ukraine Research Coordinator, with technical support from the Global Researcher, and will work in close partnership with the Ukraine response and global program, data and advocacy teams. Flexibility and the willingness to adapt to changing circumstances is crucial.

Responsibilities

Research design

• Drawing on CLEAR Global’s existing tools where relevant and innovating where not, design individual research activities to ensure that they are consistent with program objectives, the Ukraine response research agenda, and CLEAR Global’s values and contribute meaningfully to the evidence basis for the response

• In collaboration with program and research teams and in consultation with relevant partners, analyze findings as they emerge and adjust the research framework and tools as necessary to capture original insights and build a robust evidence base

• Liaise with a wide range of organizations to discover and gather information that relates to the provision and effectiveness of language support

Research delivery

• Lead and conduct remote qualitative, quantitative and secondary research, collaborating with other team members to ensure that emerging results from each study inform the focus and implementation of the next
• Lead field assessments in multiple locations hosting IDPs and refugees from conflict-affected areas of Ukraine, including recruiting, training, and supervising research assistants and enumerators, and conducting and coordinating semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions with affected people, civil society, local authorities, and humanitarian staff and volunteers
• Design and carry out quantitative comprehension research to field-test the effectiveness of translations of key concepts and of various written, audio, and video communication products

Analysis and reporting

• Lead the analysis of quantitative and qualitative data, actively seeking insights from local researchers and civil society to inform analysis and conclusions
• Contribute to a response-wide rolling review of emerging findings and discussion of the implications both for humanitarian policy and practice and for the ongoing implementation of the research
• Provide regular internal updates on research advances and preliminary results
• Develop research reports for external publication, in English, in line with CLEAR Global’s communication standards
• Collaborate with CLEAR Global’s Ukraine response and global program teams to develop evidence-based recommendations and guidelines related to communication and language to support other organizations and individuals involved in the response
• Collaborate with global advocacy and communication teams to produce and present findings in appropriate formats for different audiences

Please note that these responsibilities may change over time. The role will evolve along with the overall program as projects and activities develop to reflect the changing language needs of the affected population and implementing agencies.

Qualifications

The Researcher should be a creative self-starter with a strong sense of initiative and enthusiastic about the importance of increasing access to knowledge through language. The right candidate is an energetic team player who agrees with TWB´s core values and can work in field locations and virtually to collaborate with team members based throughout the world.

Requirements

• Master’s degree in a relevant subject (anthropology, social sciences, sociolinguistics)
• 5+ years of social science research in development or humanitarian contexts
• First-hand experience of humanitarian program implementation; experience of community engagement or accountability programming a plus
• Experience designing and implementing field-based research projects utilizing qualitative or mixed methodologies
• Willingness to work in insecure environments required, experience of working in insecure environments a plus
• Availability to deploy for up to 75% of time to locations hosting IDPs and refugees from the Ukraine crisis, and flexibility to deploy potentially at short notice and manage logistical contingencies
• Strong organizational and information management skills
• Ability to communicate scientific data to communities, program staff, and partners in a simple and clear manner
• Verbal and written fluency in English; strong written communication skills
• Proficiency in Ukrainian or one or more other languages relevant to the Ukraine response necessary (Czech, Hungarian, Polish, Romani, Romanian, Russian, Slovak)
• Ability to analyze and visualize quantitative data using Excel or Google Sheets
• Experience designing and conducting multilingual surveys using Kobo DataCollect
• Experience and competency working with Nvivo, ARCgis, Tableau, or other specialized software a plus

About CLEAR Global/Translators without Borders

CLEAR Global exists to help people get vital information, and be heard, whatever language they speak. We believe that everyone has the right to give and receive information in a language and format they understand. We work with nonprofit partners and a global community of language professionals to build local language translation capacity, and raise awareness of language barriers. Our network of over 80,000 community members translate millions of words of life-saving and life-changing information a year.

Core Values

CLEAR Global/Translators without Borders employees and volunteers are people who believe passionately about the value of this work and take personal responsibility for achieving the mission. Translators without Borders’ mission and organizational spirit embody the core values established in its strategic framework:

Excellence: As the leading voice for communicating humanitarian information in the right language, Translators without Borders is a leader in the translation industry and in the non-profit sector.

Integrity: Translators without Borders believes that every person, whether it is the people who we serve, our volunteers or our staff, has value, deserves respect and has inherent dignity.

Empowerment: Translators without Borders believes in using language to empower people around the world to control their own development and destiny.

Innovation: Translators without Borders recognizes and celebrates the power of innovation to address humanitarian and crisis issues around the world.

Sustainability: Translators without Borders recognizes that meeting our mission necessitates establishment and maintenance of a solid financial and organizational infrastructure.

Tolerance: Our staff and volunteers are highly knowledgeable and skilled; value each other, our partner and our recipients; create a supportive work environment; and, conduct themselves professionally at all times.

TWB may re-advertise the vacancy, cancel the recruitment, offer an appointment with a modified job description or for a different duration at its discretion.