The Land Portal Foundation is seeking Communications Consultant to support promoting, informing and enriching the global debate and practice on key land issues while raising the visibility of national, regional and international partners.
The successful candidate will also be welcomed into a small, dedicated and disbursed team of international professionals that make up the Land Portal. The Land Portal is an inclusive space and we encourage applications from women, and candidates from the Global South.
Organizational Profile
At the Land Portal, we believe that data and information are powerful tools for achieving our vision of a land governance system that benefits those with the most insecure land rights and the greatest vulnerability to landlessness. However, information sources remain highly fragmented, unstructured, poorly curated and represent a narrow range of perspectives; they continue to be published in ways that do not facilitate maximum discovery, engagement and reuse. Until policy and decision-makers, intermediaries and grassroots groups have access to the data and information they need to make sound decisions, their initiatives will fail to achieve maximum impact.
The Land Portal exists to fill in these gaps, and to nurture a vibrant online platform to inform and engage with partners. We do this by promoting open data and the sharing of best practices and stimulating debate and collaboration both on and offline. We provide a vital bridge for those grappling with complex land governance issues, from researchers and NGOs through to governments and grassroots communities, by connecting people, facilitating dialogue and by mending fragmented information.
Raising awareness of “open data” and the critical role it plays in realizing tenure security for individuals and communities around the world continues to be a great challenge. To this end, we make use of every possible conference, meeting and speaking engagement to promote the concept of “going open,” while recognizing that, given the highly sensitive nature of land data (particularly for vulnerable communities), not everything can or should be made entirely open.
We set out an ambitious new strategy in 2019 to improve the documentation, mapping and monitoring of land governance issues; enrich and inform the global debate on land rights; and democratize access to the land governance “information ecosystem” and improve the flow of data between diverse actors.
Key responsibilities
The Communications Specialist will support the Land Portal’s communications team with a range of services in order to fulfill the Land Porta’s three primary objectives as outlined in the Strategic Plan.
The Communications Specialist will have responsibility, for developing messaging and advocacy materials for a diverse range of audiences, developing and executing campaigns, creating and sustaining parnerships and ensuring innovation in the area of content that is widely representative of the land governance sector. The role will also include organizing and coordinating webinars and online discussions. The consultant will work closely with other team members as well as a wide range of external stakeholders including organizational partners and individual Land Portal users.
Responsibilities include:
-
Develop partnerships with local and global organizations in the land sector and
beyond on communications activities and engage in network building. -
Write and edit a wide array of high-quality, effective communications materials, such as press releases, blogs, website copy, and promotional materials, in English.
-
Engage and support Land Portal partners by producing tailored communications materials such as social media toolkits and managing events.
-
Organise media opportunities for the Land Portal.
-
Support with the maintenance of the Land Portal’s content; populate the Portal with a steady flow of relevant content in English - in particular news, blogs and events - relevant to the Land Portal main audience groups.
-
Support the Land Portal's online and social media presence in EN.
-
Support on curating and coordinating webinars, campaigns, online discussions, blog series and other outreach activities in collaboration with partners following Land Portal guidelines and methodologies.
Qualifications and skills
The successful candidate will have:
-
University degree (Masters level) in communications or related studies;
-
Prior experience in a strategic communications role;
-
Prior experience or studies in land governance related issues;
-
Minimum 5 year of relevant work experience;
- Some knowledge of data management and analysis (desirable);
-
Some knowledge of open data, data sharing technologies and standards such as metadata standards, semantic web and linked data;
-
Good computer skills, including with Content Management Systems in particular Drupal;
-
Fluency (native level) in English (other languages will be an asset);
-
Superior attention to detail;
-
Excellent drafting, communicating abilities;
-
Excellent understanding of and ability to use communications tools such as mailchimp, blogs, webinar and online forum tools, Google docs and Google Drive:
-
Ability to and conditions to work remotely in an effective way.
Personal and Professional Attributes
-
Inclusive and effective communication skills and techniques with an ability to respectfully engage with, and to communicate concepts to others.
-
High standard of ethics and integrity which inspires trust and confidence.
-
Enthusiasm and commitment to sustained effort through diligence and pursuit of high standards.
-
Commitment to ongoing personal and professional development which drives best practice.
-
Proactively utilizes initiative, innovation and a commitment to continuous improvement.
-
Strong collaborative skills which enable effective engagement within a high functioning cohesive team.
-
Ability to employ sound judgment and decision making amongst competing demands.
-
Ability to show initiative in planning and developing new ideas and approaches, and to implement and communicate change effectively.
Reporting
-
The Communications Specialist will report to the Team Leader and work closely with the rest of the Communications team.
Timeframe
-
This consultancy is expected to start in February 2022, with the option to renew until September 2024. The Consultant will be working remotely.
Application
-
Please submit by 21 January 2021 your resume and cover letter detailing your experience specific to the required tasks and responsibilities by emailing jobs@landportal.info. Include “Application for Communications Specialist” in the subject line.