Jobs - Peace Direct

Head of Policy and Research, (£40,000 – £45,000 per year)

Peace Direct is looking for an experienced and passionate peacebuilding advocate, to head up our Policy and Research team. We are immensely proud of our partnerships, our advocacy and our impact and we are looking for an excellent candidate who will grow our work substantially in the coming years.

This is a very exciting time for Peace Direct, as we have been growing at a fast pace over the last few years and have a big ambition to scale up our reseach and advocacy efforts so that the international aid system is more responsive to the needs and voices of local people working to stop violence and build peace around the world.

As Head of Policy and Research, you will be a core member of the Senior Management Team, with overall responsibility for all our research and advocacy initiatives around the world. You will manage a dynamic and passionate team of 4 staff as well as a number of local consultants. The job is an exciting mix of high level advocacy, hands-on engagement with local peacebuilding activists, budget and project management, team management and strategy development and implementation. We expect the successful candidate to have a solid background in all of these skill areas.

The successful candidate will be an experienced Senior Manager, with at least 5 years of advocacy experience, as well as demonstrable experience in research, managing teams, developing and implementing strategy and supporting local partners. We are looking for someone with a genuine passion for supporting local efforts to build peace, who is willing to challenge the current aid system and its reliance on externally-led and directed interventions. We have no overseas offices, employ no expatriate staff overseas and do not intend to do so. The successful candidate will see this as our strength and will be willing to argue the case for greater support to local actors when talking to government, donors and other stakeholders.

The successful candidate will be expected to play a prominent representational role, along with the CEO, and so will be comfortable speaking publicly. She or he will be a creative thinker, an experienced manager and will have an absolute commitment to peacebuilding through non-violent local efforts.

The applicant must be fluent in written and spoken English. Fluency in French would be desirable.

This is a very exciting role for someone to join Peace Direct and lead our Policy and Research work for the coming years, and who want to use their skills and passion to help build a just world, free from violent conflict.

Peace Direct is an international NGO that supports local peacebuilding in conflict zones worldwide. We work with local organisations in ten countries around the world and aim to support many more in the years to come.

INTERNSHIP OPPORTUNITY: Events Intern

Who We Are

Peace Direct works with local people to stop violent conflict and build lasting peace. We believe the best solutions to conflicts come from local people who are directly affected by the violence in their communities, and it should be local groups who lead efforts to build peace in their societies. We work with local partners in conflict situations around the world (Burundi, DRC, Somalia, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Sudan, Mali, Zimbabwe, the Philippines, Nigeria, Syria) to support, strengthen, and raise awareness of their work. We also work with funders, policymakers, and others in the international peacebuilding community to improve practices and policies in ways that help support local peacebuilders. In addition, we also run www.peaceinsight.org, which includes information on more than 1,600 local peacebuilding groups around the world.

In October 2018, Peace Direct will host our annual Tomorrow’s Peacebuilders Awards for the first time in Washington, DC. Our awards ceremony will celebrate the winners of prizes for youth-led peacebuilding, women-led peacebuilding, and nonviolent action and peacebuilding, as well as the winner of our photography prize. In addition, we will also highlight the works of our 9 runners-up while introducing all of them to the larger international community of NGOs, funders, and policymakers at the Alliance for Peacebuilding’s PeaceCon2018. This internship will mostly dedicate itself to the months leading up to this event, as well as a smaller but still important visit from our Mali peace partners to promote their report in November. Peace Direct is looking for a high-performing intern to assist with the planning, organizing, promotion, and debriefing of both events.

The intern will have the opportunity to meet and engage with leading local peacebuilders from around the world and to attend PeaceCon2018, while learning about Peace Direct’s work, gaining specific skills in event organizing and outreach, and networking with the broader peacebuilding community.

Intern Role

Specific responsibilities include:

Assisting with the planning, organization, and implementation of Peace Direct’s Tomorrow’s Peacebuilders Awards (October) and Mali Peacebuilder Visit (November). This includes:
Maintaining clear lines of communication with up to 10 different peacebuilding organizations;
Researching travel itineraries and possible restrictions with visas and transit visas; processing necessary visas; booking hotels and other transportation;
Ensuring ease of travel for our peacebuilders while in Washington, DC; acting as welcoming host, answering questions and escorting them if necessary;
Assisting with the event logistics (reservations, invitations) and attendance logistics (for de-brief and reporting).
Promoting Tomorrow’s Peacebuilders Awards (drafting social media posts, newsletters, and supporting media outreach.), our report on Mali, and the events.
Attending and assisting with Peace Direct’s Tomorrow’s Peacebuilders Awards (set-up and break-down), as well as meetings planned for our Mali Peacebuilder visit.
Setting up additional meetings for local peacebuilders with decision-makers in Washington and supporting meetings in New York as necessary.

Assist with other office administrative duties as needed and attend weekly Team Meetings with the UK and US Office

Qualifications

Required Skills and Experience:

Experience with event planning, administration, and logistics coordination.
Basic skills with Word, Excel, and PowerPoint; experience with electronic file management (Microsoft OS and Google OS).
Independent initiative, ability to prioritize tasks, meet deadlines, and manage a workload without heavy supervision.
Professionalism and ability to represent an organization and its mission well to various stakeholders.
Excellent oral and written communications skills.
Attention to detail and excellent organizational skills.

Hours: The intern is expected to work 15-20 hours/week for an initial 4-month period. The internship may be extended for up to 12 months dependent upon availability and performance.

Compensation

This is an unpaid internship without salary; however, we do provide a small monthly stipend ($100) to support local transportation costs. Other benefits include:
Opportunity to work closely with and find mentorship from team members of a non-profit organization
Networking opportunities with the international peacebuilding community;
Skills development in communications, outreach, and event organizing;
Gaining experience with country-specific issues of interest;
Exposure and potential connections to local peacebuilding groups around the world;
Professional reference and career advice from a seasoned Washington DC peace advocate;
The chance to make a real contribution to Peace Direct’s work to support local peacebuilders.

Peace Direct has a small office located in a shared work space that provides free refreshments daily, as well as a wide range of information-sharing and networking opportunities with other socially oriented organizations.

How to Apply: Please send a cover letter and resume expressing your interest and why you think you are a good match for the position, along with two references, to Christine at contact@peacedirect.org. Applications will be considered until the position is filled.

International Programmes Officer, (six month contract – £26,000 per year, UK)

We are looking for a dynamic and passionate International Programmes Officer to provide short term additional capacity for our busy International Programmes team (this vacancy is a six month contract).

The postholder will work closely with 2-3 of Peace Direct’s local partners, including those from Francophone Africa, providing them with support and guidance to ensure that their peacebuilding work delivers the biggest impact for conflict affected communities. The work is varied and challenging and includes working with partners to develop new programmes, ensuring that existing programmes are monitored and implemented effectively, analysing narrative and financial reports from partners and supporting their general capacity building needs.

The ideal candidate will have excellent communication skills (including fluent written and spoken French, which is mandatory), at least 2 years’ experience in international programmes, the ability to stay calm under pressure and the ability to manage multiple priorities, while retaining the humility to always listen to and respect the voices of those living in conflict affected communities who are working tirelessly to build peace. This is a fast paced and demanding role, suitable for people who have a passion for peacebuilding who want to work alongside some remarkable local peacebuilding organisations around the world.

Local Peacebuilding Experts to report on peacebuilding work in: Myanmar and Somalia

Insight on Conflict provides information on local peacebuilding organisations in areas of conflict. We feature profiles of over 1,400 organisations around the world, as well as blog posts and key resources on peacebuilding. Key to our work is our network of ‘Local Peacebuilding Experts’, who help to research and write about peacebuilding and conflict around the world.

Peace Direct is currently seeking Local Peacebuilding Experts to report on peacebuilding work in: Myanmar and Somalia.

For this role, we require someone with contacts in the NGO or peacebuilding sector, a strong interest in the media and reporting, and excellent written and spoken English (in the case of Haiti and Mali, we can consider working with a Local Peacebuilding Expert who speaks French and not English, though English language skills are an advantage). The role is ideal for someone pursuing a career in peacebuilding with an interest in journalism. Local Peacebuilding Experts should be based in the country they cover; we may consider people living outside the country if they have exceptional links to the peacebuilding sector in that country. Priority will be given to local/national applicants.

The role is not full-time and is not salaried, though Local Peacebuilding Experts do receive some payment for work published on the website. The work is best suited for people with a passionate desire to share information on peacebuilding with a wide audience.

In their role, the primary area of work of the Local Peacebuilding Expert will be on investigating and supplying information on local peacebuilders. The Local Peacebuilding Expert is expected to occasionally submit posts to the Insight on Conflict blog. The blog gives space to Peace Direct and the Local Peacebuilding Experts to respond instantly to developments in conflicts around the world. It also offers a place for more personal reflections by the Local Peacebuilding Experts on their work.

If you are interested in becoming Insight on Conflict’s Local Peacebuilding Expert for any of the above countries, please send a CV, writing sample, and a short covering letter outlining your suitability for the role to Ruairi Nolan: ruairi.nolan@peacedirect.org

Deadline for applications: this is an open call for applications. Please note that if you are not a national of the country or region for which you are applying, or are not currently based in the country, your application will not be considered.