District Cooling Consultant

Result of Service

The result of services is to support the Mitigation Branch and UNEP India Office in its efforts to accelerate investment and knowledge of district cooling in India and support government of India, state governments, public sector undertakings, cities, private players, academia and industry to accelerate uptake of district cooling by supporting the design, advocacy and operationalisation for sustainable operations of a knowledge hub for district cooling. By helping drive stakeholder engagement, advocacy, fund raising and strategic communications the consultant will build awareness, buy-in and support for the proposed DC Hub allowing it to scale and have a sustainable model for growth and impact.

Work Location

Remote

Expected duration

6 months

Duties and Responsibilities

The consultant is needed to perform tasks of a technical, organizational and advocacy nature, as part of the Buildings and Cooling Unit of the Mitigation Branch, Climate Change Division, United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). Specifically, a consultant is needed to technically support UNEP projects on scaling-up district cooling in India as part of a comprehensive approach to cooling in buildings and under the framework of the Cool Coalition.

The position will require significant liaison with UNEP Asia-Pacific Office, UNEP Paris office and UNEP Copenhagen Climate Centre. The consultant will be home-based.

The Cool Coalition is a global multi-stakeholder network that connects a wide range of key actors from government, cities, international organizations, businesses, finance, academia, and civil society groups to facilitate knowledge exchange, advocacy, and joint action towards a rapid global transition to efficient and climate-friendly cooling and heat resilience. The Secretariat of the Cool Coalition is based in UNEP.

The consultant’s assignment is to provide technical expertise, strategic and organizational support for stakeholder engagement, advocacy, knowledge development and dissemination of knowledge and best practices for district cooling in India and globally in close collaboration with knowledge and expertise under UNEP Copenhagen Climate Centre. This has as objective to support the government of India in accelerating the market and knowledge sharing for energy efficient and climate friendly District Cooling Systems, including through a proposed District Cooling (DC) hub in the country. The DC hub once operational intends to provide policy advisory, project support, technology transfer, training, and capacity building for the long-term support of the diffusion of energy-efficient District Cooling Systems in India.

As part of the hub’s operationalization strategy, several initiatives are currently underway which includes creating and strengthening a virtual knowledge centre for efficient cooling in the Indian context, review of possible alternatives for a physical competence centre, linking existing UNEP work on urban heat management strategies, passive and district cooling initiatives and establishing expert teams and networks to support effectively implement this initiative.

Beyond the government, public sector and engagement with global district cooling providers, consultants and private sector that UNEP already does through the Cool Coalition, UNEP has identified the need to engage with a variety of stakeholders in India that extend from urban planners, architects, engineering consulting firms, real estate developers, industry associations, local contractors and facility management companies alike through a focused engagement approach that supports its objective for the diffusion of market knowledge for more rapid adoption of energy efficient district cooling systems.

The consultant will support UNEP’s mapping and engagement of these stakeholders and to develop, refine and disseminate knowledge products, training materials, communication pieces and draft recommendations. The consultant will organize and technically support capacity building and strategic communication events and coordinate with relevant local and international stakeholders to ensure high quality of outputs. The consultant will ensure timely delivery of work packages, outputs, and deliverables as outlined in the project work plan.

Qualifications/special skills

The consultant should have a first level university degree recognised by the United Nations. A minimum of five years of experience in a relevant field of work, preferably with focus on conducting market research, stakeholder mapping and engagement or strategic communication activities. Expertise on India and experience engaging government, industry, finance and academia in India. Advanced experience in communication and stakeholder engagement and management. Experience on district cooling market development in India and engaging multiple stakeholders in project development and partnership building is essential. Qualifying years of experience are calculated following the receipt of the first level university degree recognized by the United Nations

Languages

English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For this post, fluency in written and oral English is required.

Additional Information

Not available.

No Fee

THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.