Duma Works: Research Associate, Clean Energy Access Job 2019

By | July 17, 2019
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Duma Works: Research Associate, Clean Energy Access Job 2019

Duma Works has partnered with CEA Recruiting to assist CLASP in their recruitment efforts for the position of Research Associate, Clean Energy Access.
CLASP’s mission is to improve the energy and environmental performance of the appliances & equipment we use every day, accelerating our transition to a more sustainable world.
We serve as the leading international voice and resource for appliance energy efficiency policies and market acceleration initiatives. In this role, we have worked with over 100 countries over the last 20 years. From advancing the off-grid solar technologies, bringing power to energy-impoverished people, to cutting the catastrophic climate impacts of air conditioning, CLASP programs increase uptake of affordable, low-impact, high-quality appliances.

We’re mission-driven, impacts-focused, and committed to a culture of diversity, transparency, and collaboration. We are headquartered in Washington, D.C. and have a strong and growing presence in our Nairobi office. This dynamic team manages and supports our East Africa and Global Programs. See our Team Page to learn more about our organization.

Why Join CLASP’s Market Development & Innovation (MD&I) Team

CLASP’s MD&I team works in partnership with stakeholders across Africa and South Asia to improve markets for energy-efficient, high-quality appliances, both on and off the grid.
Our team provides world-class technical and advisory services aimed at developing global off-grid appliance markets. We conduct cutting-edge research and share information widely; we develop test methods and evaluate products to identify top performers and ensure quality; we engage with leading product manufacturers and downstream market stakeholders to identify and address market barriers; we run competitions to identify best-in-class products and reward innovation; and we provide financial incentives to buyers of those products to drive scale.
As our global portfolio continues to grow, we are expanding our team to ensure we can deliver the best possible outcomes. We are looking for motivated professionals who are excited to join a dynamic and diverse international organization that is deeply committed to its mission and values of collaboration, transparency, and service.

Research Associate, Clean Energy Access

CLASP is seeking an experienced and motivated professional with an interest and/or background in energy access, international development, policy, and/or engineering to help us execute our portfolio of clean energy access initiatives. Central among these is an ambitious research and innovation program known as Low-Energy Inclusive Appliances (LEIA), which focuses on accelerating off- and weak-grid markets for highly efficient appliances. LEIA is a flagship programme of the Efficiency for Access Coalition (EforA). LEIA, funded by the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development, supports a suite of high-impact market development, technical, policy, research, and innovation interventions. Importantly, LEIA research supports a variety of existing energy access programs, including but not limited to:

  • The Efficiency for Access (EForA) Coalition: This coalition functions as the coordinating framework and knowledge hub for efforts by affiliated partner organizations, for which the largest project at this time is LEIA. The EforA Coalition is as a partnership of like-motivated development and donor institutions collaborating on policy, market, and research activities and interventions, as well as a coordinating, convening, and knowledge-sharing platform for non-donor stakeholders and partners.
  • The Lighting Global Quality Assurance Framework: This is a highly effective third-party certification and market development program for off-grid lighting products, including solar lanterns and solar home system kits.
  • Equip Data: This program is a high-impact effort to test off-grid appliances according to international laboratory best practices, aggregate and share the data, and work with global stakeholders, including investors, policymakers, manufacturers, and purchasers, to interpret and use the data.
  • The Global LEAP Awards & Off-Grid Appliance Procurement Incentives Program: This program couples the Global LEAP Outstanding Off-Grid Appliance Awards with results-based financing procurement incentives to drive best-in-class appliances into emerging off-grid markets. The program also features a variety of other market development activities, such as policy technical assistance and market research, and a robust monitoring and evaluation framework.

The Associate will work as part of a dynamic international team to contribute to the success of LEIA and related initiatives. They will work collaboratively with CLASP team members in the United States, East Africa, India, and Europe, as well as a wide network of international partners and program stakeholders. They will create, measure, and report LEIA/EforA programmatic impacts, and will be responsible for a wide and diverse range of activities related to the development and execution of programmatic, organizational, and energy access goals.

The ideal candidates will be able to demonstrate skill and success in some or all of the following areas:

knowledge about appliance energy efficiency, enabling technologies, and product markets and supply chains as related to energy access; excellent people skills; data cleaning and analysis; data visualization; research methods and design; technology research and development; effective project management, coordination of productive and collegial institutional partnerships; experience developing effective published resources and materials; effective verbal and written communications about technical topics to both subject matter experts and laypeople; extraordinary commitment to impacts, results, and world-class work product; and a sense of humor.

Box checkers need not apply. Creative, open-minded, innovative self-starters welcome.

Primary Duties and Responsibilities

Research Implementation

  • Contribute to design and implementation of research projects and activities that will further LEIA’s objectives to double the efficiency and halve the costs of a suite of technologies in emerging economies.
  • Effectively work with consultants, partners and CLASP staff that are implementing LEIA market, consumer, and impacts research activities. Ensure that consultants have all the required information to adhere to realistic timelines, stay within budget, and produce high-quality outputs.
  • Conduct and roll out LEIA programmatic work within the larger context of partner, sectoral, and CLASP efforts. This will include collaboration with CLASP colleagues on research and implementation components of related programs (e.g. Off-grid cold chain challenge, Global LEAP RBF) to share lessons learned on research and implementation methods and data collected.
  • Support the deployment of the Efficiency for Access Research and Development grant fund. This will include promoting grant calls to companies based in Africa, providing support to the team that oversees and manages the grantees, and sharing lessons learned between LEIA R&D and research projects.

Partnership building and communication

  • Build and coordinate support for research and R&D activities among key constituents, including industry leaders, academic institutions, trade associations, government decision-makers, and donor organizations.
  • Work with CLASP’s communications team and research lead to produce high-quality, peer-reviewed donor and public-facing research reports that will serve as industry benchmarks and communicate the impacts of the Efficiency for Access Coalition, the LEIA program, and off- and weak-grid appliances more broadly.
  • Take LEIA generated knowledge products, resources, and tools, and work with research lead to inspire and facilitate impact-oriented follow-on activity and market/program/policy action.

Project Management support

  • Track, and monitor the outputs, outcomes, and impacts of LEIA research activities. Contribute to regular (biweekly, quarterly, and annual) reporting to the client.
  • Participate and track actions from team, donor and partner meetings.
  • Contribute to the development of annual work plans for the LEIA research workstream
  • Contribute research learnings to programmatic monitoring and evaluation efforts

Qualifications

  • Three to six years of experience in research, business development and/or program administration; experience in the off-grid clean energy sector or analogous sectors preferred.
  • Deep familiarity with energy access, energy efficiency, off-grid/rural electrification, agriculture or emerging market product distribution and/or supply chains is highly preferred.
  • Experience working within and collaborating across international, matrixed program teams. In addition, experience overseeing the work of subcontractors strongly preferred.
  • Experience with collecting, cleaning and analyzing large sets of data. Direct experience in implementation and management of research projects strongly preferred.
  • Ability to translate complex technical information to industry, policy, and investor audience required.
  • An ability to establish, build, and continually reinforce confidence in a variety of internal and external stakeholder groups and constituencies will be essential to success
  • Time management and organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple tasks at once
  • A strong work ethic is a must, as is the ability to maintain composure, flexibility, and a sense of humor under tight deadlines.
  • Willingness and ability to travel often, sometimes to remote locations and at short notice.
  • Exceptional written and spoken English a must as well as Proficiency with Microsoft Office suite, especially Word and Excel.
  • Proficiency in French; read, write, and communicate fluently in French, a plus.
  • Bachelor’s degree required; Graduate degree in a relevant field (e.g., engineering, international relations, development, economics, environmental science) preferred.

Compensation and Location

The compensation package at CLASP is highly-competitive with international NGOs based in Kenya. In addition to salary, the package includes health insurance, unlimited leave, holidays, and a retirement plan. Additionally, CLASP is committed to team members having a work-life balance through its flexible work policy. This position is full-time and based in the organization’s Nairobi, Kenya office.

Apply

To apply online click here or send your Cover Letter and detailed CV to apply@jobs.dumaworks.com marking the subject as “3635”, Your Full name & Phone number e.g. 3635 Barack Obama, +2547xxxxxxxx. If you don’t follow these instructions, your application will not go through.

Deadline for receiving applications: Wednesday, 7 August 2019