Urban Food Systems Intern

The intern will assist the programme manager in coordinating and implementing activities to promote sustainable food systems and reduce food loss and waste at national and sub-national levels. Duties include supporting coalition coordination, conducting environmental impact assessments, planning joint activities, tracking global food systems processes, and developing communications content.

Responsibilities

• Support coordination of the day-to-day operations of UNEP-led coalitions and communities of practice on food systems and food waste, including organizing virtual meetings, drafting agendas, and preparing summaries and reports.
• Contribute to environmental, climate and GHG impact assessment related to food waste, including analysing relevant data and translating findings into evidence to inform policy and programme development.
• Assist in planning and implementing joint activities on sustainable urban food systems with UN agencies, civil society, cities, and private-sector partners.
• Track key global food systems processes (e.g. Climate and Biodiversity COPs) and support the organization of advocacy events during these processes.
• Liaise with thematic task teams and support information-sharing on UNEP sustainable food systems activities across the organization.
• Conduct research on sustainable food systems policies, governance, and climate impacts, and draft briefing notes, policy summaries, and presentations.
• Lead development of communications content, including newsletters, member updates, and event summaries.
• Support updates of the stopfoodlosswaste.org website.
• Explore and support articulation of UNEP’s role at the nexus between biodiversity, nutrition, and climate change, including identifying entry points for integrated food systems action.
• Contribute to new project research and development.
• Support administrative processes such as reporting and contracting of implementing partners.

Requirements

• Be enrolled in a graduate school programme (second university degree or equivalent, or higher) OR be enrolled in the final academic year of a university degree program (minimum Bachelor's level or equivalent) OR have graduated with a university degree and, if selected, must commence the internship within a one-year period of graduation.
• Be computer literate in standard software applications.
• Have demonstrated keen interest in the work of the United Nations and have a personal commitment to the ideals of the Charter.
• Have a demonstrated ability to successfully interact with individuals of different cultural backgrounds and beliefs, including willingness to try and understand and be tolerant of differing opinions and views.
• Master’s degree (completed or ongoing) in climate science, food systems and/or political science is valuable.
• Applicants to the UN Internship Programme are not required to have professional work experience.
• A field of study closely related to the type of internship applied for is required.
• Applicants must be a student in the final year of the first university degree (bachelor or equivalent), Master’s or Ph.D. Programme or equivalent, or have completed a Bachelor’s, Master’s or Ph.D. Programme.

Skills

• Sustainable Food Systems
• Environmental Impact Assessment
• Coalition Coordination
• Activity Planning
• Global Food Systems Tracking
• Communication Content Development
• Climate Change Knowledge
• Political Science Knowledge
• Standard Software Applications
• Cross-Cultural Communication

Languages

English, French, Spanish, Japanese, Portuguese