Project Activity Lead (Sierra Leone)

About West Africa Blue

West Africa contains 14% of the world’s remaining mangroves. Along with immense carbon sequestration potential, these coastal ecosystems support a diverse amount of terrestrial and marine fauna, including IUCN Red List Threatened Species such as Hawksbill Turtles, Green Turtles, Slender-Snouted Crocodiles, the West African Manatee and the Timneh parrot. Yet these important coastal ecosystems are under increasing threat due to both climate change and human activities.

As a result, West Africa Blue (“Blue”) is on a mission to work hand-in-hand with communities and governments to preserve, restore and sustainably manage coastal ecosystems in West Africa through the development of high integrity coastal blue carbon projects. Our team is diverse, innovative, entrepreneurial, and committed.

We share a love of nature and a deep, longstanding connection to West Africa. We embody a balance of efficiency and speed of implementation with strong values and a mission-driven approach. Our goal is to set the highest standards for community engagement, transparency, and sustainability in our projects.

Blue was co-founded by Solon Capital Partners, a leading, West Africa-focused investor established in 2010 to provide capital and support to high-impact organizations throughout the region.

The Role

With our flagship project in Sierra Leone underway, Blue is seeking a dynamic professional to take on the exciting and critical role of Project Activity Lead with our Sierra Leone team. You will be joining a team that is passionate, collaborative, and fun. We share a sense of adventure and are united by the challenge of helping overcome one of the world’s biggest challenges.

The Project Activity Lead will be responsible for leading the following core functions:

• Coordinating and driving the implementation of Blue’s various project activities throughout the project areas.
• Collaborating with members of the Blue team and external consultants to design project activity work plans which you will manage.
• Ensuring that the company’s community social safeguarding processes and policies are upheld.
• Ensuring that documentation and reporting requirements related to project activities are met.
• Collaborating with the Blue team and external consultants to monitor, review, assess and as needed, refine project activity plans.
• Closely managing field teams and consultants to effectively implement project activities.
• Effectively managing stakeholder relationships.
  

What does success in this role look like?

• Blue’s project activities are being delivered at a high standard and on schedule.
• You have established deep, deferential and trusting relationships with the communities.
• Multiple workstreams and multiple resources are effectively managed in parallel.
• There is proactive, effective and consistent communication with the broader Blue team and external stakeholders.
• Problems are efficiently solved as they arise.
• Your ability to collaborate receives positive feedback from Blue’s stakeholders.
• Your colleagues regard you as a dependable and proficient team member.
• Blue is progressing towards and achieving our targets for restoration and addressing deforestation.
  

Qualifications and Experience:

• 2 – 3 years’ experience working in a high-paced, results-driven, team-oriented environment.
• Experience working within rural settings with local communities.
• Strong organizational skills; a track record for effectively juggling many tasks at once.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills; a demonstrated ability to produce high quality written work and reports.
• Experience managing teams of colleagues and/or consultants.
• Experience with capacity-building.
• A proven ability to problem-solve efficiently.

It will be beneficial for candidates to have the following:

• A master’s degree in environmental science, natural sciences, business, management, communications, or similar.
• Project management experience.
• Experience with climate action work, and/or community livelihood projects.
• Experience ensuring communities are deeply engaged with project processes and that community consent for the project is established.
• Experience working in Sierra Leone / West Africa.
• Proficiency in Krio.
  

The following attributes will be critical for success in this role:

• An open mindset and a strong sense of cultural awareness.
• Comfortable spending significant amounts of time in the field and in underdeveloped areas.
• A quick learner who can adapt efficiently.
• Passion and sense of urgency around nature-based solutions and communities.
• Hands-on problem solver.
• Energetic, proactive, respectful, and patient engagement with colleagues.

The Project Activity Lead will be based in Freetown, Sierra Leone, with regular trips to Blue’s project areas.

We offer competitive compensation packages akin to those at start-ups and fast-growing businesses.