Interim Technical Advisor Climate Resilience & Adaptation

Care International Iraq

Core responsibilities

The Interim Technical Advisor Climate Resilience & Adaptation will ensure continuity of CARE Iraq s climate-related portfolio during a transition period of at least three months.

The Interim Technical Advisor will ensure continuity and quality of CARE Iraq s climate-related portfolio during a three-month transition period. The postholder will provide focused technical leadership on proposal development, climate strategy finalization, and ongoing program support.

Key priorities include

• Leading and contributing to proposal design and writing for three pipeline submissions:
  
  • ECHO Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) proposal (submission deadline: 18 January 2026)
  • IKI International Climate Initiative (IKI) / Bundesministerium f r Umwelt, Naturschutz, nukleare Sicherheit und Verbraucherschutz (BMUV) climate adaptation proposal
  • BENGO BMZ/BMZ-NGO Funding Program (Implemented through Bundesministerium f r wirtschaftliche Zusammenarbeit und Entwicklung BMZ and managed by Engagement Global)
• Supporting the finalization of CARE Iraq s Climate Capacity Statement and contributing to the refinement of the Country Office s emerging Climate Resilience Strategy.
• Providing technical support to ongoing climate and environmental programming, ensuring alignment with adaptation frameworks, donor expectations, and national standards.
• Working closely with the Country Director and Program teams to identify and pursue additional fundraising opportunities, including support to the continuation of the Mothercare project, through targeted donor engagement, concept note refinement, and climate-health positioning.

This interim role is designed to maintain momentum, ensure quality delivery of priority proposals, and sustain the strategic direction of CARE Iraq s climate resilience agenda.

Continuity of Climate Programming & Proposal Support

• Provide technical inputs to current climate, resilience, and environmental projects to ensure activities and outputs remain aligned with commitments to donors and partners.
• Support the design and review of concept notes and proposals that include climate resilience, adaptation, or environmental components, particularly those already in the pipeline.
• Ensure proposals integrate appropriate climate vulnerability considerations, basic adaptation strategies, and realistic indicators.
• Liaise with CARE Members, regional office, and relevant internal technical teams to ensure coherence with CARE s Climate Justice / Climate Resilience frameworks.

Technical Support to Implementation & MEAL

• Provide practical technical guidance to project and partner teams on integrating climate-resilient and environmentally responsible approaches into ongoing activities (e.g., livelihoods, protection, WEE, youth, WASH, etc.).
• Work closely with MEAL colleagues to:
  
  • Integrate relevant climate / resilience indicators into logframes and tools where appropriate.
  • Review monitoring data and reports to ensure climate and environmental dimensions are captured.
  • Support documentation of lessons learned and good practices from running projects.
• Review key donor reports and technical deliverables for climate / adaptation quality and coherence.

Capacity Support for Staff & Partners

• Conduct short, targeted orientations or refreshers (online or in-person) for CARE staff and selected partners on:
  
  • Basic concepts of climate change and adaptation in the Iraq context
  • Practical ways to make ongoing activities more climate-sensitive and resilient
• Provide on-the-job coaching for relevant program, MEAL, and partner staff involved in climate-related work.
• Share user-friendly tools, checklists, or simple guidance notes to support teams in integrating climate aspects in their daily work.

Internal Climate Responsibility & Green Team Support

• Coordinate and support the ongoing work of CARE Iraq s Green Team, focusing on feasible actions during the interim period (e.g., office practices, basic awareness, low-cost environmental measures).
• Provide light technical advice to HR, Admin, and Procurement on climate-sensitive and environmentally responsible practices (e.g., energy use, waste, procurement choices) where relevant and realistic in the short term.

Coordination, Representation & Learning

• Represent CARE Iraq, as requested by the Country Director, in key climate / environment / resilience coordination forums, working groups, or donor meetings, ensuring continuity of presence and messaging.
• Maintain cordial and professional relationships with key partners, line ministries, UN agencies, and other INGOs working on climate resilience and environmental issues.
• Ensure key success stories, lessons, and basic evidence from CARE s climate-related projects are captured and shared internally (e.g., short learning notes, talking points for CD/HoP, inputs for comms).

Qualifications

• University degree in a relevant field such as environmental science, natural resource management, climate change, water resources, agriculture, development studies, or related discipline.
• Minimum 3 5 years of experience in climate change adaptation, environmental sustainability, DRR, resilience programming, or related fields, preferably with INGOs or development/humanitarian agencies.
• Demonstrated experience providing technical support to project design and implementation (ideally including proposal and report review).
• Good understanding of the Iraq/KRI context and the links between climate risks, livelihoods, vulnerability, and social inequalities.
• Strong coordination and communication skills, including the ability to work with multiple teams and partners under time constraints.
• Fluency in English