Result of Service

The Consultant will provide support to the Consumer Information Area of Excellence of the 10YFP.The consultancy will result in a comprehensive assessment of the readiness and perspectives of textile companies in China, regarding the implementation of Digital Product Passports. The final outputs will include a structured company mapping, a validated survey tool, and a consolidated report analyzing survey findings. The results will provide insights into industry challenges, opportunities, and potential pathways for adoption, supporting the broader objectives of the UNIDO-UNEP collaboration. Output expectations: – Participate in training and informational sessions with the UNIDO-UNEP coordination team to align on project objectives, methodologies, and expectations. – Identify at least 30 relevant textile companies along the entire value chain in China for participation in the assessment and establish communication with key stakeholders within those companies. – Draft and finalize the survey, ensuring clarity, relevance, and alignment with project objectives. – Conduct 30 in-person interviews with company representatives to facilitate survey completion and gather qualitative insights. – Compile survey results, analyze key findings, and prepare a comprehensive report following the provided templates. – Deliver a virtual presentation summarizing key results and insights to project team. Specific tasks and responsibilities: 1st deliverables company mapping report and the finalized survey. The company mapping report will include a structured list of identified textile companies in China, along with confirmed interview schedules and key contact details. The finalized survey will be submitted as a standalone document, ensuring alignment with project objectives and industry relevance, ready for implementation in the next phase. 2nd deliverables: a survey results report and a virtual presentation. The survey results report will compile and analyze responses from participating companies, following the provided reporting template. It will present key insights, trends, and relevant observations. The final virtual presentation will summarize the findings and facilitate discussions with project stakeholders, supported by a set of presentation slides.

Work Location

Remote

Expected duration

2 months

Duties and Responsibilities

The United Nations Environment Programme is the United Nations system’s designated entity for addressing environmental issues at the global and regional level. Its mandate is to coordinate the development of environmental policy consensus by keeping the global environment under review and bringing emerging issues to the attention of governments and the international community for action. UNEP’s medium-term strategy (MTS) 2022 – 2025 identifies unsustainable patterns of production and consumption as the main underlying cause for the three planetary crises of climate change, nature loss and pollution. To address these interconnected issues requires an integrated approach that focuses on climate, biodiversity, and pollution requiring substantial financial and economic transformations towards a more resource-efficient, circular economy. The consultant will work for the Consumer Information Area of Excellence of the 10YFP to support the implementation of the project “Greening Supply and demand: Advancing Eco-Labels and Sustainable Public Procurement for climate and biodiversity protection (Eco-Advance)”. The project aims to advance more sustainable patterns of consumption and production through employing the policy tools of ecolabelling (led by UNEP) and sustainable public procurement (led by GIZ). The project is financed by the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Nuclear Safety and Consumer Protection (BMUV), through the International Climate Initiative. The project is developed in collaboration with the Consumer Information Programme under the One Planet Network. The consultant will provide support the implementation of the EcoAdvance project, especially the workstream “Digital Product Passport Assessment Study for the Textile Study in the Global South”. Digital Product Passport (DPP) will support Type I ecolabels by enhancing transparency, traceability, and verification of environmental claims through digital access to product data. It helps ecolabels ensure compliance with sustainability criteria, combat greenwashing, and provide up-to-date information throughout the product lifecycle. The project aims to identify capacity and readiness gaps among textile companies in the Global South to implement emerging digital product passport regulations and policies as an increasingly relevant tool to provide product information advancing sustainable consumption and production. The assessment is developed in collaboration with the United Nations Industrial Development Organization.

Qualifications/special skills

– Advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in sustainability, environmental sciences, industrial engineering, textile technology, business administration, economics, or a related discipline. – At least 3 years of progressively responsible working experience in sustainability, circular economy, digital product information systems, or corporate environmental responsibility. – Experience conducting industry research and stakeholder engagement, including company outreach, interviews, and data collection. – Familiarity with digital product passports, supply chain transparency, or sustainability reporting in the textile or manufacturing sectors is desirable. – Proven experience in survey design, data analysis, and report writing, preferably for international organizations or industry assessments. – Experience working with companies in China, the Global South or within an international development context is an asset. – Experience in organizing and delivering presentation in workshops, events, webinars is required – Experience working for UNEP, the UN system or an international organization is desirable – Excellent written and oral communication skills. – Ability to work independently and support a multi-disciplinary team, using independent judgment to plan, prioritize and organize a diverse workload in a fast-paced environment.

Languages

For the post advertised, fluency in oral and written English is required. Fluency in oral and written Chinese is also 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.