Result of Service

The ultimate result of the intervention is the development of a standardized and harmonized protocol that will be subjected to validation by the AISCC’s member countries, and other key stakeholders, with the support of ECA. The standardized protocol will be used by all member countries of the AISCC.

Work Location

Home based

Expected duration

3 months

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the overall guidance of the Director a.i. Climate Change, Food Security and Natural Resources Division and the direct supervision of the Environmental Affairs Officer – Carbon Credit Markets Development, the consultant will assume the following duties and responsibilities: 1. Develop a harmonized protocol for accounting and reporting GHG including carbon emission migrated to be used by the member countries of the AISCC. The protocol will follow the internationally established accounting principles and standards, in all steps including eligibility criteria, monitoring and evaluation, reporting, etc. 2. Map out and assess/review/discuss the existing practices followed by the member countries of the AISCC in designing and implementing programmes/projects relating to GHG reduction, avoidance, and removal including through Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation, plus the sustainable management of forests, and the conservation and enhancement of forest carbon stocks (REDD+, energy efficiency/energy switching, waste management, agriculture including rice cultivation. On REDD+, the following aspects will be covered. • Existing rules, norms, regulations, and practices in the AISCC’s country members in in GHG reduction, avoidance, and removal markets. • REDD+ process and funding mechanisms focusing on offset cycles, average market prices. • Volumes and prices by project types. • Transactions happening between primary markets and secondary markets, covering project developers, brokers, retailers, and end buyers by sectors including consumer goods, finance, airlines, energy, food and beverage, shipping, etc. • Drivers of price volatility. • Existing types of projects, e.g., avoided unplanned deforestation, avoided planned deforestation, afforestation/reforestation, improved forest management, sustainable agriculture, renewable, etc. 3. Include in the standardized protocol additional aspects that are suitable to the socioeconomic, geophysical, climatological, and other conditions of the countries and/or locations for which the protocols will be applicable. Countries will be selected by ECA and AISCC and informed to the consultant upon the commencement of the contract. 4. Deliberate and agree with ECA and AISCC on relevant aspects to be added to the eligibility and other criteria, notably the following: (i) Accounting guidelines: project definition, offset crediting, reference standards following internationally established principles including ISO14064, WRI/WBCSD GHG protocols, etc., project location, performance standard, tests, assessment boundaries, quantification of emissions, project monitoring, handling of double-counting, methods of calculation including forecasting approaches. (ii) Project/programmes rules and procedures (at the AISCC level and country level): registration of accounts, submittal, fees, listing, titles, conflict of interests, project completion, verification, validation, and reporting, managing over issuances, appeals, and grievances, etc. 5. Adapt the protocols to the following areas based on the needs/priorities of the assessed country/location/region. i. Land and land use • Mangrove restoration • Wetland restoration/management • Afforestation • Agroforestry • Grassland land management • Improved forest management • Regenerative agriculture • Urban forestry • Etc. ii. Energy and industry • Cleaner cookers • Hydropower • Solar power • Wind energy • Waste management/recycling/re-use, etc. 6. Recommend efficient ways to tackle the following. • Mutual recognition of protocols. • Shared carbon market infrastructure including such key issues as development of common registry of offsets, communication among members’ registries, and avoidance of double counting. • Increased mitigation ambition, using case-by-case review and negotiation, learning from WTO, or UNFCCC’s 2013 Warsaw Framework from REDD, etc. • Human and institutional capacity development, mainly in the application of the Article 6 (6,2) of the Paris Agreement on cooperation in the areas of international transfer of mitigation outcomes. • Increase access to green investment capital. • Boarder carbon adjustment, following the WTO and other rules.

Qualifications/special skills

An advanced university degree (Masters’ degree, or preferably PhD) in environmental sciences, environmental economic, forestry, environmental engineering, energy economics, with a specialization in GHG emission monitoring, forecasting using numerical and other relevant models, accounting, reporting, and trading is required. Seven years or more of relevant international or regional experience in developing international standards and/or protocols, or methodologies for accounting mitigated blue carbon emissions, and developing and implementing programmes/projects on blue carbon mitigation, are required. A track record of publications in peer reviewed journals, contribution to intergovernmental reports relating to blue carbon mitigation, oceanography, marine sciences, climate economics, environmental management, and sound intellectual leadership in areas relevant to the evaluation is required. Contribution to international debates relating to climate change, and development planning is required. Experience of working in Africa and knowledge of AISCC member countries is required.

Languages

English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For this consultancy, fluency in English or French (both written and spoken) is required, with a working knowledge of the other language. Fluency in French is highly desirable

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.