Adviser

World Bank Group•Washington, DC

About The Position

Working at the World Bank Group provides a unique opportunity for you to help our clients solve their greatest development challenges. The World Bank Group is one of the largest sources of funding and knowledge for developing countries; a unique global partnership of five institutions dedicated to ending extreme poverty on a livable planet, increasing shared prosperity and promoting sustainable development. With 189 member countries and more than 120 offices worldwide, we work with public and private sector partners, investing in groundbreaking projects and using data, research, and technology to develop solutions to the most urgent global challenges. For more information, visit www.worldbank.org. Background: The WBG Planet Vice Presidency is leading the WBG’s efforts to make the planet livable, as a necessary condition for job creation and poverty elimination. It is responsible for getting the right public and private sector solutions to our operational teams and to our clients, and to produce scalable impact. Its mandate is to deliver knowledge for impact and business to enable and support the WBG to achieve its goals in support of our mission and specifically: providing guidance on creating more and better jobs, focusing on agribusiness, tourism (nature-based tourism), infrastructure (water) and health (sanitation, nutrition); supporting foundational infrastructure and human capital, policy environment, and private sector mobilization; embedding physical and transition risks across the operations of all sectors and regions to enable climate smart development; and supporting and accelerating specific targets and commitments such as Mission AgriConnect, Mission Water, and the WBG Climate Change Action Plan. The VPU’s objectives in driving outcomes include replicating and scaling effective solutions, enhancing thought leadership and innovation, and delivering timely knowledge to client teams. WBG Climate Department The Planet Vice Presidency’s Climate Department’s role is to accelerate, enable, equip and coordinate WBG teams across all sectors, regions, and functions to integrate climate smart finance for maximum development impact. The Department supports the delivery of the Climate Change Action Plan which, inter alia, commits the WBG to align all of its investments with the Paris Agreement and to have 45% of WBG investments deliver climate co-benefits to complement their targeted development impacts. As climate-smart development is mainstreamed across all WBG functions and sectors of operation, the Climate Department provides specialist expertise to sector and regional teams and works to develop new solutions to cross-sector challenges. The department is made up of 6 units, two focused on Policy and Regulation and two focused on Solutions and Impact. The two Policy and Regulations units include: • Partnerships for Smart Development & Cross-Sector Expertise • Analytics & Policy for Adaptation & Mitigation Finance The four Solutions and Impacts units include: • Sustainable Finance & Transaction Solutions • Strategy, Learning & Operations • Carbon Finance Solutions • Market Building with Toolkits and Products

Requirements

In addition to meeting all Bank-wide Grade GH level position criteria (i.e., work in at least two world regions or a combination of regional and corporate assignments is required; field experience is preferred)
PhD in environment/natural resources, business, economics, international relations, public affairs, climate, finance, political science, social science, communications or other relevant discipline.
Minimum 12 years of relevant professional experience in policy development, political economy, relationship management, strategic communication, and reputational risk management.
Strong grasp of the strategic and political dimensions of climate change.
Excellent stakeholder engagement and diplomatic skills; adept at managing executive‑level partnerships with client governments and multilateral/bilateral partners.
Extensive experience leading complex, multi‑stakeholder initiatives and managing diverse work programs.
Proven record of policy and strategy development, translating strategic vision into actionable plans.
Deep knowledge of World Bank policies, procedures, and operational decision-making.
Demonstrated leadership of multidisciplinary teams; committed to mentoring across grades and technical areas.
Exceptional analytical, writing, and presentation skills, including simplifying complex technical topics for policy audiences.
Fluent in written and spoken English.
Entrepreneurial, proactive, and impact‑oriented, with a focus on analytical, operational, and knowledge work.

Responsibilities

Working with the Global Director and Department Managers, engage with the Board of Executive Directors, manage stakeholders across the WBG, liaise with senior management to navigate the authorizing environment regarding high-profile climate initiatives, strategies, and policies. Build buy-in among stakeholders and shareholders to develop sustainable strategy and policy solutions. Advise on the political economy regarding climate change within the WBG and internationally.
Working with the Global Director and ECR, productively engage external stakeholders and position WBG strategy and delivery constructively with governments, CSOs and other stakeholders to maintain recognition of WBG’s leadership and important role in the context of evolving strategy. Work with operational teams to support refinement of systems and processes to respond to and prepare for stakeholder concerns.
Liaise across the WBG, with a particular focus on IBRD/IDA operations, to help scale and replicate climate-smart solutions and to position the Climate Department as an operationally relevant enabler and catalyst of mainstreamed operations delivery of climate smart development at scale.
Collaborate with the Manager of Strategy, Learning and Operations on the strategic and structural integration of the Climate Department into the WBG Knowledge Bank and, as part of the Knowledge Bank, help establish a feedback loop between climate cutting-edge knowledge and operations.

Benefits

The World Bank Group offers comprehensive benefits, including a retirement plan; medical, life and disability insurance; and paid leave, including parental leave, as well as reasonable accommodations for individuals with disabilities.
We are proud to be an equal opportunity and inclusive employer with a dedicated and committed workforce, and do not discriminate based on gender, gender identity, religion, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or disability.

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