Carbon Project Manager

The Nature Conservancy•Washington, DC

About The Position

The Impact Finance & Markets Team at The Nature Conservancy provides technical and strategic leadership to create transformational impact with the private sector by translating the value of nature and conservation approaches into actionable, science-based strategies that can help solve societal challenges. Sitting in the Global Carbon Markets team, one of three teams in the IFM division, the Carbon Project Manager applies project management methodologies and best practices to carbon projects in the Natural Climate Solutions Accelerator (NCSA) program. They lead and support project teams to develop high-integrity carbon projects and establish investment-ready, sustainable social enterprises. The Carbon Project Manager leads and manages projects in the NCSA portfolio during the Project Design phase. They ensure seamless and integrated services delivery and advisory support from NCSA Technical, Social, Finance, and Business Incubator teams. The Carbon PM is responsible for successful delivery of project milestones and supporting project teams in developing the carbon project development document (PDD), preparing the project for validation, and building the business, operational, and financial capabilities needed to attract outside capital and establish a sustainable carbon business. The position is responsible for project management, administrative oversight, and stakeholder coordination to steer project teams to success across the carbon portfolio, while dedicating 20% of time to ongoing Business Incubator program design and management. The Carbon Project Manager applies advanced project management principles to lead cross-functional teams, managing the relationships between TNC’s Global Carbon Markets (GCM) team and regional Business Unit (BU) partners. The Carbon PM helps establish project goals and success metrics, develop project work plans, budgets, and timelines with input from key stakeholders, and critically assesses project scope and objectives to ensure all risks and dependencies are addressed. Throughout the project lifecycle, they monitor and measure progress, conduct corrective action as necessary, and communicate project status to all stakeholders. In addition, the Carbon Project Manager supports the continued development of the Business Incubator’s approach, curriculum, and tools to support continuous improvement and optimize the Incubator’s business operations. The Carbon PM ensures strong engagement from cohort projects, creates systems to capture learning and feedback loops to inform program design, and contributes to the Business Incubator's long-term scaling and optimization.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree and 5 years’ related experience, or equivalent combination of education and experience.
2 years of project management experience, or 1 year acting as a project lead on a complex, multi-stakeholder project, including experience managing and tracking multiple concurrent projects across varied teams and working with cross-functional staff.
Strong communication and presentation skills, including the ability to translate complex information for varied audiences.
Experience managing scheduling and financial aspects of small to large projects that range from short to long term.
Familiarity with business model development, social enterprises, or investment readiness frameworks, ideally in a carbon finance perspective.

Nice To Haves

Multi-lingual skills and cross-cultural experience; preference for Spanish or Swahili language proficiency.
Experience working with global projects or in emerging markets.
Certification in project management (PMP or equivalent) or other completed project management training, and experience applying project management tools and methodologies.
Experience in program or curriculum development, capacity building, business incubation/acceleration, or entrepreneurship support.
Successful track record implementing strategic program goals across complex, multi-stakeholder environments.
Experience in carbon markets, climate finance, natural climate solutions, or conservation finance.

Responsibilities

Manage a portfolio of developing carbon projects by applying project management methodologies and best practices through all phases of the project lifecycle.
Lead teams through the initiation and planning of projects by defining scope, schedule, and budget, then collaboratively developing project plans that break down the work, clarify roles, and mitigate risks.
Monitor and control progress throughout execution to help the team achieve milestones; actively identify and resolve issues to unblock the team, escalating where needed.
Lead administrative and contracting processes, and coordinate tasks and documentation across project design, investment readiness, and project implementation sub teams.
Manage relationships between the NCSA and regional BU partners, enabling appropriate influence and decision-making while ensuring a productive and positive collaboration.
Prepare reporting and updates tailored to different stakeholder groups; summarize and document key decisions, takeaways, and action points, turning insights into actionable forward movement.
Ensure programmatic commitments, TNC policies and procedures, financial standards, and legal requirements are met and managed for compliance.
Coordinate delivery of standard programming for Business Incubator cohorts, including managing facilitators, speakers, and mentors, driving engaged and high-value experience for participants, and cultivating cross-project pollination and learning.
Support and advance Business Incubator program design, contributing to approach, curriculum modules, and tooling to prepare carbon projects for investment and operationalization.
Contribute to the continued development of the cohort-based approach that enables flexibility for projects at different stages while balancing for program scalability.
Create systems to capture key takeaways, lessons learned, and feedback loops to inform future program design and growth, contributing to the Business Incubator’s programmatic strategy and optimization.
Maintain and refine data management for the Business Incubator, leveraging appropriate software to unlock efficient project tracking, investor and buyer engagement, and portfolio opportunities.
Monitor programmatic budget spend, track portfolio level KPIs, and develop quarterly reports.
Develop budget and project scope for all Business Incubator projects and track spend at project level.
Identify external trends, market opportunities, and collaboration prospects relevant to the Business Incubator’s portfolio and long-term positioning.