Principal Consultant, Sustainable Finance – Human Rights

ERM•Washington, DC

1d•Hybrid

About The Position

ERM is seeking a Principal Consultant, Sustainable Finance – Human Rights, based in Washington, DC to play a leadership role in advancing responsible investment and development outcomes globally. This Principal-level role sits at the intersection of finance, human rights, and social performance, working with leading financial institutions and corporates across North America, Latin America and the Caribbean, Europe, and beyond. You will help shape how capital is deployed—ensuring projects meet international standards, manage risk, and deliver meaningful environmental and social impact at scale. Sustainable finance is transforming how the world invests, builds, and grows—and human rights and social performance are central to that transformation. In this role, you will influence how financial institutions and corporates assess risk, comply with global lender standards, and integrate human rights into investment decision-making. Your expertise will help ensure that capital flows support resilient communities, responsible development, and long-term value creation. You will operate as a trusted advisor, project leader, and subject matter expert—guiding complex, multinational projects and shaping ERM’s sustainable finance offering. Your work will directly support transition finance, nature finance, green and sustainability-linked finance, and impact investing initiatives, while mentoring the next generation of consultants and strengthening ERM’s market leadership in social performance and human rights. ERM is the largest global pure play sustainability consultancy, partnering with the world’s leading organizations, creating innovative solutions to sustainability challenges and unlocking commercial opportunities that meet the needs of today while preserving opportunity for future generations. ERM's diverse team of world-class experts supports clients across the breadth of their organizations to operationalize sustainability, underpinned by deep technical expertise in addressing environmental, health, safety, risk and social issues. ERM is the world’s largest advisory firm focused solely on sustainability, offering unparalleled expertise across business and finance. ERM partners with clients to operationalize sustainability at pace and scale, through a unique combination of strategic transformation and technical delivery capabilities. The global team of experts works with the world’s leading organizations to help them set clear sustainability targets, measure progress and operationalize strategy through deep implementation and business transformation. With more than 50 years of experience, ERM's ability to integrate sustainability solutions and depth and breadth of technical knowledge are why organizations choose to partner with them as their trusted advisor. The company recruits exceptional professionals with a personal and professional passion for sustainability and nurtures them to even greater success as specialists, preparing consultants to bring integrated, innovative and sustainable solutions to clients and providing opportunities for ongoing development across a variety of subject areas related to technical, business, and personal growth.

Requirements

Degree in a relevant discipline (social sciences, international affairs, human rights, peace operations, or related field). Or equivalent experience.
6+ years (12+ preferred) of related experience in project management, human rights, and peace-building operations
Demonstrated passion for sustainability and a strong interest in sustainable finance
Proven ability to succeed in a fast-paced consulting environment, managing multiple projects, meeting strict deadlines, and traveling to client sites as needed
Excellent communication, interpersonal, and organizational skills, including experience authoring high-quality technical reports
Native-level English proficiency (spoken and written)
Fluency in Spanish (spoken and written)

Nice To Haves

Experience working with international financial institutions, development finance institutions, and private sector investors
Exposure to transition finance, nature finance, green finance, sustainability-linked finance, or impact investing
Experience leading multidisciplinary teams across regions
Prior client-facing consulting experience within environmental and social risk management

Responsibilities

Collaborate across ERM’s global practice areas to deliver best-in-class sustainable finance solutions, integrating expertise in human rights, peace-building, social impact, and environmental and social risk management
Support ERM Partners-in-Charge with effective project execution, quality control, and client engagement
Manage projects within agreed scope, budget, and schedule while ensuring high-quality deliverables
Lead, mentor, and develop junior consultants to produce consistent, high-quality outputs
Support business development activities, including proposal development, marketing materials, client pitches, and new service development
Build and maintain strong relationships with clients and internal stakeholders
Support development projects (renewable energy, power generation, electrical transmission, infrastructure, and other sectors) by applying international performance standards, human rights frameworks, and social performance best practices
Lead and manage the preparation of ESDDs, ESIAs, human rights and social management plans/systems, and project monitoring activities in line with national and international lender standards
Contribute directly to project delivery through report writing and review, data collection, surveys and fieldwork, literature reviews, and client recommendations
Review financed projects against host-country regulatory requirements and international lender standards through document reviews, site visits, interviews, and stakeholder engagement
Design and deliver client training and facilitate meetings on sustainable finance, impact assessments, and social performance
Collaborate with ERM practitioners on impact assessments and social studies, including labor and working conditions, supply chains, forced labor, community health and safety, compensation frameworks, resettlement action plans, Indigenous Peoples assessments, and information disclosure strategies
Serve as a subject matter expert in sustainable finance, with a focus on human rights and social components; lead training and technical development for junior consultants