Associate Director, Sustainable Finance

Major Function

The Associate Director, Sustainable Finance leads the conception, creation, and implementation of Bezos Earth Fund initiatives on sustainable finance and works under the supervision of the Director of Sustainable Finance, Industry and Diplomacy. The Earth Fund is developing a number of large-scale initiatives to increase the flow of climate and nature positive finance (both public and private) globally and to improve the alignment of private and public financial institutions’ financing and investment portfolios with Paris and SDG goals. We seek a self-starting senior professional with expertise in sustainable finance – ideally both public and private – and experience in conceiving, building, and managing multi-stakeholder initiatives at large scale.

Key Responsibilities

The successful candidate will demonstrate strong skills in strategy formulation and multi-stakeholder convening and communication; fluency in technical matters related to lending and investment, and familiarity with the climate finance ecosystem and discourse. Given the small size of the Earth Fund team, the Associate Director will take responsibility for the development of major initiatives with guidance from the Director and must be comfortable working in both autonomous and collaborative modes and directly managing senior relationships with partners and grantees.

Specifically, the Associate Director will:

• Lead the Earth Fund’s engagement with stakeholder groups, grantees, and partner foundations to advance its initiatives in the area of sustainable finance, including representing the Earth Fund at high-level meetings and organizing convenings as appropriate;
• Provide guidance and support for convenings of stakeholders, experts, and the public;
• Support strategy development, grantmaking activities and project implementation;
• Help identify, vet, and recommend organizations for grant funding;
• Collaborate with partners and grantees on project design and proposals
• Manage grant portfolios and relationships with partners/grantees.
• Provide ongoing collaboration, technical expertise, and advisement.
• Ensure that equity remains a priority in grantmaking activities.
• Reviews the performance outcomes and status of all activities, evaluates results and makes recommendations for corrective action.
• Assist with data capture, analysis and reporting for grants awarded in specified region(s) to support learning, assessment, thought leadership and storytelling activities.
• Participate in learning and evaluation activities to guide the evolution of programmatic work.
• May supervise the work of consultants, interns, and others as appropriate
• Performs other duties as assigned.

 Education and Experience

•  A graduate degree or equivalent experience in sustainable finance or a related discipline is required.
•  Position requires a minimum of 12 years of experience in sustainable investment, research, multistakeholder program development, and/or diplomacy.
•  Familiarity with philanthropic work and experience working in international organizations preferred.

Skills and Abilities

• A deep commitment to the mission and values of the Earth Fund
• Good understanding of the core scientific, economic, and political issues relating to decarbonization and, preferably, nature conservation and restoration.
• Strong knowledge of technical, economic, and political dimensions of sustainable finance challenges and solutions
• Preference for direct experience with project finance or investment processes within public or private financial institutions
• Strong written and oral communication skills, both analytical and persuasive
• Strong research and analytical skills
• Strong organizational skills and project management skills, with demonstrated ability to work effectively in and across teams.
• Ability to operate with independence, under pressure, to meet deadlines and commitments from multiple and competing priorities.
• Ability to work easily with and communicate effectively with people from a variety of backgrounds, cultures, and stakeholder groups.
• A naturally collaborative mindset that readily engages others, encourages others to share the spotlight, and celebrates and supports the success of colleagues, partners, and grantees.
• Fluency in English
• Good communication skills in an additional language, such as Spanish, French, or Mandarin is a plus.

Physical Requirements and Working Conditions

• Prolonged periods sitting at a desk and working on a computer.
• May require extended hours for urgent issues or to meet established deadlines.
• This position will begin working remotely and will become hybrid nearing the end of the year
• This position is based in Washington, DC