Senior Environmental and Social Risk Specialist

Summary

This position is located in the Office of Development Policy (ODP) at the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), and conducts complex environmental and social (E&S) risk assessments for projects which identify, assess, and avoid adverse E&S impacts under consideration for DFC support, across the spectrum of products, including debt finance, insurance, equity finance, or financial intermediaries.

Duties

• As a Senior E&S Risk Specialist, you will: Identify, collect, and provide in-depth analysis of relevant data concerning the potential impact of proposed projects on the environment, workers, and communities of the host country. Review and assess prospective and active DFC clients and supported projects for their alignment and compliance with DFC's environmental and social requirements, including the International Finance Corporation (IFC) Performance Standards and DFC's Environmental and Social Policy and Procedures (ESPP). Ensure E&S impacts are appropriately assessed and risks mitigated through review of E&S plans, policies, and procedures. Prepare E&S clearances and other assessments, reviews or studies as required. Make recommendations to DFC management regarding project eligibility and conditionality on E&S grounds and specify E&S conditions of default to be included in DFC finance, insurance, equity, and investment funds agreements. Identify projects requiring additional technical studies as required and prepare the terms of reference for such assessment, using relevant World Bank, IFC, and other internationally recognized and appropriate guidelines. Monitor the actual environmental, health, safety, and social impacts of previously approved DFC projects through analysis of investor and third-party monitoring reports, review and tracking of deliverables and through site visits. Compare actual E&S impact with original projections and prepare analytical reports outlining findings. Demonstrate expertise in synthesizing complex technical E&S issues into succinct and comprehensible summaries appropriate for non-technical audiences. Draft portions of reports and briefings to Congress and other external DFC stakeholders on the impact of DFC-assisted projects on the environment and communities. Draft E&S sections of Investment Committee and Board papers. Provide clear and effective briefings, written or oral, to DFC staff, DFC management, DFC Investment Committee, and DFC's Board of Directors. Draft E&S conditions for inclusion into DFC contractual agreements with its clients. Develop and deliver monitoring and diligence trip read out presentations. Support agency lessons learned based on technical knowledge and learnings of E&S matters in presentations, written procedures, guidance, and other tools for ODP, DFC staff, DFC clients, and external stakeholders. Please Note: This is a Bargaining unit position represented by AFGE, local 1534.

Qualifications

Applicants must meet all eligibility and qualification requirements no later than the closing date of this announcement. You may qualify at the GS-14 level, if you fulfill the following qualification requirements: A. One year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-13 grade level in the Federal service that demonstrates your experience in all of the following: Conducting environmental and social risk assessments (such as, assessment of risks and impacts related to biodiversity, natural and critical habitats, ecosystem services, land acquisition, involuntary resettlement, Indigenous Peoples, cultural heritage, labor and working conditions, community health and safety, stakeholder engagement, and vulnerable or historically marginalized groups) for finance, insurance, equity, investment fund, or financial intermediary projects; Reviewing technical studies, monitoring reports, or management plans to evaluate compliance with international environmental and social standards, such as IFC Performance Standards; Preparing written analyses, clearances, reports, recommendations, briefing materials, or contract conditions that identify risks, compliance gaps, mitigation measures, or corrective actions; and Providing technical guidance or coordinating with internal and external stakeholders to communicate environmental and social issues and support project decisions. Note: Education is not substitutional at this grade level. The ideal candidate will have direct experience with land acquisition, involuntary resettlement, Indigenous Peoples, cultural heritage, labor and working conditions, community health and safety, stakeholder engagement, and vulnerable or historically marginalized groups. Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. This position is being advertised concurrently with vacancy announcement 26-ODP-ST-13054141-BN using Merit Promotion (MP) procedures. If interested, refer to that announcement to determine if you meet MP requirements and can apply to that announcement. NOTE: You must apply separately to each announcement in order to be considered under both. This announcement may be used to fill similar positions, if additional vacancies occur.

Education

This job does not have an education qualification requirement.

How to apply

Please read the entire announcement and all the instructions before you begin an application. To apply and be considered for this position, you must complete all required questionnaires, assessments and submit all required documentation as specified in the How to Apply and Required Documents section. The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET) on the closing date of the announcement to receive consideration. The application process is as follows: Click the Apply Online button. Answer the questions presented in the application and attach all necessary supporting documentation. Click the Submit Application button prior to 11:59 PM (ET) on the announcement closing date. If you are required to complete any USA Hire Assessments, you will be notified after submitting your application. The notification will be provided in your application submission screen and via email. The notification will include your unique assessment access link to the USA Hire system and the completion deadline. Additionally, in USAJOBS you can click "Track this application" to return to your assessment completion notice. Access USA Hire using your unique assessment link. Access is granted through your USAJOBS login credentials. Review all instructions prior to beginning your assessments. You will have the opportunity to request a testing accommodation before beginning the assessments should you have a disability covered under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended. Set aside about two (2) hours to take the USA Hire Assessments; however, most applicants complete the assessments in less time. If you need to stop the assessments and continue later, you can re-use your unique assessment link. Your responses to the USA Hire Assessments will be reused for one year (in most cases) from the date you complete an assessment. If future applications you submit require completion of the same assessments, your responses will be automatically reused. Visit the USA Hire Applicant Resource Center for practice assessments and assessment preparation resources at https://support-usahire.opm.gov/hc/en-us. To update your application, including supporting documentation: During the announcement open period, return to your USAJOBS account, find your application record, and click Edit my application. This option will no longer be available once the announcement has closed. To view the announcement status or your application status: Visit https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/howto/application/status/. Your application status page is where you can view your application status, USA Hire assessment completion status, and review your notifications sent by the hiring agency regarding your application. Do not submit photographs with your application package. Documents with photographs may not be seen by hiring officials - you must remove your image from any badges, licenses, etc. If your resume includes a photograph or other inappropriate material or content (e.g. SSN or DOB), your resume will not be used to make eligibility and qualification determinations and you will not be considered for this vacancy. Documents submitted as part of the application package, to include supplemental documents, may be shared beyond the Human Resources Office. Some supplemental documents such as military orders and marriage certificates may contain personal information for someone other than you. You may sanitize these documents to remove another person's personal information before you submit your application. You may be asked to provide an un-sanitized version of the documents if you are selected to confirm your eligibility. Do not upload Adobe portfolio documents. Adobe portfolio documents are not viewable by our agency's staffing offices. It is your responsibility to ensure all required documents have been submitted prior to the closing date of the announcement.