Senior Advisor, Scientific Climate Council

Senior Advisor, Scientific Climate Council

Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy / Scientific Climate Council (WKR)

Job Description

As a senior advisor at the Scientific Climate Council (WKR), you will play a crucial role in providing scientific and strategic policy advice to the government and parliament on climate policy. As a member of the Secretariat of the Scientific Climate Council (WKR), you will collaborate with council members to develop recommendations on major long-term climate issues. You will be involved in a wide range of cross-domain and cross-sector climate issues.

As a senior advisor, you will alternate between a leadership role and a collaborative role in the development of recommendations. You will support the board, the executive director of the secretariat, and fellow advisors in making decisions regarding both content and process. You will also be responsible for preparing the content and drafting recommendations.

You will be involved with many different scientific disciplines. The WKR and its advisory services will draw on a wide range of expertise. You will also maintain contact with various government agencies. From an administrative and organizational standpoint, the WKR falls under the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy, but it operates autonomously and independently.

As a senior advisor, one of your first assignments will be to prepare a WKR advisory report for the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy in preparation for the five-year Climate Plan (as referred to in the Climate Act). This advisory report will be published prior to the adoption of a new Climate Plan. Since the next Climate Plan is scheduled to be adopted in 2024, the Council’s first advisory report must be published by the end of 2023 at the latest.

This advice must be based on the latest scientific insights. At the same time, it is important that the advice takes into account different perspectives and societal values. To this end, you and your colleagues will collaborate with scientists and other advisors. You study scientific publications and stay abreast of the latest (technological) and societal developments. You contribute to high-quality, authoritative, and independent advice.

What will you be doing?

Your responsibilities:

• In consultation with and/or under the guidance of council members, the executive secretary, and fellow advisors, contribute ideas to WKR projects (problem definition, approach, methodology, partnerships, and helping to ensure the timely delivery of the final result).
• As a senior consultant, you may serve as a project coordinator or project manager for one of the WKR projects. This will depend on the workload allocation for that year. You will oversee the development of consulting projects and provide day-to-day leadership to fellow consultants on your project team. In doing so, you will provide guidance on both process and content.
• Preparing the agenda for council meetings, in consultation with the executive secretary, as it pertains to your projects and recommendations.
• Working with fellow advisors to develop evidence-based recommendations. By their very nature, these recommendations are long-term in focus, multidisciplinary and cross-sectoral, relevant to national and international policy, complex, and politically sensitive.
• Independently translate issues or topics into various substantive (sub)project plans and translate these into (specific) research questions. Ensure the integration of all available or obtained (scientific) information and propose potential solutions drawing on diverse fields of expertise.
• Based on this, you will draft internal documents for the council, advisory reports, and other (academic) articles. When necessary, you will assist the project support staff in accurately recording council meetings.
• Provide substantive guidance to contractors, for example when commissioning sub-studies. Maintain good working relationships with external parties, such as research institutes, universities, and government agencies.
• You stay abreast of developments in the field, identify and propose initiatives for new research, establish partnerships, apply new methods, and so on, and are able to translate these into relevant policy recommendations. In doing so, you keep an eye on developments in related fields and delve into the social trends that influence them.
• You ensure that the recommendations remain relevant in terms of their impact. You ensure that the council’s recommendations offer practical solutions with a view to feasibility and broad support.

The WKR is seeking several senior advisors for its secretariat to help shape and implement its recommendations.

Job Requirements

• Academic level of thinking and work (master’s degree). Preferably with experience at a knowledge-intensive organization.
• Demonstrable interest in and experience with climate issues.
• Experience with project-based work.
• Experience in guiding and designing (literature) research and writing (policy) advisory reports.
• Strong analytical, writing, and presentation skills.
• Networking skills.
• A keen sense of social and cultural trends to identify emerging trends.

Terms of Employment

Salary level: Grade 12

Monthly salary: Min. €4,092 – Max. €6,045 (gross)

Employment status: Permanent employment contract

Minimum number of hours per week: 32

Maximum number of hours per week: 36

Other terms and conditions of employment

In addition to your salary, you will receive an Individual Choice Budget (ICB). The ICB consists of money (16.37% of your gross annual salary) and time. With the ICB, you can make choices that suit you and customize part of your employment benefits. For example, you can choose to have a portion of your monthly income paid out whenever you wish. You can also convert this budget into leave and vice versa, or spend it on tax-friendly purposes. The Dutch government is strongly committed to personal growth and career development and offers numerous opportunities for this. Secondary employment conditions include various study facilities, company fitness programs, full reimbursement of your public transportation costs for commuting, and partially paid parental leave.

Details

• The introductory and selection process consists of at least two rounds of interviews and a final discussion regarding terms of employment.
• Checking references or conducting an assessment may be part of the selection process.
• Colleagues within the central government who are permanent employees may be seconded or transferred while retaining their current employment status.
• If you do not (yet) have a permanent position as a civil servant, you will start with a temporary position with the prospect of a permanent one.

What else do we offer you:

• A pleasant work environment with excellent facilities, just a short walk from the central station.
• Plenty of opportunities to continue developing your skills and specialize.
• We believe it’s important to maintain a good work-life balance. Working hours can be arranged flexibly by mutual agreement.
• If you are hired, hybrid work is an option; you will work partly from home and partly at the office. We believe it is important to have a good home office setup. We therefore offer a subsidy for home office equipment and a work-from-home allowance in accordance with the Central Government Collective Labor Agreement (CAO Rijk).

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We do not accept unsolicited applications for our job openings.

Interested in applying?

The Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy / Scientific Climate Council (WKR) invites you to apply on their website. Click the button below to leave this site and go directly to the application form. The government values a diverse and inclusive organization. Working in diverse teams makes us more effective, more innovative, and makes the work more enjoyable. Everyone is therefore invited to apply.