Evaluation And Research Analyst

This is a hybrid position which requires 8 days/month in our Washington DCoffice.Existingwork authorization is required at the time of application submission as WRI is unable to sponsor any visa work sponsorship for this position.

About the Program:

The decisions that national leaders, local officials, developers, and planners make today will determine how billions of people in urban centers will thrive over the next century. Already, half the global population resides in cities. That figure is set to increase to 70 percent by 2050. Traditional models of city development can lock us into congestion, sprawl, and inefficient resource use. However, compact, connected, and efficient growth can help ensure more competitive cities, and provide a better quality of life for citizens.

WRI Ross Center for Sustainable Cities (WRI Ross Center) works to ensure cities create economic opportunity while sustaining natural resources. We use technical expertise, cutting-edge research, and on-the-ground partnerships to design solutions that enable sustainable city growth. Our analysis and tools allow cities to manage their natural resources and reduce their greenhouse gas emissions. Working across our network, we develop and help implement research-based solutions in sustainable mobility, urban development, as well as urban efficiency & climate that reduce pollution, improve health, and create safe, accessible public spaces for all people to succeed. WRI Ross Center builds on WRI’s global and local experience in urban planning and mobility, and uses solutions to increase building and energy efficiency, manage water risk, encourage effectivegovernanceand make the fast-growing urban environment more resilient to new challenges. Aiming to influence 200 cities with unique research and tools, WRI Ross Center focuses on a deep cross-sector approach in selected megacities on two continents, and targeted assistance to additional 50 urban areas, bringing economic,environmentaland social benefits to people in cities around the globe.

Job Highlight:

The WRI Ross Center Prize for Cities (https://prizeforcities.org/)(‘the Prize’) is a global competition supported by Stephen M. Ross to celebrate transformative projects that have ignited citywide change. The inaugural prize was awarded in April 2019, following a deep evaluation by WRI’s experts and a deliberation among a Jury of high-profile leaders in urban affairs. Our vision is that the prize receives recognition in media and society as a vehicle for celebration,researchand expertise on urban transformation. Through the prize and related activities, we hope to grow a global network of urban change-makers.

Reporting tothe Global Lead for the Prize for Cities, you willbeanintegral member of the core Prize team, supporting all programmatic aspects of the Prize, major Prize milestones throughout the award cycle, and related learning and engagement activities. Programmatic support to Prize milestones includes outreach to drive submissions to the Prize; managing the multi-round and multi-criteria evaluation process; managing Prize submission process including liaising with applicants and managing the submissionportal; serving as a liaison to WRI International Offices, Prize Advisory Council, and other high-level stakeholders; providing analytical support during Prize milestones including announcements of finalists and winners; supporting the flagship award ceremony and learning roundtable events including events planning support and supporting development of learning agenda and events.

You willwork closely with the WRI Ross Center’s executive office, communications teams, and strategy and partnerships teams. This is a hybrid role that requires a dynamic and versatile individual with interest in inclusive urban development and looking to develop a range of skills including, but not limited to, knowledge management, learning,communications,and engagement skills.

What will you do:

Project Implementation Support(30%): -

• Support the Prize, and in particular learning, evaluation, research, and engagement and project managementactivities
• Manage the submission portal and the Prize email inbox,maintain robust filing systems to manage large and diverse sets ofinformation
• Support Prize Lead by responding to inquiries, fielding requests, organizing meetings, and tracking progress on towards key performanceindicators
• Work with team to develop creative solutions to unexpected challenges during the prizecycle
• As a core member of the team, contribute to strategy development and tracking, participate in weekly team meetings and provide updates on keyactivities

  Evaluation, Learning, and Analysis(40%): -

  • Implement the Prize evaluation process in close collaboration with thePrize.
  • Lead including data collection, management, planning evaluation cycle, recruiting/liaising with evaluation team, quantifying evaluation results and presenting data, presenting finalist options and conducting due diligence on finalist candidates, and organizing of jury briefingmaterials
  • Monitor internal knowledge resource management strategy of the Prize, including creating and managing online Prize database in Power Apps and data assets inSharePoint, developing strategy for sharing knowledge resources with internal teams and externalstakeholders
  • Develop Key Performance Indicators in close collaboration with the Prize Lead and the Prize comms lead and tracks them to measure Prize’s progress through its five-yearstrategy
  • Work with Prize Lead and Strategy & Partnership team to deliver learning plan for the prize including co-writing a peer reviewed knowledge products and a curriculum for urbanchangemakers
  • Conduct background research, literature reviews, qualitative or quantitativeanalysis
  • Develop written materials for website, brochures, newsletters, handouts, PowerPoints, talking points, and backgrounddocuments
  • Write blogs and prepare other communications materials for dissemination of Prize-related content (finalist profiles, social media campaigns, jury package, etc.), presentations and talking points, and coordinatingevents
  • Coordinate between teams, including Prize, Research and Knowledge Exchange (RKE), Cities’ communications and Strategy and Partnerships teams on stakeholder engagement and communicationsactivities

    Engagement (30%): -

    • Help build a community of change makers, working with the Prize Lead, and the Cities’ Communications and Strategy and Partnershipsteams
    • Support planning for and implementation of engagement events (e.g., launch event awards ceremony, learning roundtable)
    • Liaise and coordinate with various external partners including high-profile individuals, urban thought leaders, andpractitioners

      What will you need:

      • Education:You have completed abachelor’sdegree insustainable urban development, international studies, environmental science, public policy/administration, urban planning, economics, geography, political science, history, or related
      • Experience:You have a minimumof2years offull-time professional experience insupportingactivities related to research and engagement, e.g., at university departments, think tanks, or other international organizations
      • Strong research skills and the ability to synthesize and interpret case studyinformation
      • Ability to organize large datasets and complexassets
      • Strong writing, database management, and proofreading skills
      • Excellent skills in Microsoft Office, particularly Excel, and a range of presentation and project management tools
      • Demonstrated creativity, resourcefulness and ability to takeinitiative
      • Detail-oriented, organized and able to juggle multiple priorities and problem-solveDemonstratedknowledge of and interest in key issues in urban development, planning, and urban sustainability
      • Highly motivated, proactive, and collaborative workstyleExcellentinter-personal communication skills, including the ability to work well in a team and with international colleaguesin high-level situations Ability to work both independently as well as part of a team, including actively contributing to team discussions
      • Adaptable to rapidly changing priorities and able to manage multiple deadlines and deliver high quality workproducts
      • Experience in or some knowledge of UX/UI design,preferred
      • Languages: