Intern - Sustainable Food Systems

Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW), New Delhi
Intern - Sustainable Food Systems

Terms of Reference

At CEEW, we are deliberate about what we stand for (and what we don’t stand for) as an employer. So, if the below description strikes a chord, we would love to hear from you

**At CEEW, we build careers in public policy**
- We offer strong visionary leadership - with emphasis on research and impact at scale
- We actively promote leadership by initiative
- We celebrate talent and ambition
- You will be surrounded by smart ambitious people who will challenge you and help you grow
- You will learn faster than your peers in other organisations
- Curiosity and irreverence, as well as responsibility, come together at CEEW
- You will get above-market remuneration
- We provide a safe space for all
- At CEEW, your life is your example for others

Designation offered:

- Intern - Sustainable Food Systems

Reporting to:

- Programme Lead

Location:

- New Delhi, India

**Purpose**

We seek to hire a Programme Lead to conceptualise, strategise, design, lead, and expand our work in the area of sustainable food systems. With their supervisor’s support, the individual would build on The Council’s existing work in this field and develop it into a full-fledged programme. She would identify our niche and strengths and would create and maintain our thought leadership in those areas. While building and leading a team, she would advance our research, policy engagement, and impact in the fields of sustainable agriculture, food systems, forestry, ecosystem services, landscapes restoration, and biodiversity.

**Job Summary**

India stands at a complex challenge of ensuring universal nutritional security for an increasing yet largely deprived population in a rapidly changing climate. This needs action beyond producing more food - we need to evolve what we eat and how we produce, process and distribute our food.

**Responsibilities and Duties**

**Research**
- Independently manage allocated work-streams on quantitative and quantitative applied research on varied food system issues. Such workstreams include but are not limited to (i) identification of optimal research question(s), (ii) designing the research approach/framework (iii) if required, development and execution of primary surveys (this includes designing the questionnaires, survey monitoring, coordinating with field staffs and analysis of the survey data), (iv) if required, systematic literature reviews (v) if required, conducting stakeholder consultations, (vi) conducting the relevant analyses using appropriate qualitative and/or quantitative tools (e.g. MS Excel, STATA, etc.), and (vii) presenting the analyses in a coherent narrative in different formats.
- Travel to field sites, whenever necessary, to conduct fieldwork including focus group discussions, interviews, meetings, training or gather primary information.
- Proactively supporting team in effectively operationalizing the CEEW’s Arc of Learning.
- Regularly track policy measures taken by the government and its implementation status related to sustainable agriculture and sustainable food systems in India.
- Write high-quality research reports, publish in leading peer-reviewed journals and generate other knowledge products for the different audience such as blogs, policy briefs in regular intervals.
- Establishing and managing relationships with project counterparts from CEEW’s partners.

**Project/Programme Assistance**
- Support effective outreach of research outputs through coordination with the outreach team, engagement with a broader network of stakeholders, and concerned policymakers.
- Participate in relevant conferences, workshops, training programmes for a comprehensive understanding of developments relevant to sustainable agriculture.
- Support senior team members for important meetings and sessions, prepare notes, and conduct follow-ups, as required.
- Participate in weekly team meetings and assist with preparing minutes and chairing the weekly meetings.

**Shortlisting Criteria and Key skills**
- Analytical skills and knowledge of mixed methods - qualitative and quantitative research methods, relevant for impact evaluation, food system analysis, political economy analysis etc.
- Project management skills to independently manage research workstreams.
- Familiarity with food and agriculture issues, policy areas and consumer trends.
- Strong communication skills for effective, efficient, and adaptive verbal and written communication, and active listening.
- Experience in dealing with stakeholders (farmers, grassroots workers, government, etc.) preferred.
- Desirable: Relevant publications in peer-reviewed journals/book chapters.

**Personality**
- Willingness to learn new (research and project management) skills.
- Ability to adapt to a new environment and deliver under tight deadlines in a professional environment.
- Striving for rigour in research and quality in work output.
- Abil