Project Assistant

**Description**:
ATREE is seeking Project Assistant - Monitoring & Evaluation to be based in Gangtok, Sikkim and work with the multidisciplinary team working across programmatic aspects of Conservation of Biodiversity Restoration of Multi-functional Landscapes and livelihoods.

You will be a key member of a team led by the Senior Program Manager. You will be responsible for representing ATREE with external stakeholders, including local government, and will collaborate closely with field team, Regional Offices, and Head Office.

**Background**

The Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE) is a non-profit organisation focused on rigorous interdisciplinary knowledge generation for use by policy and practice, towards environmental conservation and sustainable, socially just development.

In the Himalaya, ATREE’s strategy is to work towards a future where resilient mountain and downstream societies sustainably enjoy the natural endowment of the Indian Himalayan Region (IHR) while protecting and preserving its rich biodiversity. ATREE has developed a 10-year strategy called “The Himalaya Initiative (THI)” with its focus in the IHR in the face of increasing biodiversity loss, environmental degradation, and climate change impacting the region.

Project AMP-Himalaya is backed by funding support from donors for the 5-year project period. The project aims to conserve biodiversity, restore landscapes and foster human well-being in the Indian Himalayan Region. Three key areas prioritized to achieve the goal in the IHR are: 1) Assessment, Monitoring, and Conservation of Biodiversity; 2) Restoration of Multi-functional Landscapes; and 3) Nature-based Rural Livelihoods and Climate Change Resilience. Integral to these priorities are: the creation of digital knowledge commons to accelerate participatory management and local stewardship; strengthening human resources through training programs for local youth leaders and enhanced environmental educational opportunities; and creating conditions for developing/implementing multi-level mountain-specific policies that prioritize biodiversity conservation and natural resource management at scale.

The project is being implemented in 3 distinct landscapes located in 3 states and 1 union territory of IHR namely: the _Khangchendzonga Landscape_ covering the Darjeeling hills of north Bengal and Sikkim state; the _Trans-Himalayan Landscape_ represents a high dependence on rangelands with agro-pastoral and pastoral systems in Ladakh; and _Arunachal Pradesh_ with largest, greenest, ethnically diverse and most biodiversity rich landscapes.

**Duration of Engagement**: 3 years initially extendable by another 2 years

**Responsibilities**:

- **Monitoring and Reporting**:- Support in developing and operationalization of project MIS factoring success indicators of the project;
- Provide input to MEL system design and review discussions;
- Ensure quality data collected on physical/digital MEL tools on a timely basis;
- Tracking of success indicators on agreed frequency along with review of compiled database for quality and plan midterm correction measures;
- Contribute to reflective community-based conversations on ongoing project interventions;
- Share insights and perspectives based on observations and interactions with community, team members, colleagues and stakeholders;
- Support field-level implementation on community feedback mechanisms under the guidance of senior colleagues;
- Support compliance with donor MEL requirements related to evaluations, need assessment, feasibility studies, documentation of success stories and project MIS;
- Training of project staff and volunteers in conducting field-based MEL activities;
- Provide inputs into MEL system design and review discussions;
- Document periodic program review meetings, learning sharing meeting and workshops.
- Manage repository of the project documents and data to support Senior Program Manager.
- Supports simple analyses and reflective discussions on ongoing monitoring data;
- Contributes and shares initial findings and field-based insights to project discussions;
- Fosters respectful relationships with community members and stakeholders;
- Demonstrates honesty and integrity in MEL work;
- **Coordination and communication**:- Monitors project compliance and communicates results to project leadership for action;
- Liaising with project leadership to ensure compliance with organizational and donor MEL requirements;
- Work with Project Staffs in conducting field-based MEL activities;
- Adopts MEL systems in line with donor and ATREE guidance;
- Facilitate creating quality benchmarks in the project and communicate the results and outcome expected through appropriate planning, regular monitoring;
- Ensure documentation of all the activities including field visit reports, stakeholders’ consultation qualitative reports by relevant colleagues;
- Document various Success Stories
- Organize project review meetings w