INTERNATIONAL CLIMATE COUNCIL - LATIN AMERICA REGIONAL LEAD

The International Climate Councils Network (ICCN) supports and amplifies the work of a growing network of climate councils: 25 expert bodies mandated to advise their governments on climate policy. The ICCN Latin America Regional lead will be a position funded by E3G and hosted by the Ministry of Science, Technology, Knowledge and Innovation (MCTCI) in Chile.  

Background 

Launched at COP26 in 2021, the mission of the International Climate Councils’ Network (ICCN)is to strengthen climate governance through effective climate councils. Members of the ICCN are all official government advisory councils with a mandate to provide expert, evidence-led advice to and or monitoring of government action on climate mitigation and/or adaptation. Different councils fulfil different roles depending on their circumstances. A list of current members can be found: Members – International Climate Councils Network (ICCN) 

 

The network is working in partnership with climate change think tank E3G who have hosted the secretariat since April 2024. E3G is an independent climate change think tank with a global outlook. E3G is recognised as one of the top ten most influential environmental think tanks in the world by the University of Pennsylvania’s Global Go-To Think Tank Index. Our goal is to translate climate politics, economics and policies into action.  

 

Comité Cientifíco de Cambio Climático/ The Chilean Scientific Climate Council is the official climate advisory body for the Chilean Government.  The Council’s Secretariat is hosted by the Ministry of Science, Technology, Knowledge and Innovation (MCTCI), based in Santiago, Chile.  This role would be employed by E3G but working from the offices of Technical Secretariat in Chile at least 5 days per month. Remote candidates may however be considered if exceptional.  

Key Responsibilities

The ICCN Latin America (LatAm) Regional Lead is an exciting, dynamic and external-facing role, with lots of opportunity to shape climate governance in the region. The LatAm Regional Lead would be hired as an “Associate” contractor by E3G but would be seconded into the Technical Secretariat of the Chilean Scientific Climate Council, the Ministry of Science, Technology, Knowledge and Innovation of Chile (MCTCI).  The person would also report into - and work very closely with - the ICCN Secretariat based in the UK headquarters.    

The ICCN is a member-led organisation with members approving the workplan and objectives each year.  There is also flexibility built into the workplan so that the Secretariat can adjust to changing priorities.  For 2026 it is envisaged that the LatAm Regional lead will focus on the following key responsibilities: 

Support existing ICCN LATAM members 

• Develop relationships to support existing member-needs in Chile, Mexico and Guatemala.  

• Support existing capacity-building programmes to ensure a relevant regional focus and offer bespoke regional trainings where feasible.  

• Support in-person regional engagement and events at key international or regional events e.g., COPs, Climate Weeks. 
• Collaborate with the Ministry of Science, Technology, Knowledge and Innovation of Chile (MCTCI) in joint initiatives (e.g. regional workshops, multi-stakeholder dialogues, or knowledge-sharing activities), in line with ICCN’s strategy. 

Strengthen climate governance in the region 

• Develop a strategy to strengthen climate governance at a regional, national and sub-national level, including the creation of effective climate councils within governance frameworks. 

• Explore opportunities with existing councils who are not members of ICCN but who have a mandate from government (e.g., Costa Rica, Brazil, Colombia and Peru).  

• Prioritise engagement in countries/states where there is greatest potential for establishing effective climate councils, building alliances to help secure official mandates from government.  

 

Network development and partnerships  

• Lead stakeholder engagement in the region including with academic, corporate and civil society actors and international financial institutions to strengthen science-diplomacy.   

• Lead 1-2 priority projects with others (e.g. commissioning research that supports effective climate councils in the region).  

• Feed into the ICCN fundraising strategy by identifying suitable regional funding opportunities.  

 

Alignment with wider ICCN 

• Successfully manage your activity, docking into central ICCN programme reporting processes. 

• Work with the ICCN Secretariat to align on strategy, comms and deliverables. 

Profile

We are looking for someone confident self-starter who works collaboratively with a genuine commitment to supporting international climate action. You are ready to bring your skillset to facilitate, coordinate and support a vibrant and growing network to empower connection, learning and the emergence of best practice in the network. You can work with a wide range of stakeholders at all levels – including engaging independently with senior government officials from a wide range of countries in Latin America (representing ICCN and not the host organisation MCTCI).  

 

You will also enjoy working with a network of members with differing levels of expertise and who will need your support to engage in ICCN activity. You will bring a professional approach and work collaboratively with others. You will be familiar with the Latin America region and proficient in local languages (Spanish
/ Portuguese) and English. 

Experience and Skills

Below is a list of the ideal experience and skills.  However, we are not expecting candidates to meet all requirements fully, so please do apply if you meet most of the requirements.  

• Diplomatic engagement – proven ability to effectively advocate for action on climate change with Government officials – and ideally Ministers – in Latin America.  
• Strong experience (7+ years) in network and stakeholder management in Latin America (e.g. strategy, campaigns, events management, senior relationship management), ideally in climate-related sectors.  
• Programme, research or policy experience in any of the following areas (ideally with a Masters or other academic qualification):  climate governance, climate change policy (especially climate and health), sustainability, technical assistance/capacity building programmes, monitoring and evaluation of climate policies/programmes 
• Excellent communication skills, both written and oral, as well as the ability to use a range of online comms tools. 
• Project management, administrative or operational experience gained in a relevant programme or secretariat setting. 
• Strong ability to speak, read and write in Spanish (ideally fluent) and/or Portuguese (ideally advanced) as well as English (at least advanced).   

Terms of Employment

This role would be initially for a period of 6-12 months – either as a part-time 12-month or full-time 6-month role – but with the potential of extension.  The role would be employed as an “Associate” (contractor) of E3G Ltd, in compliance with local law and E3G’s contractor policy.

The role would be hosted by the Ministry of Science, Technology, Knowledge and Innovation of Chile (MCTCI), which also serves as the Technical Secretariat of the Chilean Scientific Climate Council, for the duration of the contract. The hosting arrangement does not create an employment relationship with MCTCI.  

The role would offer a contractual rate based on the skills and experience of the selected candidate, taking the candidate’s usual day rate and benchmarking it against similar contractor roles in Chile.

It is assumed that the person will be able to work at least 5 days per month from the Ministry’s office in Santiago, with access to a designated workspace provided by MCTCI, subject to availability, and without creating an employment relationship. This would keep the arrangement practical while protecting both sides.

Remote working may be possible for certain periods of time, although fully remote candidates would only be considered in exceptional circumstances.  Occasional travel would also be expected for the role (a few times per year to countries in Latin America and to international events), with all travel costs covered by E3G. 

How to apply 

Please submit your application in English. Please include: 

• A CV of maximum two pages 
• A cover letter of no more than one page, outlining why you are applying for this role and when you would be able to start.  
• Your usual day rate in $USD for 1 working day (7 hours).  You may provide a maximum/minimum range if you are willing to be flexible on the rate. 

 

The deadline for applications is 16 November 2025. 

 

Whilst we very much appreciate the time you will have taken with your application, unfortunately due to the level of response we receive we will not be able to reply to every candidate. Therefore, if you have not heard from us with 2 weeks of the closing date, please assume that on this occasion you have been unsuccessful.  

 

ICCN and E3G value diversity and welcomes applications from all suitably qualified candidates regardless of age, gender, race, disability, sexual orientation, religion or ethnic background. We aim to build an inclusive workforce that is reflective of the populations we support, and actively seek applications from those who are marginalized and underrepresented. We are committed to providing reasonable accommodations to applicants with disabilities.