People Business Partner

Location: The Hague. Candidates can work remotely in the Netherlands with occasional travel to the office.

Remuneration: EUR 55,000 - EUR 75,000 - depending on experience, excluding holiday allowance       

Hours: Full-Time or Part-Time Pro Rata (5 or 4 days per week)                        

 

At FILE, we use the power of law to address the climate crisis. We’re building a People & Culture function that reflects our values of justice, equity, diversity and inclusion – and we’re looking for a People Partner to help us bring this vision to life.

The Role

The People Partner will work closely with managers and teams across the organisation, providing trusted HR advice and practical support throughout the employee lifecycle. You’ll balance operational delivery with strategic input, helping to embed policies, strengthen management capability, and drive engagement.

 

Key Responsibilities

• Business Partnering (30%) – First point of contact for HR queries and truly partner with your area of the Foundation by building trusted relationships, coaching managers, and supporting policy implementation.

• People Strategy & Planning (15%) – Supporting and driving engagement initiatives, policy drafting, performance campaigns, and people data reporting.
• People Operations & Admin (30%) – Managing HR records, payroll liaison, benefits administration, and offboarding.
• Recruitment & Onboarding (15%) – Coordinating recruitment processes, onboarding, and inductions for new staff.
• Justice, Equity, Diversity & Inclusion (10%) – Helping embed JEDI principles into policies and practices, and acting as a role model for inclusive behaviours.

 

About you

We know that long lists of criteria can be discouraging and that some candidates will not apply for a role unless they feel they feel they meet all of the criteria. If you feel you meet at least some of the essential criteria, we still encourage you to apply.

 

We also recognise that skills and experience can be gained in unexpected places, so we welcome applications from candidates who feel they have relevant skills for the role, gained from a wide range of professional, lived and learned experiences.

 

We’re looking for more than technical HR knowledge – we’re looking for someone who brings strong people skills and lives our values. To thrive in this role, you’ll need to be:

• A trusted advisor and communicator – able to build confidence quickly with managers and colleagues.
• Emotionally intelligent and empathetic – creating psychological safety and supporting people with care.
• Inclusive and values-led – deeply attuned to justice, equity, diversity and inclusion, and committed to modelling these in practice.
• Collaborative and supportive – a true team player who builds connections across functions and cultures.
• Constructive and courageous – unafraid to challenge inequity and provide feedback in a safe, positive way.
• Organised and detail-focused – ensuring our processes are consistent, efficient, and reliable.

 

Of course, you’ll also bring a solid grounding in employment law, HR practices, and systems – but it’s your power skills that will make the real difference in helping FILE’s people thrive.

What You’ll Gain

• The chance to grow with a dynamic, values-led organisation at the forefront of global climate action.
• Meaningful, varied HR experience across the employee lifecycle.
• A collaborative, supportive working culture where people are empowered to thrive.

 

About FILE

The Foundation for International Law for the Environment (FILE) is a not-for-profit philanthropic organisation working to accelerate legal action on climate change. 

 

Through grant-making and in-house legal expertise, we empower our partners to deliver strategic, innovative legal interventions and we support lawyers in their own countries to bring their own cases. 

 

Legal action can unlock the systemic changes in finance, policy and social systems needed to protect all of us from climate change. The power of the law is both direct (changing policy and practice) and indirect (signalling the wider shifts taking place across these systems).

 

FILE is a ‘regrantor’ - this means we do not bring legal action in our own name. We receive grants from our philanthropic donors and make onwards grants to partners who align with FILE’s charitable aims and purposes. We do not seek to make any profit from our activities either in a relevant financial year or in the longer term.

 

Location

We are advertising this role for candidates based (and with the right to work) in the UK and in the Netherlands. Please note that you will see this role advertised in multiple locations but that we are only hiring for one position based in either location, and that we are able to offer collaborative working spaces only in the Netherlands and the UK.

 

Please apply to the job post for your preferred location.

 

Working for FILE

FILE is a collaborative community of individuals who share a passion for climate, nature, and justice. We bring together knowledge and experience to support our mission.

 

Our people are empowered to lead their work both individually and as part of a wider team in order to make impactful change. As a relatively young organisation with the ambitious mission to change global systems, our roles are ideally suited to those who are strategic, innovative and collaborative, and open to growing in line with the Foundation.

 

FILE is committed to challenging systemic injustice. Our ability to do so is strengthened by the diversity of our partners and staff. Our mission, work and impact is global, with staff and partners from across the world and a range of lived experiences. We are actively working to create a culture where colleagues feel welcomed, heard and supported to succeed and thrive.

 

How FILE supports its staff

FILE is committed to creating a workplace that supports our staff to do their best work and develop professionally. FILE offers a generous annual leave policy and additional time-off work to support wellbeing. Amongst other benefits, FILE offers private healthcare, enhanced maternity, paternity and shared parental leave, enhanced sick leave, flexibility working remotely and also abroad and a matching contribution to a pension scheme.

 

Applications

Please apply on our website and upload your CV. This role is open for applications immediately and we accept applications on a rolling basis but we will not accept any applications after 10 October 2025. If you are interested, we encourage you to submit your application as early as possible. Should you have any questions, please email careers@filefoundation.org.

 

Representation and Culture

 

FILE recognises the under-representation of historically marginalised communities and individuals in climate, nature and philanthropy spaces. We are committed to developing an organisation that represents the world we are looking to protect and building a culture that supports such.

 

In doing so, FILE is committed to building policies and practices that ensure no current or prospective employee is discriminated based on disability, sex, sexual orientation, pregnancy and maternity, race or ethnicity, religion or belief, gender identity, or marriage and civil partnership.