AVP, CARE Climate Solutions Accelerator

CARE.com is seeking an AVP for the Climate Solutions Accelerator, a senior global climate strategist to lead climate initiatives. This remote role involves overseeing the Climate Justice team, collaborating with various stakeholders, and driving CARE's climate vision. The candidate should have extensive climate expertise and a strong network. Responsibilities include external representation, inspiring investment, and advancing technical leadership in climate justice, gender, health, and education.
About the position

CARE is seeking a senior global Climate strategist to lead and represent a growing practice area focused on climate solutions. This role requires a candidate with extensive global climate expertise, a proven track record of working across various sectors and geographies, and a robust international climate change network. The successful candidate will be part of the Program Strategy & Innovation (PSI) team and will report directly to the Vice President of PSI. The position involves leadership and oversight of the Climate Justice team, collaborating with technical teams, fundraising teams, country offices, and innovation teams to drive CARE's climate vision forward. The role emphasizes the importance of partnerships with ecosystem actors and local implementers, recognizing that single breakthrough endeavors are insufficient to tackle climate challenges. CARE aims to leverage its presence in the most affected countries and its extensive experience to support local solutions and adaptation strategies. The organization is well-positioned to attract funding from high-net-worth individuals, foundations, corporations, and government entities, as there is a growing interest in innovative climate solutions. CARE has a long history of addressing global challenges, and climate change is now at the forefront of its mission. The organization seeks to scale its successful climate change adaptation efforts and develop new approaches to help communities cope with climate impacts. With a global network that reached over 160 million people in 2023, CARE is committed to fostering innovation, scale, and partnerships to combat climate change effectively. The successful candidate will serve as a credible climate leader, representing CARE in external spaces, inspiring investment, and helping to grow the climate portfolio. They will advance technical and thought leadership in climate change, focusing on the intersections of climate justice, gender, health, and education. The role also involves designing a Climate Growth Strategy for CARE, identifying key opportunities for portfolio expansion, and supporting resource mobilization efforts to secure funding for climate initiatives.

Responsibilities
• Serve as a credible climate leader for CARE's external representation, especially in spaces where CARE is not currently active or is underrepresented.
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• Combine climate expertise, reputation, and track record of high-level engagement on climate change with the network of expertise of CARE and its partners.
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• Inspire investment in CARE as a leader in resolving climate change and its impacts.
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• Help CARE grow the climate portfolio with both new funders and new offerings in spaces where there are growth opportunities.
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• Foster collaboration and connection across teams to bring together and advance CARE's climate vision.
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• Advance technical and thought leadership in climate change and at the nexus of climate justice, gender, health, and education, focusing on innovations and scalable external social entrepreneurship solutions.
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• Leadership and oversight of Climate Justice team (Sr. Director and Sr. Technical Advisor) within Program Strategy and Innovation (PSI).
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• Leading CARE Climate Solutions Accelerator (CCSA) and bringing in partners, funders, and relevant solutions to the CCSA.
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• Expanding CARE's presence in networks and spaces we are not now covering to be a key leader, particularly focusing on foundations, corporations, and high-net-worth individuals.
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• Bringing credibility, a track record of success, and expertise in climate change to represent CARE's climate work in external spaces, including with donors, on panels, and in media.
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• Actively pitching CARE as a climate leader, innovator, and critical player in the climate space.
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• Building credibility to invest in CARE as a key solution to climate change.
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• Bringing new donors to CARE in the climate space.
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• Building from CARE's existing base, skills, and climate excellence to showcase why CARE is a good investment for donors in the climate space.
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• Fostering collaboration and cross-cutting thinking across CARE's teams and external stakeholders.
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• Engaging closely with project designers and country office/regional management unit colleagues to develop new pitches, innovations, and plans for strategic growth in climate change areas where CARE is not yet expert (i.e., mitigation).
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• Routinely publishing external CARE Climate content in high-profile spaces (news media, technical journals, professional publications for innovation and climate) to highlight CARE as a leader in climate change.
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• Attending key climate change-related events, conferences, etc., with the intent to mobilize funding, in collaboration/coordination with the rest of the CARE Climate team.
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• Design a Climate Growth Strategy for CARE in partnership with relevant PSI technical teams, Resource mobilization team, Executive office, and relevant country offices.
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• Identify key opportunities and sectors for growing the portfolio building on CARE's current expertise.
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• Identify key opportunities for CARE to strategically grow into new areas of climate change—building on our capacities for community organizing and influencing at scale.
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• Build plans to integrate across CARE's donor streams to build exponentially higher impact by drawing from CARE's unique value add as bringing different stakeholders to the table.
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• Working with the Climate Justice team and the Climate Portfolio designer to identify core innovations to pitch to donors.
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• Build core KPIs for growth in climate change and KPIs that will make the case for transformation and success in climate change.
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• Identify core areas to grow evidence, data, and measurement in climate change and how to leverage existing evidence on climate change impact in CARE's work.
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• Supporting Resource Mobilization colleagues in rapid pitching of fundraising products with winning themes.
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• Developing relationships and pitching to new donors with RM colleagues (major donors, Foundations, corporate partnerships).
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• Building a strategy to grow funding streams we have not historically worked with, understanding the funding landscape we have not yet tapped into and how it is evolving a key aspect of this area.
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• In consultation, develop new content and products based on game-changing ideas/solutions.
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• Engage technical, corporate, major gift, and Foundation partners (through collaboration with Resource Development).

Requirements
• At least 15 years of experience in an external-facing climate change role with verifiable results.
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• Proven expertise and track record in climate change influencing, including climate change publications, climate conferences, media appearances, etc.
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• Climate change expertise and technical credibility in climate change spaces and networks.
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• Ability to build and act in networks of climate change experts and philanthropists.
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• Deep respect for collaboration across different actors, particularly locally-led organizations.
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• Demonstrable knowledge and understanding of climate change funding (from a technical perspective and in areas including but not limited to adaptation action, green enterprise and the green transition, clean energy, devolved climate finance, climate information services, payment for environmental services, nature-based solutions, carbon finance).
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• Demonstrable success building relations with high-level climate donors and networks.
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• Acute understanding of gender equality issues in climate change.
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• Learning and adaptation mindset.
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• Advanced editorial and writing skills for donor audiences.
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• Advanced and confident oral presentation and public speaking skills.
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• Master's degree in relevant field or equivalent.
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• Experience working with partners in the Global South.

Nice-to-haves
• Experience working with an INGO.
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• Location flexible to states where CARE can hire but knowledge and understanding of the US market is required.
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• Spanish or French fluency is an advantage.

Benefits