WE'RE HIRING!
Policy Officer on Chemical Recycling and Plastic-to-Fuels
About us
The mission of Zero Waste Europe (ZWE) is to empower communities in order to redesign our relationship with resources. We campaign for zero waste strategies in Europe and beyond, and support local groups and change agents who have the potential to drive change in their region. Currently, ZWE is the only pan-European organisation specialising in waste issues from prevention to disposal and on local, national and European levels. ZWE is the European chapter of the Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives (GAIA).
ZWE is an independent, nonprofit association created in late 2013 in the Netherlands aiming to:
- Promote zero waste strategies in Europe and elsewhere;
- Act as a catalyst for European good practices in the field of circular economy, waste and resources;
- Empower local groups to develop community-based strategies for the prevention, reduction, separation, recycling, and composting of waste;
- Promote a responsible treatment of waste and prevention of non-sustainable solutions such as landfilling and incineration;
- Increase awareness about the health effects of the current economy of waste disposal, and promote non-toxic alternatives;
- Promote environmental and social justice.
We are a successful and fast-growing NGO where personal development, fairness and inclusiveness are high on the agenda.
About you
You are a detail oriented person, with excellent communication skills, a good grip of technical issues, and a good knowledge of EU policies related to chemical recycling and fuels from waste. You have a naturally collaborative working style, and enjoy evolving in a small, creative team. A good knowledge of EU climate and energy policy would be a significant advantage.
About the role
This is a key campaign role within Zero Waste Europe to work on chemical recycling and plastic-to-fuels policy in Brussels, and contribute to our work on climate, energy and air pollution. The Policy Officer will report to the Coordinator of Climate, Energy and Air Pollution Programme.
Their core responsibilities will be to:
Climate, Energy and Air Pollution Programme:
- Engage in the development, implementation and enforcement of EU policies on chemical recycling and plastic-to-fuels.
- Undertake lobby actions at the European level and coordinate the efforts with member organisations and allies to exert political pressure to national governments.
- Represent ZWE at conferences, meetings and other relevant forums.
- Collaborate and coordinate with relevant NGOs at the European level, including the participation in working groups and NGO events.
- Respond to requests from journalists and drafting press releases aiming at positioning ZWE’s messages and stories in the European news channels.
- Articulate ZWE’s positioning with regards to waste management and waste prevention, with the support of the scientific committee and other staff members, in the context of policy, publications, and any other relevant events.
- Collaborate with GAIA team in international collaboration and cross-regional work when needed.
Membership Support:
- Provide timely policy or any other relevant updates from the field of waste to the ZWE and GAIA members.
- Gather inputs from member organisations on the working area and feed with them ZWE’s yearly and multiannual strategies.
- Organise capacity-building actions, events and training according to the annual work plan.
- Lead and provide support and organisation for the ZWE working groups.
- Respond daily questions, enquiries and provide general support about chemical recycling and plastic-to-fuels practice and policy in Europe from ZWE and GAIA members.
- Participate in member organisations’ events, when relevant.
Fundraising and Operational Planning:
- Engage and actively contribute to planning and strategic discussions to pursue the goals of ZWE, including team retreats and other meeting spaces of the organisation.
- Contribute to grant development and be responsible for the reporting on grants’ deliveries, including the LIFE operating grant.
- Explore, identify and share potential funding opportunities for the climate, energy and air pollution programme.
- Be responsible for the appropriate management of the budget of those activities responsible for, including the appropriate reporting of expenses, the compilation of invoices and the administrative tasks associated with that.
Person specification
Experience
Essential
- At least 3 years of experience in EU or national policy advocacy
- Ability to interact with high level EU and national policymakers’ and industry professionals
- Knowledge of European institutions, lobby and advocacy experience
Desirable
- Experience interacting with industry and media
- Experience of the EU co-decision making process
Knowledge, skills and understanding
Essential
- Master’s Degree or advanced technical qualifications relevant to chemical recycling/fuels
- Ability to interpret and analyse scientific and technical documents and data and apply it in the context of ZWE’s work
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English, and an ability to communicate complicated messages authoritatively and clearly to different audiences
- Strong networking and team building skills appropriate for a multicultural and multidisciplinary environment
Desirable
- Experience of working on, and understanding the complexities of EU legislation
- Understanding of environmental issues, particularly in the field of climate and energy policy
- Other languages, apart from English
- Solid IT competences with collaborative tools (Google Drive, Slack, Trello)
Personal qualities
Essential
- Great interpersonal skills
- Excellent listener and communicator
- Solution oriented and team player
- Commitment to accuracy, efficiency and a high standard of work
- Organised and efficient
- A strong commitment to Zero Waste Europe’s ethos and network structures
- Willingness to work with flexible schedule, as required
Location, Compensation and Work Environment
This is a full-time position based in Brussels. The initial contract will be for one year, with a possibility to be extended. A valid work permit for Belgium is required.
The gross monthly salary for this position is between 2700 - 3200€, depending on the experience of candidates. Additional benefits include: meal vouchers 8 EUR/day, a Home office allowance, travel allowance, a 13th month salary proportional to your time worked during the year, 20 vacation days plus up to 10 extra-legal holidays, travel insurance. Further to this, we also offer a flexible working environment, including the option to partially work from home .
Salary will be negotiated according to a transparent bandwidth defined by the internal salary policy of the organisation and depending on your experience.
We take pride in our ability to support one another's work in an atmosphere of mutual trust and respect, and look forward to introducing the successful candidate to our welcoming and highly motivated team and network members.
Start date: as soon as possible
Equal Employment opportunity
ZWE is committed to the principle of Equal Employment Opportunity for all employees, regardless of sex, marital status, nationality, religion, age, sexual orientation and any other characteristics unrelated to the performance of the job.
TO APPLY:
Please send your CV, motivation letter with two references through our website: https://zerowasteeurope.eu/join-us/work-with-us/
We can only guarantee that short-listed candidates will be contacted. Position remains open until filled.
Timeline: we are considering candidates until the position is filled
this job offer is not open for applications
