Senior Communications Officer- India Energy Program

About

The International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) is a globally recognized think tank with more than 30 years of experience working to solve today's greatest sustainable development challenges. We combine deep expertise across critical policy areas with a collaborative approach to research, advice, and hands-on support that delivers real-world results. Headquartered in Winnipeg, Manitoba, we are a diverse team of over 300 experts working from offices in Canada and Switzerland as well as other locations around the world.

The position is based within the IISD Energy Program (), a rapidly growing team of over 60 experts based either in the IISD Geneva office or remotely in a range of countries, including India, Indonesia, and South Africa.

At an international level, our work program delivers cutting-edge research and practical policy support for energy policy reforms in developed and developing countries, including shifting public financial flows from fossil fuels to clean energy and implementing commitments to go beyond fossil fuels in a socially just way. We work closely with groups such as the Friends of Fossil Fuel Subsidy Reform, United Nations Environment Programme, International Labour Organization, World Bank, and World Trade Organization, as well as numerous civil society partners. Our approach is hands-on, through country-level research and outreach in India, Indonesia, South Africa, and Canada, as well as via international forums such as the G7, G20, United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), and Sustainable Development Goals.

In India, IISD has largely focused on the creation of knowledge and dialogue on government support for energy transition, including: data on subsidies for fossil fuels, renewables, and electric vehicles; how to sustainably reform consumer subsidies for liquefied natural gas, kerosene, and electricity; how to effectively subsidize clean energy, including solar irrigation, solar photovoltaic manufacturing, and electric vehicles; planning for a just transition; and how state-owned enterprises and public finance can better align with the energy transition.

We engage with government agencies at the central and state levels and partner with a wide range of national think tanks, academic institutions, and consultancies, including the Center for Study of Science, Technology and Policy, Council on Energy, Environment and Water, Climate Parliament, Consumer Unity & Trust Society, Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations, Swaniti Initiative; Integrated Research and Action for Development, and The Energy and Resources Institute.

About the Position

The communications officer will lead communications for IISD’s Energy Program in India and South Africa. They will also closely collaborate with our international team working on UNFCCC and G20 processes to ensure voices from the Global South are represented in the Energy Program’s key messages and communications.

As a member of the wider Energy Program communications team, they will work closely with the communications manager and the digital senior communications officer, as well as the program’s India- and South Africa-focused policy experts.

The senior communications officer will be responsible for drafting and implementing the India and South Africa communications strategies for IISD’s Energy Program in these countries, advising the policy teams on communications best practices, as well as coordinating work with internal and external partners and agencies. They will write and edit editorial content related to the work of the program and use traditional and digital channels and tools to reach and engage target audiences. They are expected to be a highly independent, proactive professional, able to diligently track and schedule workload, produce polished outputs with minimal oversight, and drive early thinking on communications among policy research . They are also expected to collaborate with colleagues and other key stakeholders in the Civil Society Organisation (ecosystem in India and South Africa.

Their key areas of responsibility will include the following

Creative Content

In consultation with the communications manager, draft, update, steer, and implement communications strategies for the India and South Africa work programs.

Inform, manage, and implement communications plans for a broad range of projects, reports, campaigns, and events. This includes crafting compelling narratives and talking points to articulate key messages, cooperating with internal and external stakeholders, ensuring timelines are adhered to, monitoring and evaluation, and reporting on impact.

Write, edit, and review written outputs (e.g., blogs, opinion pieces, press releases, social media posts) for framing, tone, and narrative, ensuring strategic and editorial consistency.

Regularly share program work and collaborate with IISD’s core communications team to ensure alignment on key messaging and amplification of programmatic expertise in broader, organization-wide communications activities. Contribute to a shared editorial calendar.

In consultation with policy staff, communicate with IISD’s donors to demonstrate how their support has made an impact.

Track current events and national energy policy movements in India and South Africa and globally related to specific workstreams, and identify opportunities for further work and/or public engagement.

Public Engagement and Social Media

Help inform and execute an email outreach strategy.

Oversee event-related outreach and post-event follow-up.

Inform the social media strategy and contribute to all active social media accounts, ensuring posts are relevant, timely, engaging, and targeted to the needs and interests of key audiences.

Media Relations

Engage with journalists and influencers, with a focus on relationship building; secure targeted coverage for IISD research and initiatives in key outlets in India and South Africa.

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