Tara Climate Foundation is a philanthropic organisation based in Asia, focused on accelerating progress on the region’s most urgent climate challenges. We are headquartered in Singapore, with presence in 12 geographies across Asia.

Our mission is to support a diverse group of partners to build a more prosperous, thriving and sustainable future for Asia. Tara plays three main roles in the region:

• Grantmaker: Tara works closely with mission-aligned foundations and philanthropists to pool resources and grant funds to organisations working to accelerate Asia’s energy transition and climate action (excluding China and India).
• Convenor: Tara cultivates networks that facilitate the exchange of ideas between business, civil society, and government throughout and beyond Asia.
• Local and regional expert: With strong networks spanning civil society, businesses and government, Tara funds thorough research and analysis to address knowledge gaps, stay abreast of emerging trends, and craft evidence-based strategies to advance our mission.

Since establishing its headquarters in Singapore in 2021, the foundation has provided grants to more than 300 organisations across 13 countries and jurisdictions. Our team of over 55 experts is spread across the Asia-Pacific region, working to combat climate change in this decisive decade.

The Program Officer’s main areas of responsibility are:

Program Strategy

• Support the development of national long term program strategy and annual objectives in line with Tara's organisational goals and vision.
• Support to Identify grantees and strategies that can help drive further climate ambition.
• Contribute to reporting quarterly on progress, and annually on the achievements, impact, and lessons learned of the South Korea program.
• Support the Country Director in developing and implementing specific projects to advance the country strategy.

Partnerships and Coordination

• Support the identification, assessment and onboarding of new partners for grantmaking.
• Contribute to sustaining a trust-based ecosystem of diverse partners who work collaboratively towards common goals.
• Maintain close relationships with existing Tara grantees and work to develop the field of available partners in the country.
• Work to ensure that Tara grantees coordinate their efforts well and can work collaboratively to seek the best possible outcomes.

Representation and Networking

• Establish and maintain good working relationships with key stakeholders, including funders, civil society, business and government as needed to advance program objectives.
• Support Tara’s partners to develop constructive working relationships with government agencies, international financial institutions, and diplomatic missions. By doing so, he/she will support Tara’s partners’ work to strengthen South Korea’s position and influence in international climate and energy forums.

Grantmaking

• Support the delivery of a portfolio of grants across selected climate mitigation sectors.
• Guide and advise current and prospective grantees to ensure activities achieve their intended objectives and results.
• Monitor deliverables and submissions from grantees and provide feedback on their timeliness and quality.
• Advise Tara on potential grants, work with potential grantees to develop proposals, and help monitor and evaluate Tara’s grantees' work.

Leadership and management

• Work under the guidance of senior team members, manages specific tasks or projects, and contribute to team objectives and collaboration efforts.

Expertise and knowledge

• Use knowledge of national, regional and global trends to help inform and adapt programs to changing contexts.
• Use expertise of the South Korea’s political, social and economic context and energy systems to contribute to understanding the emerging risks and opportunities for Tara's work.
• Confidently communicate with key external audiences as well as internal collaborators.

Convening and collaboration

• Support convenings by coordinating the organisation, communication and logistics for meetings and events.
• Collaborate effectively with Tara regional thematic and program support specialists.

Compliance and risk management

• Follow all organisational standard operating procedures and policies including compliance, budget and financial management, human resources, procurement and IT.
• Support risk management, safeguarding and safety & security management to protect people, information and assets.

General 

• Promote a culture of excellence, service orientation, high performance, and continuous improvement
• Demonstrate Tara Values in every action
• Actively participate in Tara and Program Team activities
• Abide by Tara’s policies, procedures and practices

As and when required other responsibilities and projects will be allocated by line management in consultation with the post holder.

Excited by the prospect of working for a dynamic and fast-growing international organisation with a mission to solve the climate crisis, the ideal candidate will have:

• At least 5 years of relevant work experience, gained in either local or international foundations, donor agencies, NGOs or clean energy related companies or financial institutions.
• Advanced degrees (Master’s/PhD) in a related field may be counted as equivalent work experience.

In addition, the ideal candidate will demonstrate:

• Strong understanding of South Korea’s policy process from the political economy perspective and demonstrated policy analysis skills.
• Demonstrated networking skills that enable effective collaboration with a diverse group of partners.
• Experience in the fields of campaigning or policy advocacy is an advantage.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English and Korean, including writing briefing papers, funding proposals, and reports.
• A good understanding of grants management and the ability to engage constructively with civil society partners to ensure contractual outputs are achieved is desirable.
• Demonstrable ability to develop robust program plans, including the ability to identify tangible outcomes with partners, set priorities, plan interventions, and evaluate progress.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English and Korean.
• Good understanding of grant-making and/or grant management and ability to engage constructively with civil society partners to ensure contractual outputs are achieved.
• Computer skills (Excel, PowerPoint, Word).

Personal attributes

• Deep commitment to solving the climate crisis and enabling systemic change;
• Intrinsic motivation, excellent organisational and self-management skills;
• Deeply collaborative;
• Flexibility over working hours to accommodate global time zones;
• Willingness to travel both regionally and internationally;
• Impeccable ethics, and experience working confidentially and operating with high security.

Education 

• Advanced degree or relevant expertise in a relevant field such as renewable energy, environmental management, business administration, economics, public policy, or sustainable development.

Location

• The candidate must be based in South Korea and be a citizen of South Korea or have long-term residency status with legal permit to reside and work in the country.

What Tara offers:

• The unique opportunity to work as part of a highly dynamic, international team who combine their passion to make a difference with a rigorous and results-oriented approach to work
• A flexible work environment
• Opportunities for career develop and challenge yourself
• Competitive compensation and benefits
• A collaborative, fun and thriving team, driven by our mission and live our values

To Apply:

Please submit an A4 covering letter outlining your skills and achievements against the role responsibilities, why you would like to join us and your salary expectations, along with your up-to-date CV at Recruitment@taraclimate.org. Please use the job title: Program Officer South Korea as the subject in your email. Applications without a cover letter will not be assessed.

Tara is committed to building leadership capacity within Asia. This position is based in South Korea. Applicants must have the right to work in the country and must be fluent in Korean and a working knowledge of English.

We appreciate everyone's application, but only have the resources to respond to shortlisted applicants. If you have not heard from us within 3 weeks of the closing date, please assume you are unsuccessful for this role. If this is you, we appreciate your support and consideration and hope you will continue to consider roles with Tara in the future!