Afolu Methodologies Lead - London, United Kingdom - C-Quest Capital

Description

C-Quest Capital LLC (CQC) is a social impact project developer whose purpose is to transform the lives of families in poor communities around the world. We do this by providing access to sustainable energy services and clean energy technologies that reduce greenhouse gas emissions, combat global climate change, and improve the health of those in need. CQC was founded in 2008 and is headquartered in Washington D.C., USA, with subsidiaries in India, Malaysia, Singapore and Cambodia and on-ground teams in a host of countries around the world.

CQC develops high impact carbon finance projects under four operational platforms: Cleaner Cooking, Efficient Lighting, Sustainable Energy and Nature-based Solutions (NbS).

Currently we have active carbon project operations in over 15 countries across Sub-Saharan Africa, Central America, and South and Southeast Asia that have improved the lives of over 20 million people.

Background:

CQC is rapidly expanding its portfolio of nature-based carbon removals projects across a range of countries in sub-Saharan Africa.

Within the NbS portfolio, we have launched a series of pilots working closely with communities and smallholders on assisted natural regeneration, afforestation, agro-forestry and regenerative agriculture.

To support the ongoing development and implementation of a number of NbS trials, pilots and programmes across the Global Portfolio, CQC is looking for an individual with deep technical carbon project experience to lead the technical assessment and on-going monitoring and reporting of agriculture and forest carbon projects across the portfolio.

Core Tasks:

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Technical evaluation & supervision:

• Ensure the timely assessment of carbon removals and/or reduction potential of new NbS project opportunities, conduct project risks assessment and provide technical input into project development, verification/validation and implementation under the carbon and cobenefits standards (VCS, The Gold Standard, CCB, SD-VISta).
• Ensure projects are aligned with best practice methodologies to ensure that the carbon removals our reforestation partners create are sciencebased and aligned with industry standards.
• Planning and development of data collection tools to understand baseline scenarios and monitoring project activities in different countries; providing field research support to trials across the region (designing and collecting baselines, sampling, monitoring)
• Provide technical review to ensure that proposed NbS projects meet technical feasibility criteria to initiate the carbon and/or biodiversity project development and implementation cycles.
• Work closely with CSAT team and Field Staff to ensure quality and reliability of data being collected, close coordination with CSAT to ensure smooth interactions with VVBs, and various project stakeholders on regular basis.

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Advancing CQC's technical and scientific processes

• Contribute to enhancing the technical and scientific processes, tools, and analysis applied to CQC's NbS portfolio development and implementation.
• Ensure that CQC's NbS team is up to date on the latest technical and methodological developments across a range of AFOLU methodologies and project types.

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Growth & capacity building

• Supporting the growth of the NbS technical team as the portfolio develops, identifying key resource and technical needs in line with growth of the business and market developments.
• Build internal expertise and capacity on a range of technical carbon skills, including of remote sensing, GIS, ecosystem modelling technologies, MRV and digital MRV.
• Coordination and training with CSAT, cookstove operations and field staff on data collection and assessment techniques to build capacity and extend NbS programme through existing cookstove project areas.

Skills, Qualifications & Experience:

• Advanced degree in the field of climate or ecosystem sciences, agriculture, forestry, environmental management, environmental engineering, natural resources conservation and management, climate, and carbon mitigationrelated fields.
• Extensive experience in AFOLU projects for climate mitigation, natural resources conservation and management, forestry, sustainable agriculture or land management, conservation, or related fields.
• Handson experience in methodologies for carbon project development and certification in the AFOLU sector of the Voluntary Carbon Market, including familiarity with carbon standards like CDM, Verra, Gold Standard, CCB, in particular the development and validation of project design documents.
• Experience with a complete validation & verification cycle of an AFOLU project
• Understanding and ability to design infield feasibility assessments and manage carbon and ecological data sets.
• Experience in proximal sensing, remote sensing, GIS tools is advantageous.
• Excellent communication, presentation, and interpersonal skills and the ability to clearly articulate when reporting da