Program Officer, Environment Team

Key Responsibilities

Grantee Support

• Build trusted relationships with grantees; regularly identify critical barriers to achieving maximum impact; propose possible solutions
• Engage in 2-way learning with grantees; gain insights from and share observations with grantees
• Amplify grantees’ work with strong communications to internal and external audiences
• Provide organizational development support to grantees as they scale
• Offer campaign strategy and promotional assistance
• Connect grantees to resources and partners that will advance their work and accelerate their impact

Strategy Implementation and Learning

• Track and analyze progress against strategy objectives
• Support monitoring and evaluation to inform future grantmaking decisions
• Compose concise, regular progress updates to the board, using strong data visualization
• Lead an annual board discussion on progress against grantees’ goals and the impact of Robertson’s investments

Portfolio Development

• Conduct research and synthesize information on key issues underlying the Foundation’s strategies
• Provide strong diligence that leads to the identification of potential new grantees
• Propose and steward new, multi-year, multi-million-dollar investments

Field Engagement and Networking

• Represent the Foundation at convenings, workshops, and conferences to gain greater insight into relevant topics
• Engage with advocates, government officials, funders, and other thought partners to discern where philanthropy can make the greatest impact
• Build and diversify the Environment Portfolio team’s network of potential advisors, thought partners, co-funders, and potential grantees

Ideal Candidate

Strong candidates have a deep commitment to solving the climate crisis and an understanding of the role philanthropy can play. The Foundation seeks candidates with a broad generalist understanding of climate change and a desire to work across a range of topics; specific experience in the Global South (especially Latin America), energy transition, or U.S. food systems transformation is also valued.

Strategic thinkers who are excited to dig into multiple complex topics, seek out alternative viewpoints and learn from a wide range of sources will be ideally suited for this role. Candidates should be proactive and action-oriented, able to juggle competing priorities. They must be able to work independently to advance a range of projects and excel as good team players who enjoy working closely with colleagues on collaborative projects.

The Foundation seeks naturally inquisitive lifelong learners who are comfortable reaching beyond current areas of expertise, and have the intellectual agility to recognize connections, opportunities, and intersections across different aspects of the Environment Portfolio. Their innate interest in the field drives a proactive and forward-looking approach to following trends, anticipating changes, and predicting potential impacts for the Foundation.

The strongest candidates enjoy engaging with grantees; building supportive relationships, listening to needs, making connections, and identifying opportunities to help grantees grow and achieve greater impact. Operating from a place of respect and humility, the best candidates will be able to create an environment of continuous learning with grantees, other funders, sector experts, and lay audiences.

Sound judgment and a high degree of discretion and tact will be necessary for this role. The ability to organize, prioritize, and meet deadlines will be expected.

Desired Qualifications

While no one candidate will possess all the desired qualifications, strong candidates will offer a combination of the following:

• Organizational development experience
• Strong relationship management ability
• Heightened project management skills
• Excellent written and visual communications
• Fluency in emissions math, with the ability to apply findings analytically
• Lived experience and/or cross-cultural competency to work in the Global South across contexts that could include South America, Central America, the Caribbean, and Africa. 
• Fluency in Spanish and/or Portuguese

Qualified candidates may have experience in and networks with advocacy organizations, think tanks, philanthropies, impact investing, development banks, and local or national governments in Latin America or the Global South more broadly.