Programs Fellowship

Description:
About Concern
Concern Worldwide is an international humanitarian organization committed to the relief, assistance and advancement of the poorest people in the least developed countries of the world. Founded in Ireland in 1968, Concern Worldwide has nearly 4,000 personnel working in 24 countries across the globe. Concern believes in a world where no one lives in fear; where all have access to a decent standard of living and the opportunities essential to a long, healthy and creative life. Our mission is to help people living in absolute poverty achieve major improvements in their lives, improvements that are sustainable without ongoing support from Concern.

We believe in creating a culture of inclusion where everyone feels empowered to bring their full, authentic selves to the workplace. Building a diverse and inclusive team is an absolute necessity to deliver the solutions needed to achieve our core mission, because without promoting justice and equality, we cannot eliminate extreme poverty.

Concern Worldwide US (CUS) is an independent affiliate of Concern Worldwide, with offices in New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles. CUS advances the Concern Worldwide mission through mobilizing financial and human resources, as well as influencing and activating networks in the US to elevate programs globally.

Who Should Apply to Concern’s Fellowship Program
Concern Worldwide US is seeking highly motivated individuals to join its 2022 Summer Fellowship Program. Concern’s fellowship program is an excellent opportunity for individuals to work alongside dedicated, experienced staff to learn about Concern’s mission and vision and the many mechanisms that come together to create an effective humanitarian organization.
Candidates should have an interest in international humanitarian relief and international development. Students currently enrolled in an undergraduate or graduate program are eligible to apply. All academic fields will be considered.

Goal of Fellowship
As a Concern Worldwide US fellow, you will have the opportunity to learn about and gain exposure to the breadth of Concern’s portfolio of work which includes international humanitarian and development programming, policy and advocacy, grants management, communications and marketing, finance and administration, systems and operations, and human resources. Through your day-to-day assignments, as well as experiential learning opportunities such as brown bag presentations and informational meetings with members of Concern’s senior management team, your fellowship experience will provide you with an opportunity to work on engaging, high impact projects for a large international NGO.

Fellowships are available in these Concern departments:

• Programs
• Communications
• Individual Giving: Special Events & Major Donors
• Finance
• Human Resources
• Marketing & Business Operations

Goal of the Programs Fellowship
The Programs Department at Concern Worldwide US is a dynamic and diverse group of professionals working to support Concern’s mission of improving the lives of those living in extreme poverty. While based in New York, the team works to support Concern’s work around the world through high quality training, advocacy, proposal development, programmatic support, and fundraising. The Programs Department is composed of 4 units: Advocacy, Business Development, Grants Management, and Humanitarian Research and Training. The 2022 Programs Fellow will be working jointly with the Advocacy and Humanitarian Research and Training units (largely on the topics covered below) but will have the opportunity to connect with and learn from the full Programs team.

The humanitarian localization agenda seeks to boost the capacity, resources, and agency of local and national humanitarian actors, which are typically smaller NGOs that work only in one country or area of a country. Concern Worldwide has long been invested in bolstering the capacity and agency of local and national actors within the humanitarian system through training, research, and partnership. In the past few years, Concern has redoubled this effort through the Beyond Barriers project and the Local Capacity Strengthening for Response project (done in partnership with the International Medical Corps). Both projects seek to find feasible, operational solutions to shift localization from rhetoric to action.

An important platform for decision-making and coordination in humanitarian crises is the national NGO consortium, which formally brings together NGOs engaged in a crisis to discuss their response, barriers to operations, and policy changes that may be needed. The lessons emerging from Concern’s programming on localization has emphasized the importance of national NGO consortia in amplifying local voices and agency within the humanitarian coordination system. Despite this critical role, many local and national NGOs are not yet members of such consortia. In an effort to remove the barriers to participation in such bodies, the 2022 Programs Fellow will work to map the presence of NGO consortia, identify pathways for membership, and outline the benefits of membership for local and national NGOs. Once designed, the Fellow will work with the Advocacy Unit to help disseminate this learning and connect with Concern country teams who would find this research useful.

The Programs Department is dedicated to creating a supportive environment for the 2022 Fellow that is mutually beneficial, collaborative, and grounded in purpose. The Fellow will be managed by a member of the Humanitarian Research and Training unit, with mentorship from across the Programs Department.
Responsibilities:

• Literature review on localization in humanitarian action and the importance of national NGO and local NGO participation in consortium bodies
• Systematic review of NGO consortia in countries facing acute and chronic humanitarian crises
• 1–3-page policy brief on best practice and actionable steps national/local NGOs can take to get connected to NGO fora and consortia
• Presentation of final research findings
• Contribution to regular program activities such as meetings, teach-ins, strategic brainstorming sessions
• Assistance with the implementation of programmatic activities in the Humanitarian Research and Training Unit and the Advocacy Unit, as needed

Compensation & Structure:
The fellowship will begin Tuesday, June 14, 2022 and conclude Friday, August 19, 2022. Scheduling is flexible, though fellows will be expected to be in the office every Tuesday during the course of the fellowship. Fellows are expected to work a minimum of 10 hours per week (maximum 15 hours/week). The program will run for a period of 10 weeks.
The fellowship program is compensated through a $3000 stipend to be paid semi- monthly.

. Requirements:

• Currently enrolled as an undergraduate or graduate student.
• Demonstrated interested in international humanitarian aid, development, or education as evidenced by coursework or previous work/internship experiences
• Detail-oriented and highly organized.
• A highly motivated self-starter with the ability to navigate remote management and work with minimal supervision.
• Flexibility to meeting changing deadlines and priorities and ability to manage multiple tasks.
• Effective written and verbal communication skills.
• Commitment to the core values and vision of Concern Worldwide.
• Candidates must be currently authorized to work in the US.