JOB OPPORTUNITY: Senior Research Assistant/Research Analyst for the International Food Policy Research Institute, Washington DC

The Environment and Production Technology Division of the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) seeks a qualified candidate to fill the position of Senior Research Assistant (SRA)/Research Analyst (RA). This is a full time one-year, fixed-term, renewable appointment. This position is based at IFPRI headquarters in Washington, DC. A successful candidate will provide research support to mixed methods (qualitative and quantitative) studies on natural resource management (NRM), with a particular focus on gender and institutional issues. The SRA/RA would also play a critical role in communications and capacity building to apply research findings to policy and practice, and assist others to understand the implications of the research.

IFPRI’s Gender Strategy brings evidence to bear on questions relevant to policy and practice. Some of the research questions the selected candidate will help investigate include why there are gender gaps in the adoption of certain technologies and practices to support adaptation to climate change, and ways to increase women’s decision-making power and resource tenure rights within households, communities, and institutions governing agriculture and natural resources, particularly land and water. The position involves collaborating with other divisions in IFPRI working on gender and agriculture, including the Gender, Assets, and Agriculture Project (GAAP2) and the Women’s Empowerment in Agriculture Index (WEAI).

Essential Duties:

Specific duties include but are not limited to:

• Assist in developing qualitative research methods, train research teams, and conduct or supervise data collection
• Perform various tasks involving survey and qualitative data management and analysis
• Conduct literature reviews and synthesis
• Assist in the drafting and editing of discussion papers, blogs, policy notes, project briefs, technical guidance, presentations, etc.
• Help build capacity of others to address gender issues through outreach, communication, training, and collaborative activities with a range of partners
• Build partnerships with donors, government agencies, research institutes, and/or NGOs in-country to better understand evidence needs and priorities and to collaborate on research
• Participate in knowledge exchanges and remain current on gender, agriculture, and natural resource management academic literature, policies, and best practice
• Perform other duties as assigned

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in in Sociology, Anthropology, Gender Studies, Environmental Studies, International Development, or related field plus two years of relevant professional experience or Master’s degree in a relevant discipline.
• At the Research Analyst level, a minimum of 3 years’ relevant post-Masters experience is required.
• Excellent qualitative research data collection skills and demonstrated ability to perform in-depth analysis of qualitative data and report the results
• Strong knowledge of and background on gender research in developing countries
• Knowledge of agriculture, rural development, natural resource management, climate change, and/or other environmental issues
• Experience in conducting literature reviews of academic publications, research reports, etc.
• Ability to multi-task, consistently meet deadlines, and work independently with minimal supervision
• Excellent interpersonal skills and ability to work in a team-oriented multi-cultural environment
• High level of attention to detail and accuracy of work
• Ability to travel internationally (approximately 20% of time)
• Excellent English writing, speaking, and editing skills: ability to communicate to academic and non-academic audiences and tailor communications to the intended audience.

Preferred Qualifications

• Familiarity with institutional issues (e.g. property rights, governance arrangements) in natural resource management, climate change, and rural development in developing countries, particularly Africa and South Asia
• Experience leading capacity development activities, particularly designing and facilitating participatory workshops and trainings and developing technical guidance for practitioners, built on an understanding of audience and user needs
• Knowledge of quantitative analysis and statistical packages, especially STATA
• Experience using qualitative analysis software, such as ATLAS.ti or NVivo
• Experience living and working in a developing country on food security, rural development, natural resource management, or gender issues
• Familiarity with NGOs, donors, and implementing organizations working on food security, rural development, natural resource management, and/or gender equality, and an understanding of their priorities and current thinking on best practices in these areas
• Experience managing and supervising qualitative data collection teams
• Proficiency in French or other African/South Asian language
• Experience in proposal development