Consultant: International Platform for Reducing Earthquake Disaster (IPRED)
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Background and Objective
UNESCO operates at the interface between natural and social sciences, education, culture and communication, playing a vital role in building a global culture of resilience. UNESCO assists countries in capacity building for management of disaster and climate risk, particularly supporting the Member States on 1) early warning systems; 2) safe critical infrastructures; 3) UNESCO designated sites risk prevention; 4) using Science, Technology and Innovation such as Artificial Intelligence and big data; 5) built safe environment; 6) risk governance; 7) nature-based solutions, and 8) post disaster response.
Purpose of the Assignment
UNESCO acts as a secretariat to run the International Platform for Reducing Earthquake Disaster (IPRED), which is a network of national centers of excellence from 11 earthquake-prone countries to exchange knowledge accumulated in the advanced countries on seismology and earthquake engineering as well as support developing countries to build capacity in this field.
Seismic codes play significant role in reducing disaster risk, particularly in earthquake-prone regions. Engineers can reduce the possibility of structural collapse or extensive damage of buildings by following seismic codes. The content of these codes differs depending on the region or country, including the concept, and assumed seismic force.
UNESCO and IPRED have been working on comparing and improving the performance of seismic codes. The information of seismic codes is also essential for both preventing disaster and recover better from disaster. The early warning and early action stand as one of the effective methods to save lives and reduce the economic impact of natural hazards. UNESCO supports countries in establishing, maintaining and improving early warning systems, which are an essential component of disaster risk reduction. UNESCO is part of the UN Secretary General’s initiative “Early Warning System for All” where everyone on the earth will have access to early warning system by 2027. UNESCO is part of the initiative together with UNDRR, WMO, UNEP and UNDP.
In this context UNESCO is seeking an experienced individual consultant to support the activities in the following areas:
- collect seismic codes in the Latin America and Caribbean region and develop a database,
- draft the database for publication on the UNESCO website,
- supporting the Member States to set up/improve early warning systems
Duties/Tasks and Expected Output
Under the supervision of the Chief of DRR Unit for Natural Sciences in UNESCO HQ, the individual consultant is expected to carry out the following functions:
I. Seismic code database
- Collect the data of seismic codes of countries of Latin America and Caribbean in Spanish and English.
- Draft the database to publish on the UNESCO website in English
II. Early warning systems (EWS)
- Provide technical advice to seek opportunities for further support or collaboration by UNESCO on the EWS
- Provide a technical contribution to preparation and implementation of the above-mentioned projects.
Required qualifications
Education
- Advanced university degree (Master's or equivalent) in civil engineering, seismic engineering or other related fields such as disaster risk reduction.
Work Experience
- A minimum of 10 years of relevant professional experience in local, national, or international level on earthquake DRR in Latin America and the Caribbean region.
- Experience in developing policy recommendations for DRR.
- Experience in developing work plans.
Skills/Competencies
- Good analytical, organizational and project management skills.
- Excellent coordination and interpersonal skill.
- Excellent written and oral communication skills.
- Proven ability to communicate and negotiate effectively and persuasively with different stakeholders at all levels, within and outside the organization.
- Capacity to build and maintain effective working relations with national and local authorities, relevant institutions, intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations.
- Ability to work effectively and maintain effective working relations within a multi-cultural environment.
- Ability to manage heavy workloads and to meet tight deadlines, paying close attention to details.
- Solid IT skills including knowledge of office software.
Languages
- Excellent knowledge of English and Spanish (written and spoken).
- Being a native Spanish speaker will be an asset
Duration of the assignment
- From 1 February 2024 to 30 September 2024.
How to apply
To apply, please send your application of a technical proposal that consists of up-to-date curriculum vitae and an approach and methodology for the assignment, a work plan (brief) and the amount to be charged for the assignment in US dollars or in euros. Your proposal and any supporting documents must be in English. Please send the application to drr@unesco.org by 20 November 2023 (midnight, Paris time) at the latest.
Please note that only pre-selected candidates will be contacted.