EU Public Diplomacy Project Consultant

DevelopmentAid.org

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Deadline:

Aug 30, 2016

Location:

Belgium

Languages:

English

Opportunity type:

Other

Minimum work experience:

From 3 years

Sectors:

Media and Communications, Design

Expected starting date:

Unknown

Organisation:

EQUINOCCIO, Compañia de Comercio Exterior S.L.

DESCRIPTION

Location: Brussels - Belgium

Assignment location and time-frame: The consultant shall work 20-30 h/week with freelance contract. The work should predominantly take place from the project office on rue Egmont 15 – 1050 Brussels, Belgium. No travel is currently foreseen. The assignment shall begin as soon as possible, and if satisfactory, will last until at least February 2018 – renewable for additional two years.

Project Background:

The EU Policy and Outreach Partnership is an EU-funded project, implemented by Equinoccio, a Madrid-based consultancy (equinoccio.eu), in tight coordination with the European Commission´s Foreign Policy Instrument. The project supports the EU to engage with partner country audiences and stakeholders of influence through public diplomacy  activities, tools and training, in an effort to:

• Improve the understanding of the European project, principles and policies amongst the citizens of partner countries and foster an image of Europe that resonates better with local specificities.
• Deepen the engagement of the EU with future leaders and influencers in key policy areas as well as promoting learning and building mutual trust with and between citizens.

The project is part of a series of interventions leading towards a more coherent global EU Public Diplomacy strategy. Global in nature, it focuses on pilot activities in Hong Kong/Macau, Singapore and New Zealand, developed in tight cooperation with the relevant EU Delegations. This project´s primary “public” or audience are think tanks and media, as well as academics and students. In close cooperation with local universities, PR companies, think tanks and other partners, the project will organise around ten events (e.g. conferences/seminars/round-tables), with well-developed audience interaction and elaborated outreach in the “pilot countries”. The identified priority topics include Climate Change, Geographic Indications within the context of Free Trade Agreements and Media Perceptions of the EU.

Interventions are not stand-alone but aim and linking previous and future engagements in order to contribute to a more effective global EU Public Diplomacy. Policy and Outreach Partnerships are also being developed in ten key “strategic countries/regions”.  In addition, the EU also engages in academic outreach through Jean Monnet activities, Civil Society engagement and Cultural Diplomacy. 

Scope of Work:

The consultant will support the team leader in the following:

Event management coordination

• Help draft Terms of Reference/specifications and collect quotes/cost estimates for event and communications needs
• Liaise with pilot-country based PR and Communications agencies and experts
• Coordinate administration and financial management with Madrid office.

Communications and Outreach

• Collect, summarise and adapt EU information and communications content to local context, for concise and attractive communications material
• Adapt social media strategy to each event, in coordination with local expert
• Quality assurance of materials provided by PR companies and experts
• Select and fine-tune/edit top communications material for EU Delegation use – pre- and post-event.

Stakeholder mapping and reporting

• Identify, follow and report highlights of key influencers & actors of relevance for event topics, e.g. climate change in Singapore, LGBTI rights in Hong Kong, and Geographic indications in New Zealand.
• Ongoing review of topic highlights in pilot countries, e.g. related events, major media focus (based on EU Delegation newsletters etc.)

Public Diplomacy Best Practices, Monitoring and Evaluation

• On-line research of best practices in public diplomacy, and relevant monitoring and evaluation
• Survey-based evaluations and recommendations after each event

Additional Project Assistance:

• Support team leader in mission agenda planning
• Participate in and draft meeting/conference summaries and action points, including for Project Steering Committee meetings
• Minor office management, e.g. production of hard copies through copy shops
• Support mid-term evaluation and audits
• Replace and follow up work of team leader while on leave or mission

Required Expertise:

The consultant shall have the following experience & skills:

• Professional level of English-language communications. Knowledge of Cantonese would be a great plus.
• University degree in relevant field (communications, media, international or EU relations, political science or related).
• At least 3 years in communications/public relations, covering strategic communications, social media, event management and production of communications material.
• At least 1 year working in EU institutions´ communications.
• Excellent interpersonal and coordination skills for on-line correspondence with PR partners and experts across the globe.
• An eye for visual and text details and precision. Ability to filter a broad scope of complex information into key communications highlights.
• Strong ICT skills, in particular use of software for various social media, graphic design, photo and video editing, as well as newsletter creation (e.g. Mailchimp).
• Experience working with New Zealand, Hong Kong and/or Singapore would be a plus.

VALID WORK PERMIT TO WORK in BRUSSELS IS A MUST.

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Contact Person: Elena Yurova  eyurova@equinoccio.eu cc: cv@equinoccio.eu 

Applications preferably by: Aug 30th, 2016

Reference Number: PR-1207 PDO Consultant/Assistant

Note: Please take into account that only selected candidates will be contacted.

In your application please specify that you found out about this opportunity on DevelopmentAid.org.

Veuillez indiquer dans votre candidature que vous avez consulté cette offre sur le site web DevelopmentAid.org.

To apply

Applications and updated CV should be submitted to eyurova@equinoccio.eu or http://www.equinoccio.eu/en/search-job-opportuniti...