Climate Resilience Jobs in Silver Spring, MD (NOW HIRING)

NRDC (the Natural Resources Defense Council) works to safeguard the Earth, its people, its plants and animals, and the natural systems on which all life depends. NRDC combines the power of more than 3 million members and online activists with the expertise of some 800 policy advocates, lawyers, scientists, and communication experts to confront the climate crisis, protect nature, ensure the rights of all people to clean air, clean water, and healthy communities.  As an international nonprofit environmental organization, NRDC is working to address the world’s most urgent environmental challenges, and advance innovative, science-based, and enforceable solutions.  

Since our founding in 1970, NRDC has helped craft and deliver many of America’s foundational environmental laws, including the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act and Safe Drinking Water Act. Today, we continue to lead in advancing and defending strong environmental protections at the local, state, federal and international levels, as well as through the marketplace. Our team works across the United States and around the world, from offices in Chicago, Los Angeles, New York City, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C., as well as in Beijing, and New Delhi (a subsidiary of NRDC India Pvt. Ltd.).  

Supported by our members and online activists, NRDC is driving impactful solutions that confront the climate crisis, defend nature and safeguard public health acrossAsia, Africa, and the Americas. At NRDC, we believe lasting change happens when people bring their talent, passion, and expertise together for a common purpose: to build a cleaner, healthier, and more resilient world. Learn more at nrdc.org 

Position Summary

The Director provides strategic leadership along with programmatic and operational oversight for a multi-year, Africa-wide initiative advancing climate resilience, expanding clean energy access, and accelerating climate finance. The role will play a key part inbuilding outthis nascent program,strengtheningand operationalizing lines of effort already underway. This includes incorporating lessons learned from the first phase of grant implementation, helpingconsolidateand refine the priority list of program countries, and advancing core operational elements needed to scale the initiative. The Director will work collaboratively across teams and with external partners to ensure effective coordination, execution, and continuous improvement of program activities.  

This role requires a comprehensive understandingof climate, nature and development landscape, and thebroaderenergyindustrialtransitionenvironment. A strong project management backgroundwithexperienceinitiatingprogramsis essential. 

Reporting directly to the Senior Vice President of International Programs, theDirectorwill also act as the initiative’s coordinator, ensuring coherence acrossworkstreams, fostering strong African-led partnerships, and driving measurable impact for communities, ecosystems, and financial systems. 

If this role is in DC this will be a limited term 2 year role. If this role is in London it will be a 2 year limited term hire through a professional employer organization.  

Strategic Leadership & Functional Accountability 

• Support the development and evolution of the initiative’s strategic vision, multi-year roadmap and annual workplansfor NRDC’s Africa Initiative. 
• Work with leadership to translate institutional goals into regional strategies, annual plans and resourcing decisions 
• Implement monitoring, evaluation, learning, and adaptive management to ensure evidence-based decisions. 
• Manage day-to-day delivery of overall program performance, including outcomes across climateand natureresilience, clean energy, andsustainablefinance workstreamsinto a cohesive, high-impact portfolio. 
• Identify emerging operational challenges and propose practical solutions to help team adapt to changing circumstances.  

Leadership & Organizational Influence 

• Contribute to shaping the program’s evolving organizational structure as it growsto be high-functioning and tightly coordinateddespite its regional distribution. 
• Collaborate closely with teams across the organization to coordinate activities, share information, and support effective implementation within a highly matrixed organization. 
• Strengthen team capability by coaching staff and enhancing cross-functional collaboration, andfosteringa high-performance, inclusive culture. 
• Partner withsenior leaders across the organization and with external stakeholders to align priorities, secure resources, and drive successful advancement of program objectives. 
• Provide operational and analytical support to the Senior Vice President of International Programs,Chief Program Officerand other executive stakeholders. 
• Supervise and support asmall but growing team that will bedistributedover multiple continents,in the U.S., Africa and potentially Europewho supportthe various programworkstreams 

Partnership Development & External Engagement 

• Establish and maintain high-impact partnerships with African-led organizations, governments, regional institutions, and multilateral entitiesand other global partners. 
• Represent NRDC at selected global and regional forums (e.g., COP, Africa Climate Week, Mining Indaba), contributing to discussions aligned with program. 
• Facilitate strategic South–Southand South-South-Northcollaboration, including India–Africa knowledge exchange. 

Financial Stewardship & Resource Mobilization 

• Manage thefinancial performance and stewardship of amulti-million andmulti-year budgetensuring strong financial discipline. 
• Support fundraising to close the existing budget gap and sustain work beyond theinitialterm. 
• Prepare grant reports, donor updates, and impact summaries. 

Required 

• 10+ years of progressive leadership experience in climate resilience, clean energy, climate finance, or sustainable development. 
• Demonstrated successbuilding andleading large, complex, multi-country programs, preferably across Africa. 
• Strong operational background,including development, deployment and monitoring of project budgets;designing organizational structures; and recruiting and managing talent. 
• Deep understanding of community-driven development, energy systems,and/or natural climate solutions. 
• Proven ability to lead through managers and influence senior stakeholders across organizations. 
• Strong strategic, analytical, and problem-solving skills, with experience navigating complex and ambiguous environments. 
• Exceptional communication, diplomacy, and cross-cultural leadership capabilities. 
• Willingness and ability to travelfrequentlyacross Africa and globally. 

Preferred 

• Experience andexpertisein one or more o