Senior Policy Advisor—Green Fiscal Policy

About Us

The International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) is a globally recognized think tank with more than 30 years of experience working to solve today's greatest sustainable development challenges. We combine deep expertise across critical policy areas with a collaborative approach to research, advice, and hands-on support that delivers real-world results. Headquartered in Winnipeg, Manitoba, we are a diverse team of over 300 experts working from offices in Canada and Switzerland as well as other locations around the world. 

IISD’s work on tax and sovereign debt seeks to build a fairer international financial architecture that leverages public funding for climate, biodiversity, and development goals through increased tax revenue, sustainable use of debt, and responsible financial management. We support emerging and developing country governments to design and implement policies that balance economic, environmental, and social objectives. 

Scope

The Green Fiscal Policy workstream aims to harness the power of green fiscal policies to promote just energy transitions. We cover taxation, incentives, carbon pricing, debt, and related fiscal and financial instruments. 

 

The Policy Advisor will lead and contribute to applied economic analysis and policy design on green fiscal instruments with a focus on the energy sector. The role combines quantitative analysis, policy advice, and project delivery, including direct engagement with government counterparts and international coalitions. 

 

This role offers the opportunity to shape real-world fiscal policy in emerging and developing economies, working directly with ministries of finance and energy, as well as international partners, on politically and technically complex reforms. 

 Responsibilities

Analysis 

• Lead and contribute to quantitative research and economic analysis. 

• Design and deliver technical assistance and capacity building to government counterparts, including workshops, policy diagnostics, and implementation roadmaps. 

• Produce high-quality reports, policy briefs, and other written outputs for technical and policy audiences. 
  

Operations and Program Management 

• Manage parts of projects, with responsibility for delivery, quality assurance, timelines, and client engagement. 

• Support the design and implementation of projects and programs, including planning, coordination, and risk management with colleagues. 

• Coordinate technical assistance missions, webinars, meetings, and public consultations, including logistics and follow-up. 

• Support partnership development with academia, international organizations, non-governmental organizations, and civil society organizations. 

• Manage own time and inputs to deliver outputs on time and to budget. 

Communications and Outreach 

• Work with the communications team to promote program outputs through various media. 

• Support networking and outreach to partners. 

 

Ideal Candidate Profile 

Knowledge and Qualifications 

• A post-graduate university degree or equivalent in a quantitative subject such as economics, engineering, or a related field, and/or substantial professional experience using quantitative skills. 

• At least 7 years of professional experience, or less if accompanied by a PhD, working on energy transition issues with a highly quantitative approach, gained in a national government, consultancy, private sector company, or an international or non-governmental organization. 

• Extensive technical knowledge of fiscal and energy sector policy. 

• Understanding of the political economy of fiscal and energy reform. 

• Knowledge of regional and global frameworks related to energy and fiscal issues. 

Skills, Competencies, and Attributes 

• Strong quantitative skills, with experience in applied economic modelling or data analysis such as fiscal or energy sector modelling. Experience with tools such as Excel, R, Python, or Stata is highly desirable. 

• Experience in delivering work to clients and explaining complex concepts clearly. 

• Experience working with government counterparts in emerging or developing economies. 

• Strong interpersonal and stakeholder-engagement skills, with the ability to communicate effectively with people from diverse backgrounds. 

• Strong communication and writing skills. 

• Ability to work independently, collaborate remotely, and manage multiple priorities. 

• Willingness to travel internationally and commitment to IISD’s mission and values. 

• Strong communication, writing, and stakeholder-engagement skills. 

• Ability to work independently, collaborate remotely, and manage multiple priorities. 

• Willingness to travel internationally and commitment to IISD’s mission and values. 

 

For more details on what we are looking for, please refer to the IISD competencies on our website. 

 

Location:  Remote in any of the IISD hiring countries:
Germany, Portugal, United States, United Kingdom, Belgium, Burkina Faso, Colombia, Costa Rica, Denmark, Ethiopia, France, India, Indonesia, Italy, Kenya, Luxembourg, Philippines, Qatar, Rwanda, South Africa, Sweden, Uganda.

Salary:  Remuneration commensurate with experience. 

Employment type: 100% full-time staff position. This is a 2-year contractual position with a possibility of extension.  

Job Type: Newly Created Role

Start Date: October 2026.

Closing Date:  September 3, 2026. 

The candidates will be reviewed on a rolling basis, and the position will be closed once filled. 

Candidates must hold appropriate work authorization in Geneva, Switzerland without any sponsorship from IISD.

Application Procedure

All submissions must be in English. 

Applications will only be accepted through Bamboo HR. 

• A CV (no longer than two pages) 
• A one-page letter of motivation 
• IISD Voluntary Self-Identification Questionnaire (optional) 

Only those candidates we wish to interview will be contacted. Resumes will be kept on file for 1 year.   

IISD is committed to fostering a more equitable and sustainable world and welcomes candidates who uphold our values of diversity, equity, and inclusion. We encourage applications from individuals from historically underrepresented and marginalized communities, including women, Indigenous Peoples, persons with disabilities, people of diverse racial and ethnic identities, and people of diverse sexual orientations, gender identities, gender expressions, and/or sex characteristics (SOGIESC).  

We are committed to equitable and inclusive recruitment practices and to reducing barriers to employment and advancement. Hiring decisions are based on qualifications, experience, competencies, and organizational needs, while recognizing the value that diverse perspectives and lived experiences bring to our work.  We offer reasonable accommodations throughout the recruitment process and welcome applicants’ input on how best to support their participation. Candidates are invited to voluntarily self-identify and complete our employment equity questionnaire through our applicant tracking system

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