Apply for the Research Officer Job Opportunity at Natural Justice, Southern Africa

Natural Justice is an organization rooted in the struggles of communities in Africa. As a team of pioneering lawyers and legal experts, we specialize in human rights and environmental law in pursuit of social and environmental justice.

Application Deadline: 21 November 2023

About Nature Justice

Natural Justice strives to enhance the collective rights of people and protect the sacred relationships that indigenous peoples and local communities have with nature. Our work is informed by the values, knowledge and self-determination of the communities whom we stand in solidarity with.

Through legal empowerment, research, policy influencing and litigation, and as part of coalitions and campaigns, we support communities to know the law, use the law and shape the law. Natural Justice has three main pillars: Affirming and Securing Rights to Lands, Resources and Knowledge; Defending Rights against Environmental and Social Impacts; and Standing with Communities.

Who are we looking for?

Natural Justice seeks a full-time Research Officer to join its Southern Africa hub. The hub works across South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe and Mozambique. The successful candidate will work with a passionate team of staff working across all three work streams in the hub. They will be expected to work with the support staff, including finance, communications and monitoring, evaluation and learning staff.

The candidate will conduct evidence-based research regarding land rights, indigenous peoples’ rights, climate justice, resource rights, and human rights. This will include primary and secondary research in order to support the work of the three programmatic streams of Natural Justice. The candidate must have an interest in supporting Indigenous peoples and local communities throughout the countries we work in. They will be expected to foster long-term, committed relationships with communities, build connections to community partners and work in consortiums and partnerships with other civil society organizations.

The Research Officer will report directly to the Affirming Rights Programme Manager and Director of the Cape Town Hub. They will be expected to support the research needs of all the programmatic streams of Natural Justice. National Justice will offer a competitive salary (TCT), commensurate with skill and experience. The salary offered is inclusive of benefits, e.g., medical aid, Provident Fund and Risk cover, laptop and technical support. The position is for permanent, full-time employment.

The successful candidate will be based in Cape Town, with some travel nationally and regionally, and occasional travel internationally. They are expected to begin work as soon as possible. Natural Justice is an African organization and preference is given to those applying from African countries, but particularly from countries supported by the Southern African team.

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The key roles and responsibilities

• Conduct research in line with the overall priorities of the Southern Africa team.
• Initiate, plan and implement research projects and activities (including timelines, deliverables and budgeting) under the guidance of the Affirming Rights Programme Manager and Hub Director.
• Lead the compilation and analysis of data and information from the Hub’s legal empowerment, litigation and advocacy work.
• Assist in the development of a research strategy for the Southern Africa team in line with organisation’s research strategy and donor priorities of team.
• Provide overall research support to the team in the collection of field data, preliminary analysis of qualitative and quantitative data and in the preparation of reports;
• Lead the compilation and analysis of data and information from the Hub’s legal empowerment, litigation and advocacy work.
• Conduct research related to donor proposals, country analysis and other research outputs that are needed to develop key strategies.
• Promote and facilitate the research capacity of the three programmatic streams, and oversee the collection and analysis of data/information.
• Collaborate and participate in project evaluations together with the MEAL Officers, and compile research results and participate in the drafting of the final deliverables such as the baseline study, mid-term evaluation and final evaluation reports.
• Coordinate support and training to community partners to implement research methodologies.
• Assist with the conceptualisation of, and conduct research and write opinions on core issues, including land rights, climate change, environmental compliance, impacts of major projects and citizens advocacy.
• Identify and interact with relevant researchers or institutes, organizations, or other relevant stakeholders from government, NGOs, private sector and academics in the region.
• Attend and represent Natural Justice in conferences and events that are relevant to the respective research.
• Support the implementation of the hub’s monitoring and evaluation strategy and plans.

Minimum Academic Requirements

• Bachelor’s Degree in law, international development, environmental studies or other relevant social science discipline.
• Master’s degree in these disciplines or political science, climate change mitigation and adaptation or other relevant social science discipline is desirable.

Experience and abilities

• At least 3 years of demonstrated work experience in research.
• A good knowledge of constitutional and administrative law, including human rights, land & environmental law, Southern African and international socio-economic, climate justice or a clear ability to acquire the necessary knowledge within a short space of time.
• Experience in gathering, analysing, and breaking down technical/complex information into relatively easy and understandable formats is an asset.
• Experience with conducting primary and desktop research and preparing clear analytical reports and publications (with proof of published work).
• Excellent knowledge and experience in establishing and maintaining effective research projects. Preference will be given to candidates with experience related to legal advocacy, human rights and environmental justice.
• Understanding of legal frameworks, legal empowerment, human rights development, and other subjects related to the work of Natural Justice is preferred.
• Ability to work independently, with minimum supervision and guidance from supervisors.
• Experience writing applications and reporting to donors is advantageous.
• Experience working with deadlines in a high-pressure environment is an advantage.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills imperative.
• Ability to grasp quickly and accurately new and complex concepts.
• Conviction in and commitment to community rights, constitutionalism and principles of environmental justice.
• Sound emotional intelligence skills to enable interaction with persons from all sectors of the society.
• The Researcher should be able to work as a team, have an eye for detail and accuracy, and be able to receive and incorporate feedback.
• Proficient in English. Fluency in Portuguese or French would be advantageous.

How to Apply

Please email your application to [email protected] with the following subject line: “SA: Research Officer”. Applications must include:

• A motivation letter that indicates: a) why you are interested in this position and what inspires you about environmental justice; and b) aspects of your background that demonstrate the required competence for this role;
• A detailed CV with three contactable references;
• Please ensure that your application as a whole speaks to the required qualifications, experience, personal profile and key roles and responsibilities. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

To learn more about the work of Natural Justice please refer to www.naturaljustice.org