Inclusivity Lead, Transforming Humanitarian Energy Access (THEA) Programme
Description
Project/Consultancy Title: Inclusivity Lead, Transforming Humanitarian Energy Access (THEA) Programme
Project Location(s): Remote
Finance Department Code: 13416
Background:
Mercy Corps is a leading global organization powered by the belief that a better world is possible. In disaster, in hardship, in more than 40 countries around the world, we partner to put bold solutions into action — helping people triumph over adversity and build stronger communities from within.
The Inclusivity Lead will be embedded in the Transforming Humanitarian Energy Access (THEA) program, which will deliver transformative action on clean energy access in humanitarian settings, working with the FCDO’s Transforming Energy Access (TEA) platform to mainstream energy access in humanitarian settings and provide expert advice on the energy needs of refugees and internally displaced people (IDPs) for UK and international energy access partners. The programme aims to build and share evidence of existing best practices for replication and scaling, support new refugee-inclusive policies and partnerships, outline key barriers to scaling energy access in refugee settings, test innovations, and helps raise additional funding/finance for delivery of sustainable energy solutions in humanitarian contexts. The action-oriented research will be used to and advocate with key donors, UN humanitarian and development agencies to remove barriers for quicker deployment of sustainable humanitarian energy solutions. Targeted research is planned to inable more inclusive financing, policies and partnerships, working directly with refugees and displaced communities to meet community energy needs through localized business and delivery models. THEA is delivered by Mercy Corps, in partnership with Refugee Led Organizations, Ashden and the Global Platform for Action (GPA) on Sustainable Energy in Displacement Settings (hosted at UNITAR).
Purpose / Project Description:
The Inclusivity Lead will work across the THEA’s work packages (WP) to ensure that the proposed innovative business models to increase energy access in situations of displacement are inclusive, and that the perspectives and experiences of forcibly displaced communities are systematically integrated in the development of new energy projects.
For the WP 1 on Data-driven Evidence and Research, the Inclusivity Lead will lead on delivery of key briefing notes for the global humanitarian energy space through the GPA, which will report key evidence emerging through the THEA programme and including other best practices and updates from the GPA Steering Group and network partners. These yearly global summary reports will be accompanied by specific blogs, and the Inclusivity Lead will be responsible for ensuring that the yearly updates are written with co-authorship or revision by people with lived experience of forced displacement. In addition, two key briefing notes on Inclusive Policies and Inclusive Partnerships will be delivered, building on the GPA Inclusivity Strategic Outlook published in 2023. In 2026, the Inclusivity Lead will support the delivery of the State of the Humanitarian Energy Sector (SOHES) update, a key publication of the GPA Coordination Unit produced every 4 years which updates the global humanitarian energy access figures.
For the WP2 on Codification and Implementation, the Inclusivity Lead will deliver and maintain a public webpage (e.g. a page on the GPA or Mercy Corps website) of refugee led energy enterprises. This is intended to create a network and provide visibility to energy enterprises in displacement settings, connect them with funding and investor opportunities to improve their businesses which deliver clean energy within their communities, and ensure their experiences are systematically included in Advocacy and Outreach delivered through the THEA programme.
For the WP3 on Advocacy, the Inclusivity Lead will support setting up the “THEA: Evidence to Action” group, chaired by FCDO, to share the key learnings and outputs of THEA with the donor community, UN organisations and other key Humanitarian Energy stakeholders. This group will meet online and in person to ensure evidence and research produced through THEA is reported to influence donor and UN funding/policies. In addition, two online roundtables on Inclusive Policies and Inclusive Partnership will be held to share outputs of the briefing notes delivered under WP1. The Inclusivity Lead will also support ad-hoc advisory of TEA partners, aiming to integrate humanitarian and refugee contexts into the wider TEA programme.
Consultant Objectives:
The main objectives of the Consultant include:
- Raising awareness of inclusive sustainable delivery models for key UN and donor stakeholders.
- Ensuring people with lived experience of forced displacement are consulted and actively engaged in research outputs.
- Raising visibility for refugee-led businesses and organisations working on clean energy access in refugee settings in Uganda, Ethiopia and Bangladesh.
- Contributing to high-level advocacy by people with lived experience of forced displacement at global events.
Consultant Activities:
The Consultant will be responsible for the following activities:
- Delivery of Briefing Notes and Roundtables on Inclusive Policies and Inclusive Partnerships, based on the GPA Inclusivity Strategic Outlook released in 2023.
- Delivery of yearly global humanitarian energy update briefing notes with THEA and GPA partners, ensuring leadership/co-authorship or revision from persons with lived experience of forced displacement.
- Support and advisory of the delivery of the State of the Humanitarian Energy Sector (SOHES) update report in 2026 (report to be delivered by a specialist consultancy).
- Establishing and maintaining a webpage of refugee-led energy access businesses in THEA focus countries, and delivering a blog to showcase the network of refugee-led energy access businesses.
- Co-leading the “THEA Evidence to Action” group.
- Supporting ad-hoc advisory of how to mainstream humanitarian/refugee contexts into the wider TEA programme.
Consultant Deliverables:
The Consultant will deliver the following:
- Work Package 1: Data-driven Evidence and Research
- Year 1 (September – December 2024)
- Setting up impact reporting framework developed for the Humanitarian Energy Update briefing notes (with MEL specialists) [GPA CU, 1.1.2]
- Year 2 (January – December 2025)
- Blog showcasing refugee-led energy enterprises leading to an online web page with centralised database of refugee-led energy enterprises (target: 1 blog; see WP2) [GPA CU, 1.1.2]
- Humanitarian Energy Update 2025 (briefing note format, approx. 10 pages) [GPA CU, 1.1.2]
- Briefing note on inclusive policies, building out this section of the GPA Inclusivity Strategic Outlook released in 2023 (briefing note format, approx. 10 pages or less) [GPA CU, 1.1.2]
- Select researchers with lived experience of displacement [GPA CU]
- Year 3 (January – December 2026)
- Advise on the TOR/Scope of Work and ensuring co-authorship with researcher with lived experience of forced displacement for the State of the Humanitarian Energy Sector (SOHES) Report 2026 - Global Humanitarian Energy Access Figures update, report and project map (substantive analytical report) [GPA CU, 1.1.1]
- Briefing note on inclusive partnerships, building out this section of the GPA Inclusivity Strategic Outlook released in 2023 and based on THEA programme delivery experience (briefing note format, approx. 10 pages or less) [GPA CU, 1.1.2]
- Humanitarian Energy Update 2026 report (briefing note format, approx. 10 pages) [GPA CU, 1.1.2]
- Work Package 2: Codification and Implementation
- Year 2 (January – December 2025)
- Delivery of a centralised webpage showcasing refugee-led energy enterprises (from THEA with inputs from other GPA partners), for systematic inclusion in advocacy and visibility of investment needs [GPA CU, 1.1.2]
- Work Package 3: Advocacy
- Year 1 (September-December 2024)
- Support the mapping and engagement with key stakeholders (humanitarian, development, donor and refugee-led partners) to establish the “THEA: Evidence to Action” group [GPA CU; 5.2a]
- Year 2 (January – December 2025)
- Co-lead the “THEA Evidence to Action” group with FCDO, meeting twice to share programme evidence updates (1 in person at TEA delivery workshop, 1 online) [GPA CU, 5.2b]
- Provide ad-hoc advisory support for recommendations and strategy development for TEA partners to extend work into humanitarian settings, as identified through consultations in 2024 (targeting 1 TEA partner for 2025) [GPA CU, 5.2a]
- Deliver the Roundtable on inclusive policy, based on briefing note (see WP1) [GPA CU; 5.2a, 5.2b]
- Year 3 (January – December 2026)
- Provide ad-hoc advisory support for recommendations and strategy development for TEA partners to extend work into humanitarian settings, as identified through consultations in 2024 and subsequent partner engagement in 2025 (targeting 2 TEA partners for 2026) [GPA CU, 5.2a]
- Co-lead “THEA Evidence to Action” Group with FCDO, meeting twice to share programme evidence updates (1 in person at TEA delivery workshop, 1 online) [GPA CU, 5.2b]
- Deliver the Roundtable on inclusive partnerships, based on briefing note (see WP1) [GPA CU, 5.2a, 5.2b]
Timeframe / Schedule:
November 2024 – December 2026
The Consultant will report to:
Megan Taeuber – THEA Programme Manager
The Consultant will work closely with:
The Global Platform for Action (GPA) for Sustainable Energy Solutions in Displacement Settings (hosted at UNITAR), Ashden, Mercy Corps’ TRaQ Energy Access team, other TRaQ teams, Country teams.
Required Experience & Skills:
- Have lived experience of forced displacement
- Have proven previous experience in inclusive humanitarian energy advocacy with UN, INGOs and the broader humanitarian ecosystem (at least 5 years).
- Have experience in high-level advocacy and interaction with UN and donor stakeholders in the field of humanitarian energy access.
- Have led or published research on inclusive energy access in humanitarian contexts.
- Have a proven network of refugee-led organizations, and specifically refugee-led energy access businesses living in forced displacement settings.
- Fluency in English. Knowledge of other languages - notably French and Swahili - are an advantage.
Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
Achieving our mission begins with how we build our team and work together. Through our commitment to enriching our organization with people of different origins, beliefs, backgrounds, and ways of thinking, we are better able to leverage the collective power of our teams and solve the world’s most complex challenges. We strive for a culture of trust and respect, where everyone contributes their perspectives and authentic selves, reaches their potential as individuals and teams, and collaborates to do the best work of their lives.
Achieving our mission begins with how we build our team and work together. Through our commitment to enriching our organization with people of different origins, beliefs, backgrounds, and ways of thinking, we are better able to leverage the collective power of our teams and solve the world’s most complex challenges. We strive for a culture of trust and respect, where everyone contributes their perspectives and authentic selves, reaches their potential as individuals and teams, and collaborates to do the best work of their lives.
We recognize that diversity and inclusion is a journey, and we are committed to learning, listening and evolving to become more diverse, equitable and inclusive than we are today.
Equal Employment Opportunity
We are committed to providing an environment of respect and psychological safety where equal employment opportunities are available to all. We do not engage in or tolerate discrimination on the basis of race, color, gender identity, gender expression, religion, age, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin, disability (including HIV/AIDS status), marital status, military veteran status or any other protected group in the locations where we work.
We are committed to providing an environment of respect and psychological safety where equal employment opportunities are available to all. We do not engage in or tolerate discrimination on the basis of race, color, gender identity, gender expression, religion, age, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin, disability (including HIV/AIDS status), marital status, military veteran status or any other protected group in the locations where we work.
Safeguarding & Ethics
Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our stakeholders and to international standards guiding international relief and development work, while actively engaging communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects. Team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner and respect local laws, customs and MC's policies, procedures, and values at all times and in all in-country venues.
Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our stakeholders and to international standards guiding international relief and development work, while actively engaging communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects. Team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner and respect local laws, customs and MC's policies, procedures, and values at all times and in all in-country venues.