Communications / Behavior Change Communications (BCC) Specialist

PROJECT OVERVIEW

ECODIT is implementing the USAID Lebanon Diverting Waste by Encouraging Reuse and Recycling (DAWERR) Activity, a five-year project that will establish sustainable and replicable integrated solid waste diversion and valorization solutions in different rural areas in Lebanon, leading to improved social and economic well-being for Lebanon’s population.  Working concomitantly with municipalities, local communities and the private sector, the project will (1) develop sustainable composting value chains for organic waste, and strengthen existing recycling value chains (RVCs) for inert recyclable materials in select municipalities serving as pilots initially, and then support replication by other municipalities across Lebanon building on lessons learned from the pilots; and (2) implement integrated Solid Waste Management (SWM) solutions for unions or clusters of municipalities.  

DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES

Under the overall management of the Chief of Party (COP), the Communications / BCC Specialist will:

• Provide technical leadership for developing, refining, implementing and updating the Project Communications and Outreach Plan;
• Assist the project team to establish and maintain communications channels and platforms with stakeholders and beneficiaries;  
• Produce communication materials and tools for community outreach activities;
• Work closely with the project team to develop and disseminate success stories; plan workshops, meetings and other events; conduct media outreach; and produce a wide range of communications materials for a variety of audiences (e.g., blog posts, articles, news stories, press releases, social media posts);
• Manage all external communication activities, in coordination with the COP and USAID;
• Design and implement BCC campaigns that identify priority behaviors, prioritize determinants of change, outline top influencers and delivery agents, delineate context-appropriate communication strategies, tailor topline messages for each audience, develop and deploy message delivery systems;  
• Monitor and report on communications related indicators of the project’s Monitoring and Evaluation plan;
• Ensure compliance with the project’s approved Branding Strategy and Marking Plan; 
• Contribute to the preparation of project deliverables (e.g., Weekly Activity Update, Quarterly, and Annual reports, Annual Work Plans); and
• Provide copy editing support, as requested.

The Communications/BCC Specialist will be based in Beirut, and will be expected to travel regularly and frequently to other locations throughout Lebanon to execute the above duties and responsibilities.

MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS

• Bachelor’s degree in communications, behavioral sciences, social marketing, or related field;
• At least 7 years of experience in external communications for international development projects, including preparing press releases and success stories and organizing events;
• At least 3 years of social marketing/BCC campaign design and implementation experience, preferably for environmental services;
• Demonstrated professional oral and writing skills in English and Arabic; and
• Experience in knowledge management using social media.