Comprehensive Sustainability Consultancy - Lebanon Innovate

Berytech is a leading organization in the Entrepreneurial Ecosystem in Lebanon, that aims to provide a conducive environment for the creation and development of startups, through incubation, business support, counseling, funding, networking, and company hosting, hence taking part in the economic revival of the country, participating in wealth and job creation, and retaining graduates and high-level skills in Lebanon.  

Lebanon Innovate is a 42-month European Union-funded initiative, aimed at advancing Lebanese research into market-ready innovations in key sectors such as Information and Communication Technology (ICT), healthcare, and agrifood. The program is designed to enhance Lebanon's entrepreneurial ecosystem, encouraging partnerships between academia and industry, and emphasizing intellectual property protection and international networking to catalyze economic and innovative development in Lebanon.

The program aims to:

• Enhance competitiveness in sectors like agrifood, healthcare, and ICT.
• Support stakeholder empowerment for knowledge sharing and commercialization.
• Foster industry-academia partnerships for innovation.
• Connect with European countries and diaspora networks for global market access.

This Terms of Reference (TOR) falls under one of the key activities of the Lebanon Innovate Program, specifically aimed at empowering and operationalizing the newly established Knowledge & Innovation Communities (KICs) across the Agrifood, Healthcare, and ICT sectors.

Through the Lebanon Innovate program, Berytech has established three Knowledge & Innovation Communities (KICs) spanning the Agrifood, Healthcare, and ICT sectors. These communities actively bring together academia, industry professionals, government representatives, and Business Support Organizations (BSOs) around a shared innovation agenda targeted at promoting knowledge and technology transfer in Lebanon.

As collaborative, multistakeholder communities, KICs require a comprehensive approach to sustainability that extends beyond governance to include financial, institutional, legal, and operational dimensions. As they transition from early-stage ecosystem toward sustained, result-driven operations, it is essential to strengthen their ability to secure resources, maintain institutional stability, and ensure durable impact over time.

To support this transition, a dedicated sustainability expert is required to design and deliver a specialized capacity-building intervention. This training will equip KIC members with the tools and frameworks needed to strengthen financial sustainability models, clarify institutional arrangements, and establish mechanisms for long-term operational continuity across the communities. The consultant will play a role in guiding participants through applied exercises and co-creation sessions to design sustainability models tailored to their ecosystem realities.

The consultant will assess the sustainability readiness of the three Knowledge & Innovation Communities (KICs) and support the development of practical sustainability frameworks to strengthen their long-term viability across the Agrifood, Healthcare, and ICT sectors.

The intervention should combine assessment, capacity building, and co-creation activities and cover the following pillars:

• Sustainability Assessment & Gap Identification: Assess the current sustainability landscape of each KIC, identifying strengths, gaps, risks, dependencies, and opportunities across financial, institutional, legal, and operational dimensions.
• Sustainability Model Design: Support KIC members in developing tailored sustainability approaches, including diversified funding mechanisms, revenue generation opportunities, cost-sharing models, institutional anchoring options, and governance considerations.
• Capacity Building & Ecosystem Learning: Build the capacity of KIC stakeholders through practical sessions introducing sustainability concepts, good international practices, and applicable tools for sustaining collaborative innovation ecosystems.
• Sustainability Road mapping & Validation
  Facilitate co-creation and validation sessions to define priority actions and develop high-level sustainability roadmaps outlining short-, medium-, and long-term implementation directions.

The consultant is expected to apply an interactive and participatory methodology combining rapid assessment, facilitated workshops, co-design exercises, and targeted follow-up support to ensure outputs are actionable and adapted to each KIC context.

The consultant is expected to submit the following consolidated outputs:

• Sustainability Assessment Report (per KIC):
  A concise analysis of financial, institutional, legal, and operational sustainability, highlighting key risks, dependencies, resource flows, and viability gaps.
• Sustainability Framework & Capacity-Building Outputs (per KIC):
  Practical sustainability models including funding mechanisms, revenue streams, cost-sharing options, institutional anchoring scenarios, and operational continuity approaches.
• Sustainability Roadmap (per KIC):
  A phased implementation plan outlining short-, medium-, and long-term actions, with key milestones and responsibilities to strengthen financial, institutional, and operational resilience.
• Final Synthesis Presentation (for all three KICs):
  A consolidated presentation summarizing key findings, proposed sustainability models, and prioritized action plans for immediate and longer-term implementation.

• A degree in Economics, Business Administration, Public Policy, Development Studies, Sustainability Management, or a related field. An advanced degree (MBA, MPA, MPH, or equivalent) is preferred.
• At least 5 years of proven experience in sustainability strategy, organizational development, or ecosystem strengthening, particularly with multi-stakeholder platforms, innovation clusters, or development programs.
• Strong expertise in designing sustainability frameworks, including financial sustainability models, institutional anchoring structures, governance arrangements, and operational continuity systems.
• Ability to assess organizational and ecosystem sustainability, including financial viability, institutional dependencies, risk exposure, and long-term operational resilience at local, regional, and international levels.
• Strong expertise in both qualitative and participatory facilitation methods, including stakeholder consultations, co-creation workshops, interviews, and ecosystem mapping exercises.
• Ability to analyze complex institutional and ecosystem data and translate findings into actionable sustainability strategies, frameworks, and implementation roadmaps.
• Deep understanding of innovation ecosystems, particularly in agrifood, healthcare, and ICT sectors, including public-private dynamics, funding environments, and institutional constraints.