Description:

[Junior Program Associate - Food, Land and Water
 
About us
WRI India, an independent charity legally registered as the India Resources Trust, provides objective information and practical proposals to foster environmentally sound and socially equitable development. Through research, analysis, and recommendations, WRI India puts ideas into action to build transformative solutions to protect the earth, promote livelihoods, and enhance human well-being.
We are inspired by and associated with World Resources Institute (WRI), a global research organization. Currently over 250 researchers are working with WRI India in our offices at Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru.


Our mission and values:
WRI’s mission is to move human society to live in ways that protect Earth’s environment and its capacity to provide for the needs and aspirations of current and future generations.
Our values are shared ideals that bind us together: Integrity, Innovation, Urgency, Independence and Respect.


Our culture:
WRI is committed to advancing gender and social equity for human well-being in our mission including equal opportunities in employment. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, ethnicity, religion, sex, national origin, age, caste, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, disability, or protected Veteran status
 
Program Overview for Food, Land and Water: 
WRI India’s Food, Land and Water program aims to inform India’s transition towards sustainable and resilient food and land use systems focusing on developing interdisciplinary nature-based solutions like landscape restoration, sustainable agriculture to mitigate climate impacts, enhance jobs and livelihoods and improve nutritional security. To catalyse systems, change with a focus on circular food systems in India, we also focus on developing equitable strategies to reduce food loss and food waste and mitigate climate impacts.
With broader systems change and food systems perspective, we work with diverse stakeholders like governments, businesses, civil society partners and farmer producer organizations to inform and develop land use strategies based on robust evidence and analysis to build the resilience of local communities to mitigate climate impacts, bridge capacity gaps, monitor progress, and inform a pathway to building a restoration economy for people, nature, and climate.
 
Job Highlight:
Landscape approach to restoration is gaining momentum in India as a strategy that delivers multiple benefits, including food and water security, biodiversity enhancement, job creation, livelihood improvements and climate change mitigation and adaptation. To achieve impact at scale, restoration efforts need to be funded by philanthropy, CSR, bilateral grants, and private finance. This requires a blended finance approach to mitigate the risks inherent in this early sector, and to ensure available finance is appropriate for restoration business models. Restoration businesses deliver a range of products (e.g., fruits, bamboo) and services (e.g., water, carbon, biodiversity).
Housed under the FLW program, Land Accelerator India is a catalytic initiative to strengthen India’s restoration economy by supporting early-stage entrepreneurs - or ‘restoration champions’ - pioneering innovative land restoration solutions. By bridging capacity gaps and improving access to finance, this initiative aims to scale market-driven solutions that restore degraded land, enhance livelihoods, and contribute to India’s climate and development goals.
As part of this initiative, we are seeking a highly motivated and detail-oriented Junior Program Associate to support the day-to-day coordination and implementation of the Land Accelerator India program. You will assist in organizing program activities, maintaining documentation, coordinating with internal teams and external stakeholders, and supporting engagements with cohort enterprises. This position is ideal for someone early in their career who is eager to learn about enterprise acceleration, sustainable land use, and rural development, and who is passionate about working with impact-driven local enterprises and farmer producer companies, supporting women and rural entrepreneurs, improving rural livelihoods, boosting food and nutrition security, restoring natural ecosystems, and contributing to climate resilience. 


What you will do: 
1.    Program Implementation (75%)
Support the smooth implementation of the accelerator program by assisting with logistics, scheduling, documentation, and coordination for all virtual and in-person activities.
Assist with the accelerator application and selection process, including enterprise outreach, submission tracking, and initial screening, as per guidelines.
Coordinate with internal teams (e.g., communications, operations, finance) and external stakeholders (e.g., cohort entrepreneurs, program partners, service providers) to support day-to-day program activities.
Plan and execute key events (in-person, virtual and hybrid) such as workshops, field visits, stakeholder meets, and Demo Days, including all operational and partner coordination.
In collaboration with colleagues from the operations team, oversee event logistics such as venue booking, travel arrangements, participant accommodations, event setup, registration, AV arrangements, and overall event flow. 
Assist in documenting meetings, tracking follow-ups, and preparing updates or reports for internal and external use.
Participate in check-ins and calls with cohort enterprises to gather updates, flag needs, and support program team in delivering targeted assistance.
Collaborate with the broader FLW team to contribute to other landscape restoration initiatives as needed.
2.    Research & Communications (15%)
Assist in coordinating communications for Land Accelerator activities (in coordination with the program communications team), including event content, program updates, outreach materials, and other external and internal communications.
Support the creation and editing of communication materials such as blog drafts, updates, case study outlines, or presentation decks, with guidance from the team.
Help compile and organize information for internal reports, knowledge products, and donor reports, ensuring consistency and clarity.
Learn and begin to apply WRI’s Research, Data, and Innovation standards where applicable.
3.    Monitoring, Evaluation & Learning (MEL) (10%)
Assist in data collection efforts for program monitoring, including surveys, feedback forms, and basic tracking of outputs and outcomes.
Support the team in organizing and maintaining MEL-related documentation to ensure accurate reporting.
Help with data cleaning, formatting, and preliminary analysis to inform internal reviews and donor reporting.
Contribute to compiling inputs for donor reports and presentations, following guidance on format and standards.
Learn and begin using MEL tools and systems to support program tracking and performance review processes.
 
What you will need:
Postgraduate degree or specialization in business, economics, entrepreneurship, development studies, environmental studies, or a related field (relevant work experience may substitute).
1-2 years of full-time professional experience, preferably in the startup ecosystem, accelerators, incubators, CSR, corporate innovation, consulting, government advisory, and/or local community-based organizations.
Basic understanding of project implementation, coordination, event support, and/or stakeholder engagement in multi-stakeholder settings.
Interest in sectors such as land restoration, sustainable livelihoods, rural development, climate action, or green economy.
Strong organizational and time-management skills, with the ability to support multiple tasks and meet deadlines.
Ability to work both independently and as part of a team, with a proactive and collaborative attitude.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English, and a working knowledge of Hindi.
Familiarity with Microsoft Office, survey tools and collaboration platforms (e.g., Slack, Airtable, Google Workspace) is desirable.
Willingness to travel across India, including to rural and peri-urban field locations in Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, and Maharashtra.] Resume:[Description

Junior Program Associate - Food, Land and Water
 
About us
WRI India, an independent charity legally registered as the India Resources Trust, provides objective information and practical proposals to foster environmentally sound and socially equitable development. Through research, analysis, and recommendations, WRI India puts ideas into action to build transformative solutions to protect the earth, promote livelihoods, and enhance human well-being.
We are inspired by and associated with World Resources Institute (WRI), a global research organization. Currently over 250 researchers are working with WRI India in our offices at Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru.


Our mission and values:
WRI’s mission is to move human society to live in ways that protect Earth’s environment and its capacity to provide for the needs and aspirations of current and future generations.
Our values are shared ideals that bind us together: Integrity, Innovation, Urgency, Independence and Respect.


Our culture:
WRI is committed to advancing gender and social equity for human well-being in our mission including equal opportunities in employment. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, ethnicity, religion, sex, national origin, age, caste, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, disability, or protected Veteran status
 
Program Overview for Food, Land and Water: 
WRI India’s Food, Land and Water program aims to inform India’s transition towards sustainable and resilient food and land use systems focusing on developing interdisciplinary nature-based solutions like landscape restoration, sustainable agriculture to mitigate climate impacts, enhance jobs and livelihoods and improve nutritional security. To catalyse systems, change with a focus on circular food systems in India, we also focus on developing equitable strategies to reduce food loss and food waste and mitigate climate impacts.
With broader systems change and food systems perspective, we work with diverse stakeholders like governments, businesses, civil society partners and farmer producer organizations to inform and develop land use strategies based on robust evidence and analysis to build the resilience of local communities to mitigate climate impacts, bridge capacity gaps, monitor progress, and inform a pathway to building a restoration economy for people, nature, and climate.
 
Job Highlight:
Landscape approach to restoration is gaining momentum in India as a strategy that delivers multiple benefits, including food and water security, biodiversity enhancement, job creation, livelihood improvements and climate change mitigation and adaptation. To achieve impact at scale, restoration efforts need to be funded by philanthropy, CSR, bilateral grants, and private finance. This requires a blended finance approach to mitigate the risks inherent in this early sector, and to ensure available finance is appropriate for restoration business models. Restoration businesses deliver a range of products (e.g., fruits, bamboo) and services (e.g., water, carbon, biodiversity).
Housed under the FLW program, Land Accelerator India is a catalytic initiative to strengthen India’s restoration economy by supporting early-stage entrepreneurs - or ‘restoration champions’ - pioneering innovative land restoration solutions. By bridging capacity gaps and improving access to finance, this initiative aims to scale market-driven solutions that restore degraded land, enhance livelihoods, and contribute to India’s climate and development goals.
As part of this initiative, we are seeking a highly motivated and detail-oriented Junior Program Associate to support the day-to-day coordination and implementation of the Land Accelerator India program. You will assist in organizing program activities, maintaining documentation, coordinating with internal teams and external stakeholders, and supporting engagements with cohort enterprises. This position is ideal for someone early in their career who is eager to learn about enterprise acceleration, sustainable land use, and rural development, and who is passionate about working with impact-driven local enterprises and farmer producer companies, supporting women and rural entrepreneurs, improving rural livelihoods, boosting food and nutrition security, restoring natural ecosystems, and contributing to climate resilience. 


What you will do: 
1.    Program Implementation (75%)
Support the smooth implementation of the accelerator program by assisting with logistics, scheduling, documentation, and coordination for all virtual and in-person activities.
Assist with the accelerator application and selection process, including enterprise outreach, submission tracking, and initial screening, as per guidelines.
Coordinate with internal teams (e.g., communications, operations, finance) and external stakeholders (e.g., cohort entrepreneurs, program partners, service providers) to support day-to-day program activities.
Plan and execute key events (in-person, virtual and hybrid) such as workshops, field visits, stakeholder meets, and Demo Days, including all operational and partner coordination.
In collaboration with colleagues from the operations team, oversee event logistics such as venue booking, travel arrangements, participant accommodations, event setup, registration, AV arrangements, and overall event flow. 
Assist in documenting meetings, tracking follow-ups, and preparing updates or reports for internal and external use.
Participate in check-ins and calls with cohort enterprises to gather updates, flag needs, and support program team in delivering targeted assistance.
Collaborate with the broader FLW team to contribute to other landscape restoration initiatives as needed.
2.    Research & Communications (15%)
Assist in coordinating communications for Land Accelerator activities (in coordination with the program communications team), including event content, program updates, outreach materials, and other external and internal communications.
Support the creation and editing of communication materials such as blog drafts, updates, case study outlines, or presentation decks, with guidance from the team.
Help compile and organize information for internal reports, knowledge products, and donor reports, ensuring consistency and clarity.
Learn and begin to apply WRI’s Research, Data, and Innovation standards where applicable.
3.    Monitoring, Evaluation & Learning (MEL) (10%)
Assist in data collection efforts for program monitoring, including surveys, feedback forms, and basic tracking of outputs and outcomes.
Support the team in organizing and maintaining MEL-related documentation to ensure accurate reporting.
Help with data cleaning, formatting, and preliminary analysis to inform internal reviews and donor reporting.
Contribute to compiling inputs for donor reports and presentations, following guidance on format and standards.
Learn and begin using MEL tools and systems to support program tracking and performance review processes.
 
What you will need:
Postgraduate degree or specialization in business, economics, entrepreneurship, development studies, environmental studies, or a related field (relevant work experience may substitute).
1-2 years of full-time professional experience, preferably in the startup ecosystem, accelerators, incubators, CSR, corporate innovation, consulting, government advisory, and/or local community-based organizations.
Basic understanding of project implementation, coordination, event support, and/or stakeholder engagement in multi-stakeholder settings.
Interest in sectors such as land restoration, sustainable livelihoods, rural development, climate action, or green economy.
Strong organizational and time-management skills, with the ability to support multiple tasks and meet deadlines.
Ability to work both independently and as part of a team, with a proactive and collaborative attitude.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English, and a working knowledge of Hindi.
Familiarity with Microsoft Office, survey tools and collaboration platforms (e.g., Slack, Airtable, Google Workspace) is desirable.
Willingness to travel across India, including to rural and peri-urban field locations in Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, and Maharashtra. Tailor my resume with respect to the job description for the position of Junior Program Associate - Food, Land and Water. Find out the keywords from the job description, put each and every keywords from the job and insert into the resume through the projects, professional experience. professional summary, and skills. Focus on rewriting my resume header, experience bullets, technical and soft skills, and professional summary to match job description.] Tailor my resume with respect to the job description for the position of Junior Program Associate - Food, Land and Water. Find out the keywords from the job description, put each and every keywords from the job and insert into the resume through the projects, professional experience. professional summary, and skills. Focus on rewriting my resume header, experience bullets, technical and soft skills, and professional summary to match job description.  Create it in latex