Communication and advocacy specialist

Lumos – an international children’s charity founded by J.K. Rowling – works to end the harmful practice of the institutionalisation of children worldwide. It provides support at international, national, local and individual levels for reforms of social protection, education and child health care systems in Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Republic of Moldova, Russia and Ukraine and for the benefit of children and their families.

Job purpose:

Under the leadership and with strategic oversight from the Head of European Hub and the Country Director of Lumos Moldova, Coordinators for Russia and Ukraine, and working closely with the Communications and Advocacy teams in the Head office, the Communication and Advocacy Specialist is responsible for planning, developing and implementing communication and advocacy activities to achieve Lumos’ overall objectives. In this regard, the specialist works with various national and international partners.

The Communication and Advocacy Specialist will play an important role in promoting and advocating for the deinstitutionalization (DI) reforms by:

planning and implementing communication and advocacy activities on children’s deinstitutionalization and by disseminating of the experience and results achieved in this domain;
carrying out communication and advocacy activities with the purpose to achieve Lumos short, medium and long-term objectives for the European Hub, Moldova, Russia and Ukraine.

Job Objectives:

To contribute to the achievement of the Lumos European Hub, Moldova, Russia and Ukraine goals, regarding deinstitutionalisation, through communication and advocacy activities;
To work closely with the project managers, senior staff and other specialists to ensure Program/ Projects results are documented and disseminated widely;
To work with the London Communications Team in the London HQ to expand broader the results of the Europe Hub and Lumos Moldova, Ukraine and Russia in the domain of DI, contributing to the achievement of the Lumos overall goal internationally.

Schedule: Full time, Monday to Friday

Location: Chisinau, Moldova

Communication and Advocacy Specialist Responsibilities:

To develop and support the implementation of annual communication and advocacy plans in accordance with the countries and Hub PIPs objectives and key activities;
To develop and produce communication and advocacy materials: articles, newsletters and press releases aimed at a wider range of media, understanding the appropriate use and requirements of different communication channels, on and offline;
To provide support in organizing events and to ensure wide info dissemination through mass media of these activities;
To ensure media outreach; arrange all media contacts, press briefings, and interviews; respond to media inquiries quickly and effectively;
To contribute to the production of a diverse range of information products (including audio/visual communications), to build information networks;
To support Child and Youth Participation project by involving children in different communication/advocacy activities and events, enhancing their self-advocacy capacity, as well as by promoting child/youth messages and advocating for their rights;
To ensure compliance with Lumos’ procedures and policies related to communication and advocacy;
To resolve communications/ public relations issues/problems with support of the project managers, senior staff and other specialists, according to Lumos polices;
To submit information regarding Lumos work in Moldova, Russia, and Ukraine according to the Lumos HQ requirements;
To produce reports, notes, success stories and other materials, ensuring visibility and making Moldova, Russia and Ukraine’ achievements visible and known by the entire organization;
To upload content about the countries programmes/projects achievements on Lumos Moldova microsite and for Lumos HQ site, working to enhance their public reach;
To offer support to the Program teams in the process of publishing various materials, such as: reports, training and methodological and communication materials, etc.; to provide talking points, presentations and other materials, as needed for senior staff;
To ensure proofreading of the monthly, quarterly, board and annual reports for the Lumos countries offices and the European Hub.
To conduct field visits in Moldova and work visits to Russia, Ukraine and other countries in the frame of Lumos Program implementation in Europe.

Person specification:
Skills:

Good interpersonal and communication skills, ability to work with a wide variety of contacts and networking skills;
Highly organized, with an aptitude in planning effectively to meet deadlines, and an ability to work on multiple tasks at the same time;
Research, analytical and writing skills;
Ability to work independently, on own initiative and as part of a team working;
Ability to be self-motivated, flexible and effective;
Excellent verbal and written command of English, Russian and Romanian;
Administrative and computer skills.

Knowledge and Experience regarding:

Creating, implementing and evaluating effective communication and advocacy strategies;
International and national policies in the domains of child rights protection and personal data protection;
Web design and content production is a plus
Understanding of social media and creating social media content
Copywriting and editing
Solid understanding of project management principles
Working knowledge of MS Office; photo and video-editing software is an asset
Excellent communication (oral and written) and presentation skills
Outstanding organizational and planning abilities
Experience with planning and implementing communication and advocacy activities.

Qualifications:

Graduate level education or relevant professional qualifications.

How to apply:

CV and cover letter shall be submitted to office.moldova@wearelumos.org with the subject – “Communication and Advocacy Specialist. The deadline for application is 20 February 2019. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.