Associate – Civic Participation

Industry Type : Consultant ,NGOs Jobs

Job Location : Karnataka

Deadline: 2022-10-21

Job Description

Associate – Civic Participation (Bengaluru/Mangaluru)

Janaagraha is a non-profit trust, established in 2001, working towards the mission of transforming quality of life in India’s cities and towns. It works with citizens to catalyse active citizenship in city neighbourhoods and with governments to institute reforms to city governance (what we call “City-Systems”).

Janaagraha is part of the JANA Group - one of India’s best-known groups of not-for-profit institutions working towards the mission of fixing India’s cities. Swati Ramanathan and Ramesh Ramanathan co-founded Jana Group in 2001 and it presently works across citizen participation and city governance reforms (throughJanaagraha Centre for Citizenship and Democracy ), city planning and design (throughJana Urban Space Foundation ), banking and financial services for the urban poor (throughJana Small Finance Bank ) and affordable housing for the urban poor (throughJanaadhar ).

Since inception, citizen engagement in local neighbourhood governance has been a core focus area for Janaagraha. Janaagraha’s current engagements in citizen participation include MoUs with the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA), State government of Odisha and city governments of Gurugram, Faridabad, Panaji, Bengaluru, Vishakapatnam, Mangaluru, Ballari on initiatives that include participatory budgeting, Ward Sabhas and civic technology for grievance management, civic data and information. The organisation also focuses on building civil society and community group partnerships and coalitions to scale and sustain its citizenship initiatives.

We are looking for highly passionate and competent individuals to be based out of Bengaluru/Mangaluru to lead Janaagraha’s Ward Committees intervention as part of our Civic Participation initiative across Karnataka state. Please reach out at work@janaagraha.org with your resume if interested.

What will the Associate – Civic Participation do?

Function as a key associate for implementation of the civic participation program in Karnataka and be the full owner of the program at the city level.
Fully own the delivery of all commitments under the MoU of Janaagraha with the City Corporation to facilitate Ward Committees and Participatory Budgeting.
Build and maintain a strong relationship with the City Corporation leadership and officials, the citizens and the civil society organisations, as well as political leaders of the city to create a lively forum for civic action.
Work closely with the Program leadership to implement the program strategy and give updates on a diurnal basis in the standard format in the stipulated time.
Plan and conduct interactions and meetings with various stakeholders of the program.
Undertake travel to other cities and towns in Karnataka, as necessary, to support the program requirements and assimilate the best practices
Undertake Research and Surveys as required for the program.
Conduct trainings for the various collaborators.
Prepare reports of different initiatives undertaken by the organisation
Participate in periodic reviews of the project
Plan, design and implement innovative campaigns to engage citizens and organisations in a
constructive manner with the Corporation activities and in improving the quality of governance and liveability.
Draft letters and press releases, file RTI applications as required by the program.
Manage and maintain media and social media contacts and articles as required by the program.

Qualifications and Experience

Must believe in bringing change in the quality of life in the city through a structured participatory program of citizens.
Should be between the age of 25 and 50 years.
Must possess a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree or equivalent in any domain. Any formal or informal education / training in the areas of public administration, public policy, social work, business administration or other relevant fields is desirable.
Should have 2-5 years’ experience in the areas of governance, public administration, advocacy, social work, politics, media, research, marketing, communication, or similar domains
Must be willing to take up complete ownership of the project and perform all back office and field activities.
Should be able to connect and collaborate with all sections of the society cutting across economic, social and political status, gender and disabilities.
Must have proven leadership, communication and team-player skills
Must be able to speak, read, write and type proficiently in Kannada and English languages.
Must have proven networking skills and should be capable of building strong communities of citizens and organisations in a short time.
Must be proficient in computational skills on tools such as MS Word, Excel, PowerPoint and email and the internet. Must be proactive and proficient in using social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp, Instagram and YouTube.
Must be able to travel across the city to accomplish the objectives of the project.

What Janaagraha Offers

At Janaagraha, you will be part of a multi-disciplinary team of professionals and passionate citizens who apply cutting-edge technologies and practices aimed at social change in India’s cities. We offer a dynamic, driven, remunerative and vibrant work environment for professionals who are passionate about investing their time, skill sets and energy to transform quality of life in India’s cities. At work, you will be exposed to a unique combination of policy, practice and platforms and will have abundant opportunities to learn and apply professional skills to complex social challenges.