Senior Manager, Latin America

Background: Global Fishing Watch is an international, non-profit organization committed to advancing ocean governance through increased transparency. We create and publicly share knowledge about human activity at sea to enable fair and sustainable use of our ocean. Founded in 2015 through a collaboration between Oceana, SkyTruth, and Google, GFW became an independent non-profit organization in June 2017. Using cutting-edge technology, we create and publicly share map visualizations, data and analysis tools to enable scientific research and drive a transformation in how we manage our ocean. Our major focus is on commercial fishing because it is the most widespread human activity at sea, the most impactful on ocean health, and the most crucial for global livelihoods and food security. By 2030, we aim to monitor and visualize the impact of ocean-going vessels, both industrial and small-scale, that are responsible for the vast majority of the global seafood catch. We believe human activity at sea should be common knowledge in order to safeguard the global ocean commons for the common good of all. 

Latin America is a region intertwined with the ocean. With more than 35,000 miles (56,000 kilometers) of coastline, it is no surprise that its communities, economies and cultural identities are intrinsically linked to the sea. Global Fishing Watch program team in Latin America demonstrates the value of transparency in fisheries and biodiversity; we generate visibility, identify opportunities for transparency to add value, and obtain support from our government constituencies. We work closely with multiple countries in the region, including Belize, Brazil, Costa Rica, Chile, Ecuador, Panama and Peru. 

 

The Position

We are looking for an experienced ocean expert with excellent project management skills as well as policy and technical expertise and experience.

The Senior Manager will work as part of the Global Program to enable and support the delivery of impact goals of the Latin America region. The candidate will support identifying and securing landmark policies to embed transparency as a fundamental principle of ocean regulations. This role will involve making data accessible and actionable to reduce threats such as illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing and biodiversity loss. Additionally, the candidate will work with the regional team to oversee and deploy a suite of interventions based on an agreed work plan with the government and stakeholders, ensuring the delivery of specified outcomes. This includes developing, providing, and pursuing policy and transparency objectives.  

Flexible working hours to accommodate calls across time zones is essential and some travel may be required to support country representatives at external meetings as needed. 

 

Principal Duties and Responsibilities

Policy development and Transparency workplans implementation

• Proactively monitor relevant national, regional, international political developments, policy landscape, and emerging issues in the fisheries and biodiversity sectors, including conducting policy research and generating insights. 
• Provide timely updates to internal teams on key policy developments and their potential implications for the organization's advocacy work.
• Collaborate with the regional and global teams to draft policy recommendations and legal specifications for changes to fisheries and biodiversity-related policies and programs, ensuring alignment with the organization's advocacy goals.
• Identify policy opportunities and windows for advancement, leveraging partnerships and government collaboration.
• Cultivate and maintain strong relationships with key stakeholders, and represent Global Fishing Watch in various activities and events that address issues related to transparency.

Government Actions and workplan implementation

• Work with the country officers to provide technical advice and other support to deploy a suite of interventions to support the achievement of the identified areas of work around fisheries and biodiversity.
• Work with the regional and global analysis team to execute all the country work plans and the projects co- identified and developed with the government and other stakeholders

Oversee the Latin America  Country Officers

• Oversee and support the country officers in Latin America, ensuring that policy and transparency approaches align with the programmatic principles.
• Identify gaps and opportunities to enhance the competencies of country officers, providing targeted support as needed.
• Assist country officers in building local partnerships to advance expected outcomes and relevant national policies.<