Project Coordinator (non-Academic) and/or PostDoc Project Coordinator

This opening is more than 216 days old and is very likely already filled.

January/February 2020 – April 2022 (pending

funding)

Part time (25 hours/week) or Full time

Seeking to Hire:

Municipal Network on Food Project Coordinator;

and/or

Post-Doctoral Fellow & Project Coordinator

About the Municipal Network on Food

The Municipal Network on Food (MNF) is a developing network of community organizations,

food policy councils and municipal staff aiming to work at a municipal/city/region level (urban,

rural, remote) across Canada, with recognition this work occurs on native lands.

This project is working towards:

Increased strategic alignment across national, provincial and regional/municipal councils

and networks on approaches and action to reduce food insecurity and promote

sustainable food systems.

Increased and ongoing commitment and resources by municipalities on food planning,

policy and programs, including dedication of staff resources.

Currently funded by the Maple Leaf Centre for Action on Food Security and operating on Tides

Canada’s shared platform, with pending matching funds for a coordination and research role

through a Mitacs Post-Doctoral Fellowship grant, the goal of this 3-year initiative is to

consolidate learning within a growing network, to concretely address household and community

food insecurity at the municipal/city/region level in Canada by:

I. mobilizing knowledge of community groups, municipal staff, local food policy council

members and research partners working at the municipal level on the broad issues

underlying food insecurity and,

II. building capacity and strategic alignment between municipalities, provincial associations

and national level institutions/networks around existing best practices and innovative

solutions that municipalities and/or communities can implement to enhance food

security.

These two mutually reinforcing streams of work will enable individuals working on food policy

and food systems at local levels to scale up, scale out and deepen their impact for greater food

security in Canada, not only affecting work at the municipal level, but additionally building

capacity to bring leading municipal expertise to provincial and federal tables.

With recognition of current Indigenous food sovereignty work happening, the network, (at

present largely non-Indigenous to Canada), desires to work in partnership with Indigenous

communities on reducing food insecurity and promoting sustainable food systems and will seek

ways to do so respectfully, supporting work already being led by Indigenous communities.

About Tides Canada

From Canada’s big cities to its remote land, waters, and rural communities, Tides Canada

provides uncommon solutions for the common good. Our mission is to help Canadians secure a

healthy environment in ways that promote social equity and economic prosperity. To tackle the

complex environmental and social problems that we face in Canada today, Tides Canada

provides strategy, expertise, and tools to ensure changemakers can get from vision to impact.

Municipal Network on Food operates as a project on Tides Canada’s shared platform. The

shared platform provides governance, human resources, grant and financial management for

leading social and environmental initiatives across Canada.

Committed to employment equity

Tides Canada and The Municipal Network on Food are committed to employment equity and

encourage applications from individuals who identify from within politically, socially and/or

economically marginalized groups. We further encourage applicants to self-identify in their

cover letter or application if they are a member of a marginalized community.

About the position(s)

To date, The Municipal Network on Food project has been led by a team of committed

volunteers. We have recently secured funding from the Maple Leaf Centre for Action on Food

Security, which will support a part-time Coordinator role. The Coordinator will work with and be

supported by the Municipal Network on Food Leadership Table, and will report to the MNF

Steering Committee Lead.

Additional funding is being sought, including to support a full-time Post-Doctoral role.

The structure of the position will be confirmed in January 2020. At this time, we are seeking

applications from qualified individuals who are interested in one or both of the following

positions:

1. Community-based Post-Doctoral Fellow and MNF Project Coordinator, one full-time

position, supporting research and knowledge mobilization and the general operations of

the Municipal Network on Food, as outlined below.

This position requires a PhD in a relevant field (within the last 5 years), and the

successful candidate will become a Post-Doctoral Fellow at Saint Paul University,

supervised by Amanda Wilson in addition to working closely with the MNF Steering

Committee lead. A stipend of $45,000 per year will be offered.

2. Municipal Network on Food Project Coordinator, one part-time position, supporting

the general operations of the Municipal Network on Food, as outlined below.

Wage and hours are negotiable, with an anticipated starting range of 15-25 hours per

week, at $26-29 per hour plus optional extended health benefits. An increase in wages

and hours may be possible pending securing additional funding. The successful

candidate will be an employee of Tides Canada, and will report to the MNF Steering

Committee Lead.

People with both academic and non-academic backgrounds can apply:

The network is applying for Mitacs funding in collaboration with a SSHRC Insight grant, with the

position being supported by Saint Paul University in Ottawa. Should the position be accepted

for matching funds through Mitacs we will be hiring one person with a PhD, and hiring a second

position without requirement of academic standing. Should the Mitacs funding not be approved,

there are no academic requirements for the single Coordinator position.

All people interested in either position who meet the requirements outlined below should apply

at this time.

Language

Both of the positions will engage with both English and French-speaking stakeholders across

Canada and require strong communication skills, both written and verbal. Exceptions on French

language skills may be made for one position if the second position is filled with a bilingual

candidate. Even then, preference will be given in the second position to candidates who are

able to read and speak French in order to exchange with French-speaking communities.

Required Skills and Experience (both positions)

The Coordinator role will require skills in coordination, consensus building, community and

partnership development, communications, research as well as depth knowledge and

experience in food systems action, food policy and strategic thinking.

At least 5 years’ experience in project management working in a First Nation Band, non-

profit organization, a municipality, or community enterprise.

Demonstrated collaborative skills working with diverse groups and supporting inclusion;

Commitment to social, economic and environmental justice;

Demonstrated knowledge of household and community food insecurity, food action,

constructive engagement principles, and community development approaches;

Demonstrated ability to work well within collaborative structures/networks/coalitions;

Experience in community and public engagement including meeting and group

facilitation and event planning;

Working knowledge of local/regional government with an understanding of how to

constructively engage with diverse partners to create public policy change and strategic

action;

Demonstrated ability in research, data analysis and report writing;

Strong knowledge of MS Office Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook, teleconferencing.

Fundraising and partnership development experience, including proposal and report

writing.

Familiarity and understanding of the Canadian food policy environment and context.

Experience working with diverse sectors, including elected officials, public service, non-

profit and community-based organizations, academic institutions and private sector with

an understanding of the diversity across different jurisdictions in Canada.

Demonstrated ability to work independently and be a self-starter.

Candidates must be eligible to work in Canada and must be able to work from their own

home office located in Canada

Responsibilities (both positions)

The Coordinator will be responsible for coordinating research, engagement, communications,

planning and reporting in the work the network sets out to achieve.

Stakeholder Engagement and Strategic Planning/Action:

Working with network partners to initiate the design of a comprehensive

stakeholder engagement strategy that aims to build support for the network’s work on

food insecurity at the municipal/regional/city level. The engagement plan should ensure

active and inclusive engagement of diverse stakeholder groups from across municipal

and First Nations government, community organizations, researchers and food councils.

Work with network partners to advance on-going document creation (policy inventory,

case studies) processes (engagement on strategy) and relationships (i.e. elected

officials, other provincial and national networks) in order to build and maintain

momentum around aligning on strategies to reduce food insecurity

Identify and assist with action on opportunities to strengthen the link between network

partners and broader stakeholders

Support capacity building opportunities for network members, including facilitating peer-

to-peer learning

Continually recruit new network partners to engage in work

Project Facilitation and Communication:

Facilitate development of Work Plan for network to meet deliverables within timelines.

Plan and ensure facilitation of meetings across the network (most often through

teleconferencing);

Connect people and projects across the network to ensure clear communication and

strong coordination;

Provide facilitation and coordination to the on-going development of collaborative

governance models and processes that best serve the network throughout each phase

of work;

Identify priority areas of interest for members and facilitate strategic information sharing

through e.g. webinars or connections with appropriate resources/expertise

Coordinate with and among the project evaluator, funder and all components of the

project.

Manage documentation of financials and completing financial reporting required by Tides

Canada and funders.

Develop new and revised communications tools and promotional materials

needed to support broad engagement across diverse interests

Arrange response to media inquiries from within the network.

Additional requirements and responsibilities applicable to the Community-based Post-

Doctoral Fellow and Coordinator position only:

Candidate must have a PhD obtained within the last five years.

Research and Knowledge Mobilization

Conduct a variety of research activities in support of the Municipal Network on Food’s

objectives, including but not limited to, interviews with Network members, literature

reviews, and environmental scans

Work collaboratively with members of the Insight Research Grant “Civil Society and

Social Movement Engagement in Food Systems Governance” to share knowledge and

analysis.

Assess the current state of municipal policy and governance initiatives seeking to

address food insecurity across Canada

Produce a variety of knowledge translation and mobilization outputs (both academic and

non-academic), including conference presentations, articles, policy briefs and

infographics.

Terms of Contract(s)

January/February 2020 - August 2022 (pending confirmation of funding). Candidates

committed to staying for the full term are preferred.

If Mitacs approves the position, conditions will be set by this program for one position,

housed at Saint Paul’s University in Ottawa, with a second, part-time coordinator

position employed by Tides Canada.

If funding does not come through Mitacs, one coordinator position, confirmed maximum

funding for an average of 25 hrs/week, with additional hours possible.

Schedule is flexible within regular work week, with some early morning and/or evening

work required to accommodate diverse time zones.

Location: These positions are open, decentralized positions, requiring someone to work

from their own office based anywhere in Canada. There may be an ability to be

accommodated in a project partner’s office, depending on where you live.

Access to good wifi and owning own laptop and cell phone is required for the position.

Additional compensation for cell plan and basic administration costs will be included.

Application instructions:

Applications must be received by January 15, 2020 at 9am EST via email with the words

“Application – Coordinator (non-Academic)” or “Application – PostDoc Coordinator” in the

subject line. Early applications are encouraged.

Applications must be in PDF format with cover letter, resume and two references all within one

document and in English.

In your cover letter, please clearly indicate the following:

which position(s) you are seeking
your language competency in English and French.
your availability to start in the position (availability for a January/February 2020 start is

preferred)

Applications can be sent to: [email protected]

Clarification questions about the post-doc position can be sent to: [email protected]

Clarification questions about the non-academic position can be sent to: [email protected]

Interviews will take via video/web technology mid-January 2020.

Tides Canada will provide accommodation during all steps of the hiring process, upon

request, to applicants with disabilities. Please advise us if you need any accommodation.

We thank all applicants for their interest in the positions, however, only those who are

selected for interview will be contacted. Thank you.