Project Coordinator (non-Academic) and/or PostDoc Project Coordinator
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
sustainable food systems.
- Increased and ongoing commitment and resources by municipalities on food planning,
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-
- 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,
- 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
- 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
- Familiarity and understanding of the Canadian food policy environment and context.
- Experience working with diverse sectors, including elected officials, public service, non-
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
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
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,
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
- Support capacity building opportunities for network members, including facilitating peer-
- 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
- Connect people and projects across the network to ensure clear communication and
- Provide facilitation and coordination to the on-going development of collaborative
of work;
- Identify priority areas of interest for members and facilitate strategic information sharing
- Coordinate with and among the project evaluator, funder and all components of the
- Manage documentation of financials and completing financial reporting required by Tides
- 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
reviews, and environmental scans
- Work collaboratively with members of the Insight Research Grant “Civil Society and
analysis.
- Assess the current state of municipal policy and governance initiatives seeking to
- Produce a variety of knowledge translation and mobilization outputs (both academic and
infographics.
Terms of Contract(s)
- January/February 2020 - August 2022 (pending confirmation of funding). Candidates
- If Mitacs approves the position, conditions will be set by this program for one position,
position employed by Tides Canada.
- If funding does not come through Mitacs, one coordinator position, confirmed maximum
- Schedule is flexible within regular work week, with some early morning and/or evening
- Location: These positions are open, decentralized positions, requiring someone to work
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.
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.