Senior Research Associate (Consultant)

Written By YLabs

JOB LOCATION - BANGLADESH | INDIA | NEPAL | PAKISTAN

ABOUT YLABS

YLabs is a leading global design and research organization designing technologies that amplify youth power, agency, and opportunity. Founded in 2014 at the Harvard Innovation Lab, YLabs partners with young people to co-create inclusive digital products and services that improve their lives. Our design process opens spaces where young people’s ideas can become a reality – where they are the architects of the solutions to their most pressing challenges.

YLabs multidisciplinary team delivers youth-driven innovation and impact at scale. Our team combines expertise in youth-driven design with adolescent health, climate, livelihoods, digital product design, behavioral science, and epidemiology. Based in Rwanda and the USA, we’ve worked in 18 countries to date on projects spanning three focus areas: optimum health and wellness, improved economic opportunity, and increased climate resilience.

Find out more about our projects here: https://www.ylabsglobal.org/work

JOB OVERVIEW

We are seeking a Senior Research Associate who is based in Bangladesh, India, Nepal or Pakistan to support a multi-country landscape assessment to understand what ground-level work is being done in the South Asia region at the intersection of climate resilience and sexual and reproductive health.

Climate change is the biggest global health threat of the 21st century — and it’s not gender-neutral. The health impacts of climate change are increasingly being recognized, but the specific impacts on sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) are often overlooked. Without action, we risk the reversal of decades of progress for women and girls – and we’ll lose crucial change agents for climate resilience. Climate change impacts SRHR indirectly through complex interactions with existing gendered social inequalities. This project seeks to understand the landscape of work currently happening by organizations from grassroots to large implementers at the intersection of climate and SRHR across the South Asia region (specifically: Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, and the Maldives).

As a Senior Research Associate, you will play a critical role in conducting research, including desk research, interview guide preparation, stakeholder identification, conducting stakeholder interviews, and preparing content for a publicly shareable report that will be posted on our Climate x SRHR Evidence Hub: https://climate-srhr.org/.

JOB TYPE

This is an independent contractor (consultancy) position based entirely remotely. Ideally, you are currently based in Bangladesh, India, Nepal, or Pakistan. You must be available to conduct remote interviews with stakeholders based in these time zones. The contract duration will be approximately 3 months. The anticipated start date for this contract is April 2025.

ABOUT YLABS’ COMPENSATION

YLabs adheres to Project Fair’s principles and standards to establish equity in pay with the overriding principle of “equal pay for work of equal value” outlined in the Sustainable Development Goals. All salary ranges are based on level within the organization and are competitive to regional and national salary benchmarks based on the respective office location.

PAY RATE
The pay range for this position is USD $140-$200 per day of engagement, commensurate with experience. This range is regionally benchmarked for a senior-level position in South Asia.

YOU WILL:

Research - 50%

  • Lead on desk research to assess the landscape of climate resilience and SRHR work occurring in this region

  • Collaborate to create interview guide to obtain information from identified organizations and stakeholders

  • Support with conducting interviews with approximately 40 stakeholders

  • Document and synthesis learnings from stakeholder interviews

  • Write up case studies of exemplary work at this intersection in the region, identified through desk research and interviews

Analysis - 40%

  • Support with qualitative data analysis and create insights from the interviews and desk research

  • Write a publicly-shareable research report on the landscape assessment findings from an organizational survey, desk research, and qualitative interviews in South Asia. The report will include an analysis of trends, gaps in the landscape, and enablers/barriers to scaling promising solutions.

Logistics and Field Coordination - 10%

  • Support in the coordination of the stakeholder interviews and outreach

  • Weekly internal meetings with Climate and SRHR YLabs colleagues

YOU ARE:

  • Currently based in Bangladesh, India, Nepal, or Pakistan

  • Experienced working on SRHR in this region from a research or technical perspective

  • Able to understand the scientific literature at the SRHR + climate change nexus and synthesize the findings in the field in a desk research report

  • Proactive in recommending how to adapt the research approach based on evidence from the literature

  • Experience conducting qualitative interviews with a diverse range of participants, but especially stakeholder interviews

  • Self-motivated and able to work as a strong independent contributor as a member of a team

  • Able to distill technical information into accessible written content for a range of technical, policy, and donor audiences

YOU HAVE:

  • 4+ years of experience in qualitative interviews and research

  • Demonstrated ability to write analytical research reports intended for the general public

  • A strong understanding of the landscape of players doing work in SRHR and/or climate resilience in this region

  • A robust network of existing contacts and relationships to tap into in order to successfully identify active organizations at this intersection

  • Experience in conducting independent desk research for similar types of broad analyses (i.e., landscape assessments, market analyses, etc)

  • Educational qualifications that match this work

  • Fluency in English

HOW TO APPLY

To apply, please send your CV or resume and a brief (no more than 1 page) cover letter describing your interest and qualifications for this contract role. Send your materials to talent@ylabsglobal.org with the subject line “South Asia Senior Research Associate”.

This posting will be open until filled. Our hiring committee will review applications on a rolling basis. We encourage you to apply as soon as possible.

EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY

YLabs is committed to building teams and policies that promote equity, justice, and belonging at work. We strongly encourage people from all cultures, races, educational backgrounds, socio-economic classes, sexual orientations, age, gender, and physical abilities to apply. We do not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment because of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, disability, familial status, marital status, caregiver status, or any other category protected by applicable federal, state, or local law.

YLabs http://www.ylabsglobal.org
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