Manager, Agricultural Economics and Policy Analysis

Overview

Put your passion and skills to work for the planet. Climate change is the most urgent issue of our time, and we need people like you to help us build a vital Earth — for everyone.

We’re Environmental Defense Fund, a fast-paced nonprofit with a growing staff of more than 1,000 people in nearly 30 countries. We deliver game-changing solutions that cut climate pollution and strengthen people’s ability to thrive despite the effects climate change is already having. We work wherever we can have the most impact, from local communities to top companies to governments worldwide, and even in space.

Our culture, values and commitment to diversity make EDF an exciting and meaningful place to work. Every job here makes a difference. Won’t you join us?

Responsibilities

EDF’s Economics Team Overview

The Economics Team is the nexus of economics at EDF, ensuring that the economic thinking that is the backbone for all EDF policy positions is based on the best available research and information.  To be most effective in this role, the Economics team provides support for other teams throughout EDF and fosters relationships with economists outside the organization.

EDF’s  Climate-Smart Agriculture, Finance and Markets Team Overview

EDF’s Climate-Smart Agriculture, Finance and Markets team within the People & Nature program works with agriculture finance, carbon market, and policy stakeholders to advance financial incentives for farmers to adopt practices that reduce net greenhouse gas emissions and generate other benefits such as soil health and water quality improvements. This initiative involves quantifying the environmental and financial impact of adopting climate-smart agricultural practices, designing financial products and market structures to support practice adoption, and advising policy development that supports equitable financial incentives for farmers.

Overall Function

The Manager, Agricultural Economics and Policy Analysis will be a key team member in the Economics Team in close coordination with the Climate-Smart Agriculture team, planning and managing research and analysis focused on key climate-smart agriculture policies, programs, and financial incentives. The Manager, Agricultural Economics and Policy Analysis will focus on the relationships between climate risks to agriculture, production practices that build resilience, and agricultural risk management policies and products both in the U.S. and in other nations.

This Manager will report to The Associate Vice President for Economics and Policy within the Economics team and work closely with the Senior Director, Climate-Smart Agriculture.

Responsibilities include but are not limited to:

• Conduct analysis of the relationships between climate risks to agriculture, production practices that build resilience, and agricultural risk management policies and products. This will include, but is not limited to, federal crop insurance in the United States. It can also include warranties, parametric insurance, and/or other approaches to managing agricultural risk.

• Assess how agricultural risk management policies and products can support agricultural resilience and climate change adaptation practices that mitigate underlying production risks, and conversely identify any policies or products that create perverse incentives or moral hazards with respect to climate adaptation in agriculture.

• Compare and contrast different approaches to risk management, such as forms of agricultural insurance globally, different types of insurance used in other economic sectors, and other non-insurance approaches to mitigate agricultural climate risks. Use these insights to provide recommendations on effective agricultural climate risk policies or products for which EDF can advocate.

• Identify gaps and areas for improvement in available data sets that would facilitate analysis of the above sets of questions.

• Identify gaps or other issues with risk and actuarial models that underestimate the risk of climate change or undervalue the risk reduction benefits of climate-smart practices.

• With minimal supervision, the Manager develops and oversees work plans regarding compiling and analyzing data for timely in-house analyses for senior staff; this work will include applying models, designing scenarios and producing research reports and briefings;

• The Manager supervises work outputs from consultants and external experts we collaborate with to ensure high-quality deliverables that respond to programmatic goals;

• Takes a leadership role in researching and writing white papers and academic papers summarizing research and identifying research gaps for a broader audience, along with public communications including testimonies, presentations, Op-Ed pieces, and blog posts;

• Engages with a variety of stakeholders to solicit expertise and respond to inquiries;

• Applies excellent organizational, communication, and planning skills in preparing correspondence and reports, responding to requests for information, and helping to coordinate activities among staff members;

• Collaborate closely with the EDF Climate-Smart Agriculture team in the U.S., EU and India, Economics team, external academic partners and other partner organizations to identify synergies in efforts.

• Produce well-written analysis for external audiences, including peer-reviewed publication where applicable.

• Participate in advancing EDF’s diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) goals in which people from all backgrounds and experiences feel connected, included, and empowered to address the environmental and organizational challenges in alignment with EDF values.

Qualifications

We are seeking candidates who have a demonstrated ability to conduct rigorous research and analysis in the field of agricultural economics. Candidates must have exceptional problem-solving skills, work independently, and be able to ensure consistency and quality of research products. You should also have:

• Master’s-level degree in agricultural economics or a closely related field and at least six years of experience or a PhD in agricultural economics or a closely related field and 0-3 years of experience;

• Expert knowledge of agriculture and environmental policies as well as economic principles, concepts, and method;

• Demonstrated ability to conceive of, plan, and manage the implementation of complex research projects in support EDF’s Economics team and Climate-Smart Agriculture team;

• Excellent research and analytical skills and an interest in performing rigorous quantitative analysis in support of highly visible work;

• Highly proficient in Excel and at least one statistical analysis software, such as R or Stata;

• Excellent communication skills, including written public-facing materials (such as blogs and academic-style papers), verbal presentations, conducting group meetings, and communicating complex ideas to a general audience;

• Demonstrated ability to support a multi-disciplinary team, using independent judgment required to plan, prioritize, and organize diversified workload.

• Demonstrated ability to take initiative and able to multi-task under tight deadlines;

• Demonstrated ability to manage projects and participate in research efforts that include collaboration with and/or supervision of outside experts and consultants;

• Keen attention to detail to ensure consistency and quality of outputs;

• Demonstrates self-awareness, cultural competency and inclusivity, and ability to work with colleagues and stakeholders across diverse cultures and backgrounds.

• Willingness and ability to engage in some travel.

• Proficiency in English, knowledge of an additional language an advantage

Pay Ranges

We offer a strong total rewards package encompassing competitive salary, robust benefits, and professional development opportunities consistent with a modern global organization. We take into account factors such as candidate experience, skills, training, internal team equity and local norms.

The pay range for this role is shown below.

Please note that pay ranges are country specific. As a result, the stated currency is not meant be converted into any other currency.

Minimum Salary

USD $85,000.00/Yr.

Maximum Salary

USD $92,000.00/Yr.

EEO Information

Environmental Defense Fund is an equal opportunity employer where an applicant's qualifications are considered without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, genetic information, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other basis prohibited by law.