Interim Senior Youth Advocacy Advisor

The Organisation

Plan International is an independent development and humanitarian organisation that advances children’s rights and equality for girls. We believe in the power and potential of every child but know this is often suppressed by poverty, violence, exclusion and discrimination. And it is girls who are most affected.

Working together with children, young people, supporters and partners, we strive for a just world, tackling the root causes of the challenges girls and vulnerable children face. We support children’s rights from birth until they reach adulthood and we enable children to prepare for and respond to crises and adversity. We drive changes in practice and policy at local, national and global levels using our reach, experience and knowledge.

For over 85 years, we have rallied other determined optimists to transform the lives of all children in more than 80 countries.

We won’t stop until we are all equal.

Role Purpose

This role will be split 50% for the UN team (Geneva and New York) and 50% for the Global Youth Ambassadors initiative. In line with its work under the Global Youth Ambassadors initiative, the UN Strategy has spelled out three overarching objectives under its Youth Advocacy, Activism and Participation:

1. Change Agents: Girls and young women actively and independently engage with UN processes to advance their own agendas at national and global levels.
2. Changing the UN: The UN system becomes more inclusive of and responsive to the voice of girls and young women.
3. Changing policy: International policy on meaningful participation of young people is strong, progressive and inclusive.

Dimensions of the Role

The role will lead the UN Team’s youth participation strategy for Plan International, for both Geneva and NY-based activities. This includes providing oversight and strategic direction for the UN Team’s portfolio of work on youth participation, as well as carrying out advocacy activities on this topic. Specifically, this role is responsible for the “Changing the UN” objective under the UN Strategy’s youth participation priority.

This includes strategising and engaging with stakeholders in both the Geneva and New York spaces to advocate for institutionalisation of youth participation within the UN system. Additionally, the role will lead on elements of the “Changing Policy” objective.

Furthermore, 50% of this role is responsible for the Global Youth Ambassadors initiativeproject management for the UN Team, including budget management. The role will work in close collaboration with the Policy & Strategic Partnerships (Youth) team to ensure greater integration and cohesion in advancing youth advocacy objectives.

Accountabilities 

• Leads UN Team’s portfolio of work on youth participation/LEAD (as per the UN strategy) and strategises for maximum impact on this agenda.
• Develops and implements organisational approach to the UN Youth Office, ensuring strong relationships with them, and coordinating with key actors internally.
• Oversees UN team’s work to facilitate access with an explicit equity lens, for young people, especially girls and young women, (from Global Youth Ambassadors initiativeand other Plan countries and initiatives) to key decision-making spaces within the UN, including ensuring safeguarding standards are upheld, and promoting diversity and inclusion.
• Advocates to gain political support to institutionalise meaningful participation of girls and young women in UN decision-making processes in Geneva and New York (such as HRC, Third Committee, CSW, etc.), as well as human rights mechanisms.
• Ensures high level engagement and representation at the UN and with Permanent Missions on issues related to youth participation.
• Strengthens the enabling environment for girls’ and young women’s participation by influencing relevant policy processes/documents from international human rights bodies, including Human Rights Council, Special Procedures Mandates, etc., with gender- transformative, age-responsive and intersectional language, in order to promote and protect the civil and political rights of children and young people, particularly girls and young women.
• Advises UN Team with relation to youth participation in decision-making.
• Lead on safeguarding children and young people in Geneva and provide safeguarding support for events in New York in close liaison with Head of UN Representation and Senior Operations Officer, acting as the lead safeguarding focal point and managing safeguarding policies and procedures for youth participation at the UN
• Oversees production of high-quality research and other resources such as policy briefs and talking points on girls’ and young women’s participation for use in advocacy.
• Effectively manages the Global Youth Ambassadors initiative, including management of budget and expenses, coordination of Geneva-based Global Youth Ambassadors partners, ensuring timely execution of deliverables by all partners.
• Ensures coordination between the UN Team’s work around youth participation, and Plan international’s work on youth participation and LEAD as well as with country offices, regional hubs and global hub.
• Improves visibility, credibility and information-sharing of the UN liaison offices with external and internal audiences, with advocacy work strategically supported by communications.
• Ensures that Plan International’s global policies for Safeguarding Children and Young People and Gender Equality and Inclusion are fully embedded in accordance with the principles and requirements of the policy including relevant Implementation Standards and Guidelines as applicable to their area of responsibility. This includes, but is not limited to, ensuring staff and associates are aware of and understand their responsibilities under these policies and Plan International’s Code of Conduct (CoC), their relevance to their area of work, and that concerns are reported and managed in accordance with the appropriate procedures

Technical expertise, skills and knowledge required 

Essential

• Strong understanding of the UN system and its human rights mechanisms in particular, including how these can advance national level advocacy;
• Proven ability to analyse complex political issues and to devise sophisticated strategies and innovative approaches for achieving policy change;
• Proven experience and knowledge of gender equality, women’s, children’s and girls’ rights, feminist principles, and familiarity with the Sustainable Development Agenda;
• Previous experience with conducting multilateral advocacy;
• Able to influence human rights system through strengthening language and use of mechanisms;
• Strong knowledge of current political trends and events affecting children’s and girls’ rights;
• Ability to communicate complex issues in an accessible and simple manner;
• Excellent writing skills – especially for policy-related documents;
• Good understanding of youth activism, advocacy and young feminist organizing;
• Excellent level of oral and written English;
• Experience in management of staff including supervision and support;
• Outstanding organisational, and project and time management skills;
• Skilled and confident user of Microsoft Office applications (including Excel);
• Completion of a Master’s degree programme in human rights, political science, gender studies, international law, international development or any other specific field relevant to Plan International’s work or relevant experience

Desirable

• Experience in conducting workshops and trainings;
• Previous experience working directly with young people;
• Good oral and written French and/or Spanish;
• Competent with office software packages, including PowerPoint, adobe suite, excel, basic design software;
• Experience in overseeing translation work

Location: The location for this role is the Geneva. Applicants need to have the pre-existing right to work and live in the Geneva. 

Type of Role: Fixed term - 6 months Maternity Cover

Reports to: Head of UN Representation, Geneva and New York

Closing Date: Friday 14 August 2026 at 23:59 PM UK time 

Equality, diversity and inclusion is at the very heart of everything that Plan International stands for.

We want Plan International to reflect the diversity of the communities we work with, offering equal opportunities to everyone regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation.

Plan International is based on a culture of inclusivity and we strive to create a workplace environment that ensures every team, in every office, in every country, is rich in diverse people, thoughts, and ideas.

We foster an organisational culture that embraces our commitment to racial justice, gender equality, girls’ rights and inclusion.

Plan International believes that in a world where children face so many threats of harm, it is our duty to ensure that we, as an organisation, do everything we can to keep children safe. This means that we have particular responsibilities to children that we come into contact with and we must not contribute in any way to harming or placing children at risk.

A range of pre-employment checks will be undertaken in conformity with Plan International's Safeguarding Children and Young People policy. Plan International also participates in the Inter Agency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme. In line with this scheme we will request information from applicants previous employers about any findings of sexual exploitation, sexual abuse and/or sexual harassment during employment, or incidents under investigation when the applicant left employment. By submitting an application, the job applicant confirms their understanding of these recruitment procedures.

Please note that Plan International will never send unsolicited emails requesting payment from candidates.