Sustainable Charcoal Project Associate – KOMAZA – Kenya

Who we are

Komaza is revolutionizing African forestry by unlocking the potential for small farmers to serve booming wood markets. With roots in San Francisco and headquarters in coastal Kenya, we have planted over 2 million trees with more than 6,000 farmers, making us Kenya’s largest commercial tree planter. By leveraging farmers’ contribution of land and labor, Komaza can access effectively limitless land and establish a hectare of trees for far less than big plantations – a powerful disruption to the traditional forestry model. We have been recognized with numerous awards and investments, including Forbes, Ashoka, Mulago Foundation, and Novastar Ventures.

About the team

The Business Development team is responsible for managing special projects with Komaza’s key partners. We work with a broad network of Africa’s top operating partners and consultancies in the planning and execution of new strategic initiatives for the company. We thrive on both building alignment across this eclectic group of stakeholders and detailed execution of high-complexity projects.

About this role

Charcoal is the dominant cooking fuel in urban African households. Yet traditional methods of production is the leading cause of forest degradation on the continent. Komaza have a major opportunity to produce charcoal sustainably using the wood by products from our existing forestry operations.The Sustainable Charcoal Project Associate will provide project support on the day-to-day operations of a sustainable charcoal production collaborative project between Komaza and The Nature Conservancy, funded by the Shell Foundation. The role of Sustainable Charcoal Project Associate is a highly variable position. The successful employee must be organized, detail-oriented, eager to learn, self-motivated, and able to produce high-quality work outputs.

What you will do

Support project planning and day-to-day operations of sustainable charcoal production using energy-efficient technology
Accurately gather and document detailed technical data and qualitative information; write reports based on information gathered
Support design and implementation of production and market tests
Support establishment of sales channels and direct sales of charcoal residential and industrial buyers
Conduct literature reviews, primary & secondary research to inform project decisions and strategy; clearly synthesize research findings into report including recommendations
What you have

Secondary school education required; Bachelors degree preferred
Proven project management experience: planning, budgeting,implementation, reporting
Impeccable spoken and written English; conversational or fluent spoken Kiswahili
Strong familiarity with working in Kenya, specifically the rural communities where we plant trees and the urban areas where we will sell charcoal
Excellent organisational, critical thinking, and communications skills
You’re also

Flexible and determined with the drive to do whatever necessary to get the job done
Self-directed and intellectually curious – you know how and when to seek feedback in the pursuit of continuous improvement
Growth-obsessed with a strong desire for personal development
A collaborative problem solver who seeks the opinions of other teammates and departments in the development of creative and sustainable systems
What we expect

You are a good fit for Komaza if you want to make a meaningful commitment to this role for the duration of the one-year project, with a possibly of project extension. This role will be primarily based at our current headquarters in Kilifi, Kenya for the foreseeable future. The role offers competitive salary and benefits with potential for further career growth.

The deadline for applications for this role is the 12th February 2017