UNESCO
Position: Community Volunteer-Intangible Cultural Heritage, Climate Change, and DRR
Assignment country: Nepal
Expected start date: 10/05/2025
Sustainable Development Goal: 13. Climate action
Volunteer category: National UN Community Volunteer
Host entity: UNESCO Nepal
Type: Onsite
Duration: 6 months
(with possibility of extension)
Number of assignments: 2
Duty stations: Salleri (2)
Details
Mission and objectives
UNESCO is the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. It seeks to build peace through international cooperation in education, sciences and culture. UNESCO’s programmes contribute to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals defined in the 2030 Agenda, adopted by the UN General Assembly in 2015.
Context
This United Nations Volunteers (UNV) assignment is part of UNESCO’s Heritage Emergency Fund project. Situated in Solukhumbu District within Sagarmatha National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site- Thame village is home to Indigenous communities whose living heritage is deeply connected to the surrounding natural environment. The village was affected by a glacial lake outburst flood (GLOF) in 2024, causing widespread destruction, damaging homes, an elementary school, a clinic, a nursery and a monastery.
Increasing threats from climate-induced hazards, particularly Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOFs), endanger both community livelihoods and intangible cultural heritage (ICH). This climate change induced loss extends beyond physical structures, threatening the community’s cultural fabric by displacing approximately 135 individuals and dismantling spaces vital for passing down local and indigenous communities’ traditions and knowledge systems.
Anchored in the 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, UNESCO’s Local and Indigenous Knowledge Systems (LINKS) Programme and 2025 International year of Glaciers’ preservation, the project focuses on safeguarding the cultural heritage of the ecologically sensitive and culturally rich Sagarmatha region. It focuses on documenting the impacts of the of Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOF) on the intangible cultural heritage of Thame’s Indigenous communities while exploring the role of living heritage in addressing climate-induce disasters
This UNESCO-led project aims to document the and living heritage, integrate disaster risk reduction (DRR) into ICH safeguarding processes, and develop recommendations for climate-resilient cultural heritage management.
National UN Community Volunteers will support community-based inventorying, awareness raising, and stakeholder engagement to safeguard ICH while promoting resilience to climate change and disasters. The UNCV will work closely with local authorities, community leaders, and the UNESCO project team to assist in field data collection for the ICH inventory. Support coordination for training workshop, missions and validation workshop.
Task description
Under the direct supervision of the Head of the office and with Culture and Natural Sciences Unit and with guidance from the National ICH Expert, the UNCV will:
1. Community Engagement & Mobilization: Facilitate participation in capacity-building training, consultations, and workshops. Ensure Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC) for all interviews and recordings.
2. Field Data Collection: Conduct community-based surveys, interviews, and focus group discussions (FGDs) on community-based ICH inventorying and GLOF impacts. Document Indigenous knowledge on disaster prediction, preparedness, and coping strategies.
3. Support Field visits: Assist visiting UNESCO mission teams in logistics, interpretation, and community liaison. Help organize the validation workshop for the ICH inventory and action plan.
4. Communication & Awareness: Contribute local content (stories, photographs, testimonies) for the project documentary and social media materials.
5. Monitor and Evaluate project implementation: Monitor the documentation of Indigenous knowledge on disaster prediction, preparedness, and coping strategies in accordance with performance indicators of the project.
Eligibility criteria
Age: 18 – 80
Required experience
No experience required
Nationality
Candidate must be a national or legal resident of the country of assignment.
Assignment requirements
Relevant experience
1 year
Languages
Nepalese, Level: Fluent, Required
English, Level: Fluent, Required
Required education level
Secondary education
Competencies and values
- Accountability
- Adaptability and flexibility
- Creativity
- Judgement and decision-making
- Planning and organising
- Professionalism
- Self-management
Skills and experience
At least 1 year of experience in community mobilization, participatory research, or heritage/environment projects. Knowledge of local traditions and culture of Thame; Sherpa language proficiency is an asset.
Skills:
- Good communication and facilitation skills.
- Ability to work respectfully with Indigenous communities and elders.
- Basic record-keeping and reporting abilities.
Area(s) of expertise
Communication, Development programmes, Natural and life sciences
Driving license
–
Other information
Living conditions and remarks
National UN Community Volunteer (UNCV) – Intangible Cultural Heritage, Climate Change, and Disaster Risk Reduction position is based in Thame, Solukhumbu District, Nepal.
Inclusivity statement
United Nations Volunteers is an equal opportunity programme that welcomes applications from qualified professionals. We are committed to achieving diversity in terms of gender, care protected characteristics. As part of their adherence to the values of UNV, all UN Volunteers commit themselves to combat any form of discrimination, and to promoting respect for human rights and individual dignity, without distinction of a person’s race, sex, gender identity, religion, nationality, ethnic origin, sexual orientation, disability, pregnancy, age, language, social origin or other status.
Note on Covid-19 vaccination requirements
Selected candidates for certain occupational groups may be subject to inoculation (vaccination) requirements, including against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid-19) in line with the applicable host entity policy
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