Consultant - Wildfire Risk Assessment Methodologies and Data Requirements

About the role

The United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) is seeking a home-based consultant to assess wildfire risk assessment methodologies and their data requirements in the Americas and the Caribbean. The work is funded by Global Affairs Canada and contributes to the Sendai Framework and the EU-LAC disaster risk management cooperation. The expected duration is 6 months.

Key responsibilities

• Compare existing quantitative wildfire risk assessment methodologies, including their data and technical requirements, geographic scales, outputs, strengths, limitations and applicability across the region.
• Identify relevant regional and international methodologies and recommend suitable approaches and pathways toward quantitative, prospective and probabilistic wildfire risk assessment.
• Assess whether approaches can account for differentiated exposure and vulnerability, including sex, age and disability-disaggregated data where available.
• Carry out a feasibility assessment in one Andean, one Central American and one Caribbean country, identifying data, methodological and capacity gaps.
• Develop a visual factsheet and prepare technical reports, including a PowerPoint presentation and the feasibility assessment results.
• Support the dissemination of results through a webinar.

Required profile

• First-level university degree in forestry, engineering, geography, environmental sciences, disaster risk management, geospatial science, territorial planning or a related field; postgraduate studies in wildfire management or disaster risk reduction desirable.
• Minimum of 3 years of experience in disaster risk assessment.
• Experience in wildfire risk assessment and with quantitative or probabilistic wildfire risk assessment methodologies.
• Fluency in English and Spanish; knowledge of French desired.
• Experience with government or regional/international institutions in the Americas and the Caribbean desirable.