Intern, Urban Risk and Community Resilience

Organizational Context

The Road Map to Community Resilience via Enhanced Vulnerability and Capacity Assessment (R2R via eVCA) is a structured, step-by-step approach designed to support Red Cross and Red Crescent staff and volunteers in working collaboratively with communities. It guides them in identifying risks and planning actions that strengthen long-term resilience. The approach emphasizes inclusive participation, values local knowledge, and promotes sustainability—ensuring that communities become safer, healthier, and better prepared to face future challenges.

Urban contexts—and the interventions they require—are inherently more complex than those in rural settings. The scale and diversity of stakeholders, the intricacy of urban service systems and infrastructure, and the influence of economic, social, and political drivers all contribute to this complexity. High population density, mobility patterns, and multiple layers of governance further complicate the landscape. As a result, significantly more time and resources are needed to thoroughly understand the context, engage with stakeholders and communities, and accurately assess risks.

To address the specific challenges, an Urban Considerations Guidance Document was drafted in 2023. This document outlines, step by step, how to adapt the R2R via eVCA approach for urban context analysis and understanding. While the guidance is comprehensive and nearly finalized, it remains largely conceptual. It currently lacks practical elements such as real-world examples, case studies, interviews, and visual illustrations that would make it more accessible and actionable for practitioners.

In parallel, the R2R via eVCA is supported by a set of training materials that have been widely used and disseminated across the region. However, these materials do not yet incorporate content specific to urban contexts, limiting their relevance and effectiveness in urban programming.

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), together with the German Red Cross (GRC), is seeking a motivated and committed individual to undertake an internship focused on the improvement of the Urban Considerations Guidance document and the diversification of training materials to include Urban consideration in the existing Roadmap to Resilience via Enhanced Vulnerability and Capacity Assessment curriculum.

The document produced will serve as a foundation for a broader collection of thematic add-ons to the R2R via eVCA, covering areas such as Working with Nature (WWN), Epidemics, Fragile, Conflict affected and Violent (FCV) environment.

Job Purpose

• Further understanding of urban risk dynamics and the existing community-based risk assessment and planning methodologies.
• Develop skills in reviewing and synthesizing conceptual content, including the ability to integrate information that illustrate practical applications of theoretical concepts.
• Learn how to design and adapt training materials and methods for diverse audiences in professional and community settings, with a focus on adult learners
• Collaborate with interdisciplinary teams: technical experts, field staff, and program managers.

Job Duties and Responsibilities

• Conduct literature research on the resilience approaches within the IFRC, familiarize with existing considerations (Urban, WWN, Epidemics, FCV, etc…) and produce a brief report summarizing key insights and a proposed structure for the urban considerations, designed to be replicable with other considerations,
• Review and finalize the urban consideration guidance document: Focus the review on improving usability and comprehension, while complementing key concepts with illustrative examples of application. Integrate relevant tangible examples, photos, infographics, interviews and case studies from existing worldwide urban projects or literature. Produce a complete document (including revised content, layout recommendation) ready for further professional editing and publication.

Job Duties and Responsibilities (continued)

• Adapt and improve existing training materials: Review existing training material (PowerPoints, workbook, demo case studies…) used for the classic R2R via eVCA training and revise them to reflect urban-specific challenges and dynamics described in the urban consideration guidance document. If relevant, include tailored adult learning methodologies such as role plays, group exercises, urban simulations activities. Produce an updated add-on training material package including facilitation guide, aligned with the updated urban consideration guidance document to be used in complement to the existing training material.
• Conduct Peer Review and Testing: Organize internal peer reviews / mini-validation workshops to gather feedback from staff or partners and make final improvements.

Education

Minimum Requirements:

• A bachelor’s degree (completed or in process) is required, with focus in any combination of urban planning, architecture, sociology, development communications, DRR/DRM, climate change, environmental/natural resources management.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Graduate degree in urban planning, architecture, sociology, development communications, DRR/DRM, climate change, environmental/natural resources management. is preferred but not required.

Experience

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience working with local government, city councils, urban policy topics is a plus

Knowledge, Skills and Languages

Required:

• Excellent research and written/oral communications skills.
• Excellent analytical and critical thinking skills.
• Strong computer skills, especially Microsoft Office, Word Press or other website platforms.
• Strong organizational skills and attention to detail.
• Ability to manage multiple and simultaneous projects and work independently.
• Curiosity, creative and innovative thinking.
• A commitment to the mission, goals and values of IFRC.

Competencies, Values and Comments

Deployment conditions and duration

• Home based/ remote support, 3 months starting September 2025, extendable if required.

Reporting Lines

• IFRC APRO Regional Disaster Risk Reduction Coordinator