• Plan and deliver community engagement and consultation activities

• Advocate for the community
• Share your knowledge with your peers

Kaunihera Taiao ki Waitaha │ About Environment Canterbury

As a regional council, we are responsible for managing natural resources including air, soil, water and land. We work in partnership with mana whenua Ngāi Tahu to protect the health of our environment to ensure a sustainable and prosperous future for our region.

The region’s evolving environmental and political context means we will continue to be agile and adaptive, as we respond to regulatory and environmental changes.

Our mahi (work) is organised around the delivery of our three core services:

• Environmental Regulation and Protection
• Community Preparedness and Response to Hazards
• Public Transport

Kōrero mō te Tūranga | About the Role

Our Principal Advisors are technical specialists who help grow our understanding of what is important to our community and, in turn, help our communities understand and influence the work we’re doing.

In this role you will work with the team to provide expert engagement and consultation advice. This includes developing and implementing engagement plans for complex projects, integration of engagement across multiple projects, as well as coaching, development, training and mentoring staff across the organisation.

This role will involve building relationships across the organisation, including with senior leaders and elected members, and supporting work on a range of projects. The ability to apply political nous to any topic, as well as detailed communications and engagement planning and delivery, will be key to success.  

For more information on this role, please refer to the job description at the bottom of the advert.

Mōu │ About You

You’ll be an enthusiastic, skilled, collaborator accomplished at engaging with different audiences. The work requires the ability to meet tight timeframes while juggling multiple projects so your ability to multitask while managing your time will be a winning combo.

 Mātau ā-Wheako | Experience  

You’ll ideally have a relevant tertiary degree in Communications and Engagement or related discipline along with 10 years or more of experience in community engagement, iwi/rūnanga relations, communications or digital communications.

Some of the skills and experience needed to excel in this role are:

• Hold a current IAP2 Certificate in Engagement
• Understand the complexities of regional government, in particular applying a political and risk lens across multiple areas
• Demonstrate experience of advocating for the audience
• Project management experience
• An understanding of te ao Māori and te reo Māori, and experience in iwi engagement - or a willingness to learn
• Work with senior staff across the organisation, to influence their work with the community and stakeholders

Ngā hua o te Mahi i te Kaunihera Taiao ki Waitaha | Working at Environment Canterbury  

Our mahi is underpinned by our values:

• Kaitiakitanga (stewardship)
• Pononga (integrity)
• Manaakitanga (people first)
• Whanaungatanga (collaboration)
• Māiatanga (can do)

We understand and embrace a diverse workforce; this diversity will enable us to better serve our people, our community, and our greatest taonga, the environment. We value everyone’s contribution, diverse thinking, and skills.

 We're on a journey to become a treaty partner of excellence, including incorporating te ao Māori into our work. We offer supportive opportunities to develop capability in this area and encourage our people to use kaupapa Māori, mātauranga Māori, and te reo Māori in our daily work. We welcome you with an open heart & mind, wherever you are on your personal te ao Māori journey

Ko ētahi atu kōrero | Additional Information

For a confidential chat about this role, please contact Diane Dinnis on 027 206 2790

Applications close on Wednesday, 9 July.  Applications will be reviewed as we receive them, and interviews may take place before the close date. We reserve the right to close advertising early.  

Short-listed candidates will be required to complete an interview process, reference checks, and a criminal check. Further background checking will be required when relevant to the role. 

We are committed to creating a diverse, inclusive, and authentic workplace. If you're excited about this role but don't meet every qualification in the job description, we still encourage you to apply.

Me mahi tahi tātou - Together we can