Associate, Financial and Market Inclusion

Position Overview

Overview of Rare:

 

Rare is a fast-growing international conservation organization whose mission is to inspire change, so people and nature thrive. Rare advances this mission through innovative behavior change strategies that boost the adoption of proven environmental solutions. Rare’s culture is results-oriented and entrepreneurial. We are working toward ambitious goals in creating measurable social and environmental impacts. 

Rare Brasil is a Brazilian non-profit established in 2014 under an Affiliate Agreement with Rare Inc. Rare's behavior adoption campaigns have reached +6,000 small-scale fishers and +12,000 community members across 77 communities in 8 states. Since 2019, Rare Brasil has concentrated efforts in Pará, working with local, state, and national partners to strengthen coastal fisheries governance through three pillars: (1) community-based fisheries management; (2) access to citizenship rights and public policies for artisanal marine-coastal fishers; and (3) financial inclusion and fair markets. The organization operates in 12 coastal municipalities within Marine Extractive Reserves (Resex), reaching +28,000 people, including +960 women and +70 youth. 

Position Overview:

The Associate, Financial and Market Inclusion supports the implementation of Rare Brazil's strategies to strengthen inclusive and sustainable value chains in coastal communities. The role will focus particularly on the Casa Ucides Crab Processing Facility in Soure and the Sustainable Oyster Value Chain in Curuçá, while supporting similar community-based enterprises and production systems across Pará and other coastal states as needed.

Working under the guidance of the Brazil Implementing Director, the Associate provides technical and operational support to community associations, cooperatives, public agencies, research institutions, technical partners, and market actors. The position contributes to business and infrastructure planning, formalization and regulatory compliance, sanitary and quality standards, product development, capacity building, financial inclusion, market access, and monitoring. The role is implementation-oriented and does not hold direct managerial responsibility for staff.

The Associate will undertake the following responsibilities:

Value Chain and Community Enterprise Development:

• Support the day-to-day implementation of the Casa Ucides Crab Processing Facility and the Sustainable Oyster Value Chain, maintaining activity plans, timelines, deliverables, risks, and follow-up actions in coordination with Rare's program team and implementing partners.
• Conduct and document assessments to identify and characterize communities, associations, cooperatives, enterprises, production systems, and market opportunities with potential for value chain development.
• Assess the organizational, productive, commercial, and financial maturity of community-based enterprises and help translate findings into practical capacity-building and investment plans.
• Support the preparation and implementation of business development plans, including value propositions, production and sales projections, operating costs, pricing, cash flow, governance arrangements, and investment needs.
• Support infrastructure and equipment planning for community production and processing facilities, including production flows, storage, refrigeration, sanitation, occupational safety, maintenance, and efficient use of assets.
• Help community organizations establish management routines, roles, records, controls, and decision-making processes that strengthen accountability and business sustainability.

Formalization, Compliance, Quality, and Product Development:

• Support associations, cooperatives, and community enterprises in navigating legal formalization and the registrations, certifications, professional credentials, and sanitary and environmental permits applicable to their operations.
• Coordinate follow-up with qualified technical advisers and relevant public agencies on licensing, sanitary compliance, environmental requirements, labeling, and other regulatory matters; maintain organized records of requirements, submissions, deadlines, and evidence of compliance.
• Support the development and adoption of good manufacturing, food handling, hygiene, sanitation, quality control, and occupational safety procedures for crab, oyster, and other artisanal fisheries products.
• Contribute to the design and implementation of traceability systems that document sustainable sourcing, origin, handling, processing, storage, and commercialization of crab meat, oysters, and other products.
• Support research, testing, and development of artisanal products and value-added product lines, working with communities and specialized partners on processing methods, packaging, labeling, shelf-life, quality, cost, consumer acceptance, and market validation.
• Help identify operational gaps and coordinate technical assistance for equipment use, cold-chain management, storage, sanitation, and improvements in production efficiency and product quality.

Market Access and Financial Inclusion:

• Map buyers, market channels, demand, prices, logistics, quality specifications, and procurement requirements for crab, oysters, and other community products.
• Support engagement with private buyers, including local markets, restaurants, retailers, distributors, and other commercial partners, and assist community enterprises in preparing for negotiations and commercial relationships.
• Promote access to public procurement opportunities, including school meal and food acquisition programs, by helping community organizations understand eligibility, documentation, product standards, pricing, delivery, and contracting requirements.
• Support the development of cold-chain and logistics arrangements that preserve product quality and enable reliable access to target markets.
• Develop or adapt practical training and tools on costing, pricing, cash flow, recordkeeping, financial planning, savings, responsible access to finance, and investment readiness for community enterprises.
• Map and facilitate connections to relevant public policies, technical assistance, financing mechanisms, programs, and investment opportunities that support inclusive and sustainable value chains.
• Support participation in fairs, business rounds, market tests, and other opportunities to showcase and commercialize community products and services.

Capacity Building, Partnerships, and Community Engagement:

• Organize and facilitate workshops, mentoring, exchanges, and field-based technical assistance for fishers, crab harvesters, oyster farmers, processors, association leaders, and cooperative members.
• Support training related to sustainable production, biology and resource stewardship, food safety, processing, business skills, financial capability, cooperative management, and market readiness in collaboration with technical specialists.
• Strengthen meaningful participation and leadership by women and youth in value chain governance, training, enterprise development, and market opportunities.
• Maintain productive working relationships with community organizations, public agencies, research institutions, technical assistance providers, civil society organizations, and private-sector partners.
• Coordinate meetings, field activities, and partner follow-up, documenting decisions, responsibilities, deadlines, and implementation progress.

Monitoring, Learning, and Reporting:

• Collect, organize, validate, and analyze data on production, sales, income, market access, training participation, enterprise performance, compliance, infrastructure delivery, and social and gender outcomes.
• Support the design and tracking of project indicators and maintain accurate information in Rare's program information systems and other project management tools.
• Contribute to participatory productive and ecological monitoring by coordinating relevant information with Rare's science team, community members, research institutions, and public partners.
• Undertake regular field visits to project sites in Pará and other locations to monitor implementation, identify constraints, document progress, and support community meetings and workshops.
• Prepare clear and timely progress updates, technical notes, monitoring reports, presentations, case studies, and inputs for donor and institutional reporting.

Program Support and Knowledge Sharing:

• Document and share lessons learned, good practices, implementation tools, and replicable approaches from the crab and oyster value chains to support adaptation and scale across other Marine Extractive Reserves.
• Contribute technical inputs to concept notes, proposals, budgets, workplans, presentations, and resource mobilization efforts related to financial inclusion, market access, and sustainable value chains.
• Provide accurate technical content for communications materials, stories, events, publications, and knowledge products, in coordination with Rare's communications and program teams.
• Participate in internal coordination and learning processes and perform other related duties consistent with the Associate level and the needs of the program.

Required Experience and Education:

• Bachelor's degree in business administration, economics, finance, production engineering, food engineering, fisheries engineering, aquaculture, agronomy, agricultural sciences, international development, or a related field.
• Three to five years of relevant professional experience in socio-bioeconomy, sustainable value chains, community enterprise development, market access, food production or processing, fisheries, aquaculture, or rural and coastal development.
• Practical experience working with community-based organizations, cooperatives, associations, small enterprises, or sustainable production systems; experience in Pará or the Brazilian Amazon is highly desirable.
• Experience with at least two of the following areas: business planning, infrastructure or equipment planning, sanitary and environmental compliance, food quality, traceability, product development, public procurement, private market development, financial education, or enterprise finance.
• Fluency in Portuguese and advanced written and spoken English.

Rare is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to a proactive program of affirmative action and diversity development. Rare will continue to recruit, hire, train, and promote into all job levels without regard to race, religion, gender, marital status, family background, nationality, age, mental or physical disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, source of income, or veteran status.