Background

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion are core principles at UNDP: we value diversity as an expression of the multiplicity of nations and cultures where we operate, we foster inclusion as a way of ensuring all personnel are empowered to contribute to our mission, and we ensure equity and fairness in all our actions. Taking a ‘leave no one behind’ approach to our diversity efforts means increasing representation of underserved populations. People who identify as belonging to marginalized or excluded populations are strongly encouraged to apply. Learn more about working at UNDP including our values and inspiring stories.

UNDP does not tolerate sexual exploitation and abuse, any kind of harassment, including sexual harassment, and discrimination. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks.

UNDP is the United Nations’ lead agency on international development. We support countries and communities as they work to eradicate poverty, implement the Paris Agreement on climate change and achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. We advocate for transformative change, and we connect countries to the resources they need to help people build a better life.

Rome Centre for Climate Action and Energy Transition

The central purpose of the Rome Centre is to ensure the effective implementation and further development of the strategic partnership between UNDP and the government of Italy across the objectives of sustainable development and in doing so advancing the broader partnership between UNDP and G7 and G20 countries.

The Rome Centre focuses on the critical policy areas of youth engagement in climate action, energy for development and climate finance. These objectives are pursued through the effective implementation of three initial main programmes: the Technical Assistance and Investment Support Facility, the Italy-UNDP Energy Partnership and Youth4Climate.

The Technical Assistance and Investment Support Facility aims to mobilise finance for climate, energy and environment. Specifically, the Facility aims to originate projects that contribute to the decarbonization efforts of developing economies and to their transition to climate-resilient economies, and it aims to catalyse international financial resources toward these initiatives. Matching impactful projects with investors and capital providers goes hand in hand with the engagement with financial institutions – both institutional and private – at Italian and global level.
The Energy for Growth initiative aims to promote access to sustainable energy in developing countries, contributing to SDG7. The goal of the partnership is to assist partner countries in unlocking finance to scale up the diffusion of clean energy solutions, increase access to energy and boost the energy transition. Overall, the initiative aims to foster the mobilization of public and private capital toward projects aligned with the international policy agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals. It does so by connecting UNDP's capacity and connections in emerging economies and developing countries with the public-private ecosystem of Italy and other G7-G20countries, in the crucial sector of energy.
Youth4Climate promotes youth engagement in climate action, contributing to SDG13. Youth4Climate supports the implementation of youth-led and youth-inclusive solutions to environmental and climate challenges, both financially and through capacity development. It also gives young people around the world who are committed to fighting climate change a platform to engage with policymakers and global leaders.
The Rome Centre also has a broader mandate to engage with the Italian ecosystem as a whole, which involves close collaboration with key actors in the public and private sector, with the aim to effectively mobilize financial resources for development objectives. To guarantee the effective implementation of the Rome Centre’s workplan, and indeed to ensure the strategic and long term impact of both its programmes, the Centre will develop broader strategic partnerships and reinforce the overall collaboration with Italy and other meaningful partners.
The Rome Centre functions as the UNDP Office in Italy. As a result, it plays a key role in the strategic engagement of public stakeholders in advancing Italy’s international cooperation priorities within broader multilateral frameworks, including the G7 and G20, as well as supporting the development objectives of National Strategies such as the Mattei Plan for Africa. For instance, it supports initiatives such as: Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment (PGII), the G7 Adaptation Accelerator Hub, the Digital Flagship for Africa, the AI Hub for Sustainable Development, as well as crises and recovery programmes. Through these efforts, the Centre acts as a hub to channel Italian priorities into global and regional programmes, while mobilizing finance and partnerships that scale SDG-aligned impact in developing and crisis-affected countries.

Delivering on its programmes, the Rome Centre will provide support to the international cooperation efforts of Italy and it will support UNDP’s global policy initiatives. Recognizing that change will be disruptive, UNDP will work to ensure that such transitions are just, and that their impact on vulnerable people is understood and duly mitigated.

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the guidance of the Communications Lead, the intern will support Rome Centre's communications work across the following areas.

1) Content Development

Draft and edit web stories, social media posts, and newsletters
Support the preparation of key messages, event blurbs, and visual content for programmes and events
Help maintain Rome Centre's media asset library, photos, videos, graphics, keeping it organized and easy for others to find
Support multilingual adaptation of content where relevant

2) Digital Communications and Social Media

Support day-to-day management of Rome Centre's social media channels (LinkedIn, Instagram, X, and others)
Track what formats and content are performing well on each platform and feed that back into planning
Assist with scheduling, drafting, and posting, adapting content to each platform's current native formats rather than reusing the same post everywhere
Monitor analytics and engagement

3) Event Communications

Support the preparation of communications packages for events, visuals, hashtags, photo and video briefs
Assist with live coverage during events, gathering photos, quotes, and key takeaways
Help turn event material into social and web content afterward

4) Website Support

Draft, format, and publish content on undp.org using the CMS, following UNDP's brand and editorial guidelines
Build and update basic pages for campaigns and events
Upload and tag media, write alt text and captions

5) Research and Ideas

Support desk research for campaigns and storytelling
Contribute ideas for creative digital content and formats

Competencies

Corporate

Demonstrates integrity by modelling the UN’s values and ethical standards;
Promotes the vision, mission, and strategic goals of UNDP;
Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability;
Treats all people fairly without favoritism.

Professionalism

Works toward creative solutions by analyzing problems carefully and logically;
Has a dynamic, positive and adaptive attitude towards work-related challenges;
Facilitates discussions and meetings effectively and efficiently;
Resolves conflicts as they arise;
Sets priorities, produces quality outputs, meets deadlines and manages time efficiently;
Highly organized, detailed oriented.

Communication

Writes and presents clearly and convincingly.

Required Skills and Experience

Education

Applicants must at the time of application meet one of the following requirements:

Be enrolled in a postgraduate degree programme (such as a master's programme, or higher) in Communications, Media Studies, Graphic Design, Marketing or a related field.
Be enrolled in the final academic year of a first university degree programme (minimum bachelor’s level or equivalent) in a related field.
Have recently graduated with a university degree (as defined in (a) and (b) above) and, if selected, must start the internship within one-year of graduation;
Be enrolled in a postgraduate professional traineeship program and undertake the internship as part of this program.

Experience

Strong understanding of digital media. A strong, current sense of how content works across major platforms, LinkedIn, Instagram, X, and short-form video, and comfort adapting the same story into different formats for each
Proficiency with social media tools and content management systems
Comfortable with everyday digital tools, scheduling platforms, basic analytics dashboards
Experience with Canva, CapCut, Adobe Creative Suite or other design tools is an asset
Interest in climate action, energy transition and sustainable development
Knowledge of the UN system is an asset
Applications will only be considered if accompanied by a portfolio of relevant work

PLEASE NOTE THAT APPLICATIONS WILL ONLY BE CONSIDERED IF ACCOMPANIED BY A PORTFOLIO OF RELEVANT WORK. PLEASE DO NOT FORGET TO INCLUDE YOUR PORTFOLIO WITH YOUR APPLICATION

Language

Excellent oral and written communication in English
Working knowledge of Italian or another UN language is an asset

In case an applicant is successfully selected, s/he will be requested to provide electronic versions of:

letter from his/her university confirming current enrollment and graduation date;
letter from his/her university confirming their sponsorship for the internship if they have;
letter of recommendation from a professor;
copy of his/her most recent school transcript;
copy of passport;
completed UNDP internship application form;
signed UNDP Internship Agreement;
Medical Certificate of Good Health;
Proof of medical insurance.
Applicants must identify their availability period

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Institutional Arrangements

The intern will report to Communication Analyst.

Interns’ Expenses

Interns may be given a stipend under conditions prescribed in the section on stipends, below.

Costs and arrangements for travel, visas, passports, accommodation and living expenses are the responsibility of:

(a) The nominating institution, related institution or government, which may provide the required financial assistance to its students;

(b) The intern.

Stipend

Where an intern is not financially supported by any institution or programme, such as a university, government, foundation or scholarship programme, a stipend intended to help cover basic daily expenses related to the internship, such as meals and transportation at the duty station, will be paid by UNDP.

The stipend will be paid on a monthly basis and part-time internship arrangements are prorated accordingly.

Where an intern is financially supported by an institution, government or third party, UNDP will, subject to the rules of such institution, government or third party, pay the intern the difference, if any, between the external financial support provided and the applicable UNDP stipend. No other payments of any kind will be made to an intern by the office in connection with an internship agreement.

Interns will accrue leave at the rate of 1.5 days per month. Any accrued leave days not used by the end of the internship will be forfeited. Any unjustified absences during the internship period exceeding a total of nine days, will be deducted from the monthly stipend.

Insurance

Interns are responsible for securing adequate medical insurance for the duration of their internship with UNDP. UNDP will not reimburse the medical insurance of the intern. Any costs arising from accidents and illness incurred during an internship assignment will be the responsibility of the intern. Applicants for internships must show proof of valid medical insurance for the duty station in which they will intern. For applicants who are neither nationals or residents of the duty station, the insurance must include adequate coverage in the event of an injury or illness during the internship duration which:

Requires transportation to the home country or country of residence for further treatment;
Results in death and requires preparation and return of the remains to the home country, or country of residence.

Subsequent Employment

There is no expectation of employment with UNDP following an internship. Interns cannot apply for, or be appointed to, any position during the period of their internship.

Third-party claims

UNDP is not responsible for any claims by any parties where the loss of or damage to their property, death or personal injury was caused by the actions or omission of action by the interns during their internship.

Disclaimer

Important information for US Permanent Residents ('Green Card' holders)

Under US immigration law, acceptance of a staff position with UNDP, an international organization, may have significant implications for US Permanent Residents. UNDP advises applicants for all professional level posts that they must relinquish their US Permanent Resident status and accept a G-4 visa, or have submitted a valid application for US citizenship prior to commencement of employment.

UNDP is not in a position to provide advice or assistance on applying for US citizenship and therefore applicants are advised to seek the advice of competent immigration lawyers regarding any applications.

Applicant information about UNDP rosters

Note: UNDP reserves the right to select one or more candidates from this vacancy announcement. We may also retain applications and consider candidates applying to this post for other similar positions with UNDP at the same grade level and with similar job description, experience and educational requirements.

Non-discrimination

UNDP has a zero-tolerance policy towards sexual exploitation and misconduct, sexual harassment, and abuse of authority. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles.

UNDP is an equal opportunity and inclusive employer that does not discriminate based on race, sex, gender identity, religion, nationality, ethnic origin, sexual orientation, disability, pregnancy, age, language, social origin or other status.

Scam warning

The United Nations does not charge any application, processing, training, interviewing, testing or other fee in connection with the application or recruitment process. Should you receive a solicitation for the payment of a fee, please disregard it. Furthermore, please note that emblems, logos, names and addresses are easily copied and reproduced. Therefore, you are advised to apply particular care when submitting personal information on the web.

Digital Media Intern / Rome Centre for Climate and Energy