Location: Globally remote, preferably based in a Global Majority countryLocation Type: RemoteReporting To: Co-Executive DirectorsContract Type: Permanent, full-timeAnnual Salary: USD 80,000, with potential cost-of-living adjustments of up to 20% depending on locationCandidate Level: Director Background The Youth Climate Justice Fund (YCJF) supports youth-led socio-environmental and climate justice movements worldwide through participatory grant making and movement-centred capacity strengthening. Publicly launched in September 2023, YCJF is led by a global team of young professionals from diverse backgrounds and currently supports a community of 115 grantee partners across more than 50 countries. YCJF’s work focuses on building trust, shifting power, and bridging gaps between funders and youth leaders at the forefront of climate justice movements. The Fund operates with a strong commitment to equity, care, and youth leadership, grounding its work in participatory approaches and deep movement alignment. Purpose of the Role The Director of Programs plays a senior strategic and connective leadership role within YCJF. They steward the organisation’s programmatic vision, ensuring coherence, boldness, and responsiveness across participatory grant making and capacity strengthening initiatives. Positioned at the intersection of strategy, learning, and movement alignment, the role connects field insights, program implementation, and long-term vision to advance YCJF’s mission of resourcing youth-led climate justice movements. As a member of the Senior Leadership Team, the Director of Programs contributes to organisational strategy, supports a culture of reflection and collective care, and ensures programs are both visionary and operationally sound. The role supports two core program areas: Participatory grant making, grounded in shared decision-making with youth advisors and movement leaders globally, and trust-based funding for locally rooted, regional, and cross-movement initiatives. Capacity strengthening, providing tailored accompaniment, coaching, and in-person convenings to support youth leadership and organisational sustainability. This role is particularly suited to someone with experience working closely with youth movements who is ready to collaborate as a peer with youth leaders globally. Primary Responsibilities Strategic Program Leadership Steward coherence and alignment across YCJF’s grant making and capacity strengthening programs Support program teams with strategic guidance, reflection, and balance between agility and focus Act as a thought partner to the Co-Executive Directors and governance bodies, providing foresight on emerging opportunities, risks, and ecosystem shifts Strengthen YCJF’s articulation of its programmatic vision to donors, partners, and movements Contribute to an organisational culture rooted in shared leadership, experimentation, and care Support to Core Programs Provide accompaniment and strategic support to grants and capacity strengthening teams Ensure participatory processes and daily implementation remain aligned with YCJF’s values and long-term strategy Support grant renewal decisions that are values-driven and responsive to evolving contexts Accompany a portfolio of strategic regional and international grantee partners Ensure learning from grantee engagement and capacity work is documented and integrated into organisational strategy Promote ethical, partner-centred use of data, technology, and storytelling Cross-Movement and Sectoral Engagement Maintain close relationships with youth movements and allies across climate, feminist, Indigenous, and social justice spaces Identify trends, needs, and opportunities emerging from the field to inform strategy Represent YCJF externally in aligned spaces and contribute to sector-wide dialogue Support thought leadership that amplifies youth-led insights and challenges extractive funding norms Governance and Long-Term Strategy Collaborate with the Co-Executive Directors and governance bodies on long-term program strategy Provide clarity and structure in governance discussions related to program design and impact Ensure accountability to youth leadership, equity, and care-centred principles Contribute to the ongoing evolution of YCJF’s participatory grant making model Learning, Reflection, and Alignment Partner with the Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) team to embed learning across programs Champion collective reflection and adaptive learning practices Balance evidence-based decision-making with lived experience and community knowledge Ensure program strategies remain living documents that evolve with context and feedback Foster a culture of reflection, wellbeing, and continuous improvement Candidate Profile Essential Experience and Skills Minimum of 7 years’ experience in program leadership, grant making, or capacity strengthening Demonstrated ability to connect program implementation to long-term strategic vision Strong project and timeline management skills with attention to detail Experience supporting teams through accompaniment rather than directive leadership Deep understanding of participatory governance, youth-led initiatives, and cross-movement organising Commitment to climate justice, equity, and Global Majority leadership Excellent facilitation, communication, and strategic thinking skills Desirable Experience Experience with intermediary funds, fiscal sponsors, or youth-led funds Familiarity with feminist, Indigenous, LGBTQ2S+, and frontline movement spaces Lived experience or strong connection to Global Majority or frontline communities Comfort engaging with boards, committees, and governance structures Terms and Benefits YCJF offers competitive and equitable compensation, flexible working arrangements, and meaningful opportunities to shape a growing organisation. Benefits include: Four weeks of annual leave plus a two-week organisation-wide end-of-year break All locally recognised public holidays Cost-of-living adjustments and remote work allowances Comprehensive health, vision, and dental insurance for staff and dependents Life insurance, bereavement leave, and wellbeing-focused policies Applications must be submitted through the official process. Questions may be directed to mcara@upsallinternational.com. Applications will not be accepted via email. VISIT OFFICIAL WEBSITE TO APPLY For more opportunities such as these please follow us on Facebook, Instagram , WhatsApp, Twitter, LinkedIn and Telegram Disclaimer: Global South Opportunities (GSO) is not the seeking organization. For any inquiries, please contact the responsible organization directly. Please do not send your applications to GSO, as we are unable to process them. Due to the high volume of emails we receive daily, we may not be able to respond to all inquiries. 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