Background to the role

Helping people, animals and the planet by delivering supportive public policy for plant-based foods, cultivated meat and fermentation in the EU

The Good Food Institute Europe (GFI Europe) is at the forefront of the movement to transform meat production in order to solve some of the world’s biggest problems, from climate change and global hunger to antibiotic resistance and animal suffering.

We work with scientists, businesses and policymakers to make plant-based and cultivated meat (grown directly from cells) delicious, affordable and accessible. Please check out the rest of our website, our 2023 Year in Review and our 2023 Europe Highlights blog post to find out more about who we are and what we do.

We are looking for an enthusiastic individual to join as Policy Manager (maternity cover). This is a fixed-term 9-10 month contract starting ideally in mid-October 2024, on a part-time basis of 15-22 hours per week.

How you will make a difference

Your role will have high responsibility and high impact. You will significantly influence how quickly Europe and the world moves to a more ethical and sustainable food system. 

Reporting to our Deputy Head of Policy, you will be responsible for influencing the EU institutions to increase public investment in research and innovation of alternative proteins.

To achieve this, you will:

• Lead our policy work on influencing Horizon Europe and the EU’s next research framework programme (‘FP10’).
• Draft and share Research & Innovation (R&I) priorities with relevant officials in the Directorate General for Research and Innovation (DG RTD), as well as other relevant EU directorates and institutions. 
• Build and maintain relationships with elected officials and civil servants at the European Parliament, the European Commission, the Council of the EU, and other public institutions.
• Lead meetings and organise workshops with policymakers and scientists to inform future EU R&I policy.
• Collaborate with other nonprofit organisations, scientists, companies, and other R&I stakeholders. 
• Closely monitor and stay abreast of EU R&I policy and legislative developments, as well as positions from other stakeholders, spotting opportunities and pre-empting threats. 
• Collaborate with colleagues from our Science & Technology team to develop and disseminate priority asks for alternative protein research.
• Collaborate with colleagues from our communications team to write blog posts and work with the media and use social media to help deliver our R&I policy objectives.
• Perform other tasks as required.

Who we’re looking for

You must have:

• A passion for GFI’s philosophy and mission and enthusiasm for driving policy change at EU level.
• Experience working on policy in the EU, or at a national or multilateral level, for example in a government, public institution, political party, NGO, think tank, industry association, public affairs agency, consulting firm, lobbying organisation or other relevant institution.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Excellent networking, interpersonal, influencing, and relationship-building abilities, and the confidence and persuasiveness to represent GFI to officials and politicians. 
• Strong team spirit and open and collaborative instincts, having the ability to work well with colleagues and stakeholders across multiple cultures.
• A can-do approach: a self-starter with the drive and initiative to take responsibility for delivering impact and an ability to see projects through to completion.
• Comfort working remotely in a rapidly-growing organisation: the ability to work well independently, set priorities, work on multiple projects simultaneously, and meet deadlines. 
• Affinity with our commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion, and with maintaining our welcoming and supportive culture.
• Comfort using various software tools and platforms in a remote workplace, and a willingness to learn new systems. Training and support in Google Workspace, Salesforce and Asana will be provided. 
• Fluency in English, both written and spoken.

It would be an advantage to have some or all of the following attributes, but none of them are prerequisites, and we very much welcome applications from candidates without any or all of them:

• Up-to-date knowledge about relevant EU research funding policies, including Horizon Europe, the Food 2030 initiative, or FP10 (‘Framework Programme 10’), the EU’s next research funding framework.
• Experience working on policy questions related to research, innovation, biotechnology, food or agriculture. 
• Proven ability organising workshops  between policymakers and academics.
• A demonstrated ability to work effectively with scientists, research organisations, and think tanks.
• The ability to speak European languages other than English.

We want the best people and we know that building a diverse, inclusive workplace leads to stronger, happier, more productive and resilient teams. We strongly encourage people of every ethnicity, orientation, age, gender, origin, socio-economic background, and ability to apply. Because we value a diverse workplace, we prioritise an inclusive culture absent of discrimination and harassment during the application process and after you join the team.

Benefits and the fine print

• Terms of employment: Part-time 15-22 hours / week; Fixed term (until mid-August, 2025, with an ideal starting date mid-October, 2024).
• Location:  Home-based in Brussels or in Belgium within one hour of Brussels by train, from our Brussels office, or a combination of both. The GFI Europe team will get together in person approximately twice per year for around 3-5 days at a time. Travel costs will be covered by GFI Europe within our travel policy.
• Salary: Full time range (to be pro-rated) is €3,834 – €4,260 gross monthly salary plus benefits including 13th month, home-working allowance, holiday pay, representation allowance, meal vouchers, eco vouchers, public transport and professional development allocation. Salary and benefits would be pro-rated to the number of hours worked per week and period worked. 
• Right to work requirements: The successful candidate must, by the start of the employment, have permission to work in Belgium.
• Application Deadline: 17 September, 11.59pm CEST. We will get back to all candidates after that date, no matter the outcome of their application. You should expect to hear back from us within about a week of the deadline.

Application process

Round	Timeline	Description	Expected Time Commitment
Application	Deadline: 17 September	Fill in the application form. You will have to respond to a filter question, upload your resume and optionally share work samples. Once you’ve submitted the form, you will receive a confirmation email.	0.5 – 1 hour
Interview (we’ll aim to conduct one round of interviews, but might decide to conduct a second round if needed)	End of September	Interviews will be conducted remotely on Zoom. As preparation, we will also send you a written assignment beforehand, which we will further discuss during the interview.   We know that interviews can be especially stressful for candidates. We’ve put together this guide so that you know exactly what to expect from our process and, hopefully, have a more relaxed experience.	2.5 hours – 1.5 hour interview plus 1 hour estimated preparation

We want you to have every opportunity to shine and show us your talents – we are happy to make all the reasonable adjustments that we possibly can to make sure the assessment process works for you. Email us at europe-hiring@gfi.org.

Any questions?

If you have any questions about this role, please do reach out to us at europe-hiring@gfi.org. If you’ve read this far but decided not to apply, please share this job description with someone else in your network who you think might be a good fit for the role! Thank you.