About CIVICUS
CIVICUS exists to defend people power. As a growing global alliance of over 15,000 members in 189 countries, we work together to monitor violations of basic civic freedoms, call out the perpetrators of violations and strengthen the power of people to organise by supporting a more accountable, effective and innovative civil society. We strive to promote excluded voices, especially from the Global South.
Job Title: Research and Communications Officer
Cluster: Research
Salary: USD 36,692.07 per annum,
(excluding benefits)
Contract Type:12 Months (Renewable), subject to the successful completion of probation and funding availability
Location: Remote (the successful candidate must have the right to work in the location where
they are based)
Reports to: Head of Research and Analysis
Role of Overview
The Research and Communications Officer provides research and communications support to the CIVICUS Lens initiative and the State of Civil Society Report. In the research capacity, the officer conducts, transcribes and edits interviews with civil society sources and performs desk research to gather and verify information. In the communications capacity, they lead the design and implementation of media and social media strategies, which includes pitching op-eds to journalists and tracking the editorial flow of all research products.
The role is responsible for producing visual content such as infographics and social media kits, maintaining the publications database, monitoring social media performance and organising webinars and launch events. Additionally, the officer manages the production and distribution of multilingual content by coordinating directly with designers, translators and editors.
Responsibilities
Communications:
• Support the development and coordination of research dissemination and follow-up activities.
• Design and implement media and social media strategies for individual reports.
• Organise webinars, press conferences and launch events.
• Pitch op eds, reports and other research outputs to media outlets and
journalists.
• Prepare press releases and communications to our membership and other
target audiences.
• Track the editorial flow of research and media products.
• Support the creation of messages for media and social media.
• Maintain publications database.
• Design social media templates for articles and interviews.
• Produce visual content (infographics, maps, etc.) for articles and reports.
• Prepare social media kits (posters, gifs, weekly recaps, etc.), draft posts and
schedule publications.
• Monitor performance of our social media publications.
• Support the design, production and distribution of newsletters. Job Description
• Track the editorial flow of research and media products.
• Upload articles and interviews to CIVICUS Lens platform.
• Review translations, as needed.
Research:-
• Identify and liaise with potential contributors; conduct, transcribe and edit
interviews and organise other forms of consultation with CIVICUS members,
partners and allies.
• Gather and verify information through online searches.
• Maintain research notes on relevant issues.
Coordination:-
• Coordinate with the Communications team on matters related to research
dissemination and social media content.
• Liaise with designers on layout, visual materials, and publication formatting for
research outputs.
• Liaise with translators and editors for multilingual content production.
• Cultivate relationships with media outlets and journalists covering civil society
and related issues.
Other:-
• Demonstrate CIVICUS values and principles in all their professional
relationships and any interactions that may reflect on CIVICUS.
• May be required to carry out other duties within the scope of the job.
Qualification and Experience knowledge Skills
Education, Language & Qualifications
• Bachelor’s degree in communications, journalism, political science,
international relations or development studies.
• Proficiency in English.
• Competence in French and/or Spanish (intermediate level).
Essential Knowledge,
skills and Experience
• Minimum 3-year relevant experience.
• Familiarity with key international civil society networks and inter-governmental
institutions.
• Understanding of the global media landscape.
• Understanding of social media platform dynamics.
• Excellent written and oral communications skills.
• Experience with social media messaging and distribution.
• Ability to translate complex issues into accessible pitches and to develop
messaging that resonates with target audiences.
• Basic design skills (Canva, Piktochart).
• Interpersonal skills: inclination and ability to work as part of a diverse,
multicultural virtual team.
• Behavioural skills: well-organised, able to work independently and to deliver under pressure and within deadlines, with high attention to detail
Desirable Knowledge,
skills and Experience
• Further specialisation in civil society and human rights issues.
• Advanced design skills.
• Video-making skills.
• Experience in editing and translation.
• Experience doing media outreach.
• Experience with social media publication platforms such as Hootsuite.
Application Dealine 23rd February 2026 at 11:59pm SAST.
METHOD of Application
Interested candidates should click here to
Your application should comprise of:
- A full CV, including educational and professional qualifications, a full employment history showing the more significant positions, responsibilities held, and relevant achievements.
- A covering note of not more than one page outlining your motivation for applying for the role.
Short listed candidates will be contacted 2 weeks after the closing date to schedule interviews.
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