ESA Graduate Trainee in Member State, European and International Earth Observation Strategy Analysis

Our team and mission

You will work in the Strategy, Programme and Coordination Office of the Earth Observation Directorate (EOP-C) and will work particularly closely with those colleagues based at ESA Headquarters (the rest being based in ESRIN). This part of the team is responsible for or deeply involved in the following tasks which are relevant to you:

• formulating the Earth Observation strategy and policy based on high level goals provided by the Departments;
• coordinating the identification and the planning of future Earth Observation activities and programmes, including the preparation of programme proposals for Ministerial Council;
• ensuring the Secretariat of the Programme Board on Earth Observation;
• supporting the Director of Earth Observation in the preparation of Council meetings and its delegate bodies and Council meetings at Ministerial level;
• coordinating the Directorate relations with Member States, industry, European partners (e.g., ECMWF, EUMETSAT) and European Union institutions setting up, where appropriate, international partnership schemes for Earth Observation (e.g., with DG RTD);
• coordinating and overseeing cooperation activities for EOP with International partners and space faring nations;
• interfacing as the Directorate focal point for the relevant Agency services for the formulation of corporate documents;
• providing a neutral programmatic expertise on on-going and future activities;
• coordinating with other ESA Directorates for activities of common interest;
• reinforcing collaboration amongst Directorates of ESA and preparing specific coordinated programme proposals as appropriate.

You are encouraged to visit the ESA website: http://www.esa.int

Field(s) of activity/research for the traineeship

As an ESA Graduate Trainee in the Strategy, Programme and Coordination Office of the Earth Observation Programmes Directorate (EOP), you will be working with a small, dynamic team of colleagues supporting several of the functions serving the Directorate on tasks which include:

• monitoring of Earth Observation activities and trends, political developments, and policy-related topics of ESA Member States, European and International partners;
• maintaining a fiche of up-to-date information on all Member States related to their national Earth Observation activities;
• contributing to the preparation of background input and presentation material for engagements of the Director and upper management within EOP;
• supporting the preparation of bilateral meetings with Member States on Earth Observation matters;
• supporting the preparation of EOP bilateral meetings with international partners and meetings in which the Directorate participates in the context of multilateral organisations;
• supporting ad-hoc studies and policy analyses related to Earth Observation in support of the Office’s activities.

Technical competencies

Behavioural competencies

Result Orientation

Operational Efficiency

Fostering Cooperation

Relationship Management

Continuous Improvement

Forward Thinking

For more information, please refer to ESA Core Behavioural Competencies guidebook

Education

You should have just completed, or be in the final year of your master’ s degree in international relations, political science, or associated discipline.

Additional requirements

You should have good interpersonal and communication skills and be able to work in a multicultural environment, both independently and as part of a team. Previous experience of working in international teams can be considered an asset. Your motivation, overall professional perspective and career goals will also be explored during the later stages of the selection process.

You should also have:

• a general knowledge of the space sector players and policies, both at national and international level, including the EU, together with basic understanding of Earth Observation missions and application areas.
• experience in data collection and analysis and the ability to be resourceful in identifying sources and pro-active in proposing new approaches.

Experience in drafting policy papers will be considered an important asset.