Paid Fall Middle East Policy & Advocacy Internship with Mercy Corps

Position description
DATES OF INTERNSHIP: September -December 2019
LENGTH OF INTERNSHIP: 3-4 months at 30 hours/week
INTERNS SUPERVISOR & CONTACT INFORMATION: Policy Advisor
FUNDING AVAILABLE FOR THE INTERNSHIP: $1500/month stipend

For the duration of this internship assignment the intern will receive:

• Access to Mercy Corps online tools
• Workspace within the Mercy Corp office in Washington, DC
• Training and supervisory support
• Access to Mercy Corps online tools
• All other tools, materials and communication requirements for this project to be undertaken

Intern will remain responsible for all costs associated with:

• Travel to/from Mercy Corps Office
• Lodging in Washington DC
• Living expenses
• Laptop computer
• All other costs associated with this internship

PROJECT DESCRIPTION:
Mercy Corps works in fragile and conflict-affected countries, often where communities are recovering from disaster, conflict, or economic collapse. With programs in more than 40 countries, and an annual budget of more than $400 million, Mercy Corps is one of the largest relief and development NGOs in the US.

The Mercy Corps Policy and Advocacy team serves as the main interface between Mercy Corps and external partners (particularly the US government) on issues of policy. The team seeks to advance Mercy Corps’ values and interests by promoting policies that support our mission. We work to inform and shape policy in a number of ways, including:

• Congressional Advocacy: direct meetings with key congressional offices, participation in briefings and hearings, review and commenting on draft legislation, active participation in discussions related to the foreign aid budget, and linking Members of Congress who are travelling with our teams in the field.
• Administration Advocacy: meetings with Administration officials, ongoing communication with key partner agencies in the USG, participation in joint consultations and briefings together with partner NGOs in DC.
• Joint work with NGO partners: active participation in Interaction working groups and other coalition efforts organized in DC on priority issues or countries for Mercy Corps, drafting of joint documents, organizing joint lobby days on Capitol Hill.
• Organizing DC visits for visiting Mercy Corps field staff: scheduling meetings for visiting staff and accompanying them to ensure adequate preparation and follow up to these visits.
• Publications: preparing and disseminating policy briefs on key issues, circulating information on Mercy Corps programs to key policy makers, participating in joint documents and sign-ons with other NGOs, working with field staff to draft joint articles on policy-related issues for publication.

The intern(s) will support and participate in the work of the Policy and Advocacy team, with a primary focus on the Middle East. Areas of focus may include:

• Response to humanitarian crises in Syria, Iraq, Palestine (West Bank/Gaza) and Yemen.
• Support the team’s strategic analysis and advance agency priorities on the Middle East with Congress and the Administration
• Improving a robust and principled humanitarian response to the various crises in the Middle East
• Defending foreign aid budgets in an era of fiscal austerity
• Research on Middle East priorities or other policy team or agency issues

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

• Understanding the linkage between international policy, programming and outcomes in the humanitarian and development field, with a focus on the Middle East.
• Understanding core elements of the US policy process, including the roles of Congress, USAID, State, and the White House in development policy-making
• Knowledge of key qualitative and quantitative resources related to US development policy
• Understanding specific policy issues, as listed above, or according to the interests of the intern

DELIVERABLES:
The Intern will support the PA team through the following activities:

• Conduct policy and practice research in support of Mercy Corps advocacy initiatives
• Assist in drafting advocacy documents such as reports, briefing notes, talking points, ‘Dear Colleague’ letters, or factsheets on relevant policy issues
• Attend meetings and hearings of interest to Mercy Corps and report back on key issues
• Assist in organizing meetings with Congressional offices, Administration officials, and other contacts, and in maintaining a database of key interactions
• Review external and internal reports and publications and summarize relevant findings
• Assist in communicating policy and advocacy updates to the broader Mercy Corps community through Mercy Corps’ intranet system, weekly newsletter, and website

Apply on the Mercy Corps page on Jobvite.