Advocacy Coordinator

The Advocacy Coordinator will be responsible for engaging with community members to understand and document all violations of civil, political, economic and social rights through designing and organizing both legal and para-legal interventions that seek to provide redress, compensation, and justice for victims and survivors and accountability for perpetrators. This includes expanding and optimizing existing case management systems to focus on legal representation and aid as well as public and private advocacy to seek redress. The Advocacy Coordinator will also be responsible for institutionalizing and expanding a robust and specialized referral system for many current and emerging needs of LGBTIQ+ individuals in Lebanon accompanied by monitoring, complaints, and accountability mechanisms.

The Advocacy Coordinator will be part of a team responsible for building partnerships and connections with multiple human rights, humanitarian, and development actors to increase detection and monitoring activities and to expand the network of partners that Helem is building to provide comprehensive and inclusive service provision.  Their tasks also include informing and contributing to regular human rights violations reports including Helem’s annual LGBTIQ+ Rights Violations Report and conduct comparative analysis for multiple partners in Lebanon and internationally.

Following Helem’s guidelines and protocols, the Advocacy Coordinator will assist their department in managing cases and implementing projects and programs that serve the needs of the LGBTIQ+ community. We are looking for team players with a lot of energy, dedication, initiative, and meticulous attention to detail.

Tasks:

1. Manage Helem’s protection and case advocacy program and connect violations documentation, legal aid, referral, and paralegal advocacy pathways as solutions to applicants.
2. Build and expand a comprehensive local and regional matrix for safe, sustainable, and reliable LGBTIQ+ inclusive service provision across development, humanitarian and crisis response frameworks.
3. Negotiate and increase number of partner institutions and networks and connect them to Helem’s capacity building and training programming when needed and according to matrix parameters.
4. Expand and adapt existing Helem case management and protection protocols for individuals seeking redress, compensation or access to justice and collaborate with existing human rights violations documentation to assess and process cases.
5. Build case profiles and ensure there are engagement, follow-up and accountability mechanisms active for both Helem and other partners in the matrix for each case.
6. Connect applicants with matrix partners for service provision when needed and ensure follow-up and optimal service is provided through expert assistance, advocacy, and/or problem solving when needed.
7. Co-create and expand Helem’s legal aid and representation process with adherence to all Helem policies and SOPs and with mechanisms to measure and demonstrate impact.
8. Connect applicants with Helem’s legal representatives in cases where legal action is needed, required or optimal to solve problems related to LGBTIQ+ rights violations.
9. Provide expert advice and analysis in support of all cases requiring legal aid or representation within Helem.
10. Curate and engage with individuals, institutions, or collectives responsible for any LGBTIQ+ rights abuses, discrimination, and/or exclusion in cases where legal pathways are not advisable or possible.
11. Liaise with Helem’s Executive Director and/or Communications Department for cases where external or public engagement is necessary to secure access to justice with consent of applicants.
12. Support mechanisms for easier and more accurate reporting of violations from multiple stakeholders including streamlining processes, building relationships and partnerships with organizations, and increasing documentation coverage through community and programming interventions.
13. Contribute to Helem’s reporting that uses HRVD data including annual violations reports, special data reporting for international and local UN agencies, and assisting in data gathering for special study projects.
14. Provide expert analysis and reporting on cases and represent Helem in multiple human rights and humanitarian forums and taking part in regular deliberations.
15. Maintain the highest standards of respect, confidentiality, and professionalism when engaging and working with community members following Helem’s AAP manual and other policies and protocols.
16. Participate and support other department and organization wide programs and initiatives when and if needed.
17. Carry out general administrative, reporting and other general duties.

Education and work experience:

1. A Master’s degree and/or more than 3 years of experience in the fields of social work, gender studies, human rights law, and/or advocacy.
2. Experience in advocating and pushing for change and accountability with a wide variety of actors and individuals.
3. Knowledge of LGBTIQ+ issues in Lebanon and the MENA region with emphasis on connections to development, humanitarian, crisis response, and human rights frameworks.
4. Prior work experience with LGBTIQ+ and other marginalized communities in an advocacy, legal, or service provision setting.
5. Prior experience working on emergency intervention or crisis response strongly preferred.
6. Strong verbal and written communications skills in both English and Arabic (French preferred).
7. Meticulous attention to detail and prior experience working with data harvesting, input, and analysis strongly preferred.
8. Strong management and organization skills and the ability to meet deadlines and adjust for contingencies.
9. High levels of initiative to build and expand their department and increase successful cases.
10. Strong computer literacy requires in MS Office.