Intern (Deep Tech and Innovation) - Singapore - United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)

Description

LOCATION:

Singapore, SINGAPORE


TYPE OF CONTRACT:

Internship


STARTING DATE:

15-Mar-2024


APPLICATION DEADLINE:

26-Feb-24 (Midnight New York, USA)


POST LEVEL:

Intern


DURATION OF INITIAL CONTRACT:

6 months


TIME LEFT:

14d 8h 50m


LANGUAGES REQUIRED:

English


EXPECTED DURATION OF ASSIGNMENT:

6 months


Background:

UNDP works in about 170 countries and territories, helping to achieve the eradication of poverty, and the reduction of inequalities and exclusion.

We help countries to develop policies, leadership skills, partnering abilities, institutional capabilities and build resilience in order to sustain development results.

UNDP is working to strengthen new frameworks for development, disaster risk reduction and climate change. We support countries' efforts to achieve the new Sustainable Development Goals, which will guide global development priorities through 2030.

The key 2030 Agenda principle of leaving no one behind and stamping out inequality is at the core of everything we do.

UNDP focuses on helping countries build and share solutions in three main areas:

• Sustainable development
• Democratic governance and peacebuilding
• Climate and disaster resilience

In all our activities, we encourage the protection of human rights and the empowerment of women, minorities and the poorest and most vulnerable.

INTERNSHIP OFFICE BACKGROUND:

The UNDP Global Centre for Technology, Innovation and Sustainable Development (GC-TISD) aims to identify, co-create, and share innovative and technological solutions for sustainable development.

We aim to catalyse new insights, partnerships and action in the countries where UNDP works.


Our areas of focus are:
Sustainability and Climate Resilience, Smart Cities and Urbanisation, Digital Inclusion, Digital Sustainable Finance, Deep Tech and Innovations.

The GC-TISD leverages Singapore's deep expertise, solutions, knowledge, and ecosystem of Government and private sector partners, as well as knowledge from experts and partners around the globe, and across UNDPs Global Policy Network.

More specifically, the GC-TISD connects policymakers, practitioners, think tanks, business, and other relevant stakeholders to each other from across the globe for learning and sharing of best practices on the themes of technology, innovation, and partnerships for sustainable development.

The GC-TISD is a joint initiative of the Singapore Government and UNDP, currently being led by a small team that is focused on programme and partnership development.

Our Singapore Government partners are the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment, the Public Service Division, the Ministry of Communications and Information, the Infocomm Media Development Authority, the Monetary Authority of Singapore, and the National Research Foundation.

The UNDP GC-TISD was setup in 2018 and is currently in the middle of its next iteration - to run between 2022 and 2025.

We collaborate with governments worldwide through the following:
-
Agile Policy Development Support: Supporting governments in defining the policies and regulations needed for the digital and innovation economy and providing guidance and methodologies to assist governments on agile policymaking.
-
Research and Thought Leadership: Providing research, analysis, and insights on emerging technologies, including integrating the experiences of UNDP Country Offices with foresight and horizon-scanning
-
Partnership and Global Ecosystem Building: Catalysing global and national digital and innovation ecosystems that are committed to digital inclusion and fostering collaborations with different players in the digital inclusion space
-
Knowledge Exchange and Capacity Building: Collecting local intelligence and grassroots innovations, and ensuring that lower-income countries are equal participants in global discussions and explorations of digital inclusion


Duties and Responsibilities:

Deep tech refers to the most cutting-edge and often disruptive technologies that are built on profound scientific discoveries, engineering innovations, or advancements in research areas.

These technologies have the potential to radically transform industries, reshape economies, and profoundly impact lives.

At the UNDP Global Centre, one of our focuses is on harnessing the transformative power of deep tech as strategic solutions in addressing critical global challenges—from climate change and resource scarcity to energy transition, especially in the context of developing countries.

Our work at the Global Centre extends to conducting in-depth research and analysis on the latest trends in deep tech and the world's most cutting-edge innovations.

Our approach goes beyond conventional development solutions, exploring how deep tech could offer groundbreaking and sustainable answers to the most pressing challenges in the world.

Our commitment involves providing policy-oriented recommen