Senior Manager, Carbon

Trees for the Future; Washington; On-site; USD 91,000 - 111,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Paid time off

Retirement benefits

Job summary

Trees for the Future in Washington, DC seeks a senior program lead to manage end-to-end development of nature-based carbon projects with smallholder farmers across Africa, aligning with Verra VCS and CCB standards. You will develop SOPs, oversee documentation, manage risk, and coordinate with Programs, MEL, Finance, Legal, and Development teams to scale the carbon portfolio.

Travel up to 25% and option for part-time telecommuting are available; salary is $101,358 annually with a comprehensive

Qualifications

• Master's degree or equivalent in International Development or related field.
• 10+ years experience in environmental restoration and/or sustainable farming planning.
• 5 years engaging with smallholder farmers in Africa to develop sustainable agriculture projects.
• 2 years developing nature-based solutions carbon projects; and
• 2 years end-to-end experience developing a Verra Project Design Document and navigating the Verra project registration process.

Responsibilities

• Lead end-to-end development, validation, and verification of nature-based carbon projects with smallholders across Africa.
• Develop, maintain SOPs, metrics, and risk systems for FPIC, grievance mechanisms, safeguards, and stakeholder engagement.

Skills

Stakeholder engagement

Cross-functional leadership

Program management

Risk management

Education

Master's degree in International Development or related field

10+ years experience in environmental restoration / sustainable farming

Job description

Responsibilities

• Lead the end-to-end development, validation, and verification of nature-based carbon solutions projects with smallholder farmers across Africa, from feasibility studies and technical assessments through validation, verification, and credit issuance for both voluntary and compliance carbon markets, ensuring alignment with Verra Verified Carbon Standard (VCS) and Climate, Community & Biodiversity (CCB) Standards.
• Develop, maintain, and govern Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), metrics, and risk-management systems for Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC), grievance mechanisms, safeguards, and stakeholder engagement.
• Provide oversight and quality assurance for all carbon documentation, methodologies, project design documents (PDDs), monitoring plans, and verification materials, ensuring audit-ready, defensible, and scalable project development.
• Design, institutionalize, and continuously improve carbon implementation standards, translating global requirements into practical field-level guidance and training to ensure consistent, compliant execution across all country programs.
• Monitor and interpret evolving carbon standards, methodologies, and policy frameworks, including updates to Verra, IPCC guidance, and Paris Agreement mechanisms, and proactively integrate changes into organizational strategy and project design.
• Strengthen cross-functional collaboration with Programs, Monitoring Evaluation and Learning (MEL), Finance, Legal, and Development teams to ensure adequate staffing, technical resources, and systems are in place to scale the organizations carbon portfolio.
• Advance systems and tools for future project development, improving workflows, documentation, and data pipelines to enable efficient project replication, due diligence, and investor confidence.
• Advise on MEL system enhancements to streamline data collection, verification, and reporting, ensuring alignment between field data, carbon accounting requirements, and audit expectations.
• Cultivate and manage strategic external partnerships with technical consultants, standard bodies, auditors and investors to support project development, innovation, and long-term growth of the carbon program.
• Prepare and review carbon project materials for marketing, education, and investment due diligence, clearly communicating project integrity, climate impact, and community and biodiversity outcomes.
• Domestic and international travel required up to 25% of the time.
• Part-time telecommuting permitted.

Special Skills

• A Masters degree or the foreign equivalent in International Development or a closely related field, plus 10 years of experience in an environmental restoration and/or sustainable farming planning occupation.
• The required experience in an environmental restoration and/or sustainable farming planning occupation must include the following:
• 5 years of experience engaging with smallholder farmers in Africa to develop sustainable agriculture projects;
• 2 years of experience developing nature-based solutions carbon projects; and
• 2 years of end-to-end experience developing a Verra Project Design Document and navigating the Verra project registration process from pipeline listing through validation and project registration.

Work Environment and What We Offer

• Work location: 200 Massachusetts Ave. NW, 7th Floor, Washington, DC 20001.
• Domestic and international travel required up to 25% of the time.
• Part-time telecommuting permitted.
• TREES is an International Organization that strives to be the best home for staff wanting to make an impact on the farmers we serve. We believe that the diversity of our staff contributes to excellence. TREES values collaboration and teamwork that fosters increase engagement and innovation for professional growth.
• Compensation & Benefits: The salary for this position is $101,358 annually. TREES offers a comprehensive benefits package, including health insurance, paid time off, and retirement benefits.

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