About MSF-USA | Doctors Without Borders
Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) is an international humanitarian organization providing medical care to people affected by conflict, epidemics, disasters, or exclusion from health care in over 70 countries. We were formed in France in 1971 as an association by a group of doctors and journalists to go to emergency situations and to treat patients with dignity while bearing witness independently of geopolitical boundaries. MSF is now a global movement of more than 25 MSF organizations, working in over 70 countries. We cooperate as an international, independent, medical humanitarian association that offers medical assistance to populations in distress, victims of natural or manmade disasters, and civilian victims of armed conflict, without discrimination and irrespective of race, religion, age, gender/sex, national or ethnic origin, color, disability, sexual orientation, genetic information, or political affiliation and provides assistance to the population in distress and intervenes worldwide. MSF staff also “bear witness” by speaking out about our work and what is experienced on the ground, not only to draw the world’s attention to crises, but to stand in solidarity with our patients and colleagues who are experiencing these emergencies firsthand.
We welcome candidates who bring a wide variety of backgrounds and experiences to join us in working toward MSF’s social mission.
Department
The Programs Department at MSF-USA consists of several units that work on both internal and external representation of MSF to the US home society inclusive of units such as the Grants Unit (coordination of Programs Committee of MSF USA’s Board of Directors), the Humanitarian Representation Team (HRT) unit and the Global Health Advocacy and Policy (GHAP) unit, in addition to supporting projects related to the intersectional medical humanitarian space. There is a strategic focus on humanitarian operational representation, humanitarian diplomacy and global health advocacy and policy work as it relates to US based interlocutors and the medical humanitarian space. The Department also hosts many teams and individual roles from around the movement including from Epicentre, the Access Campaign (AC), International Office and others.
The Global Health Advocacy and Policy team (GHAP) sits within the Programs Department at MSF-USA. It is the primary entity responsible for engagement with stakeholders within the United States on global health issues pertinent to MSF’s work, both for MSF-USA and the movement at large. The GHAP team monitors and analyzes policies and practices of US-based global health actors on several dossiers, including access to medicines, antimicrobial resistance, global health governance and financing, sexual and reproductive health, and climate. The GHAP team also engages with civil society organizations, develops public-facing advocacy communications, and collaborates across the MSF movement to advance global health policy objectives.
The GHAP team works closely with the Humanitarian Representation Team (HRT), which is responsible for carrying out humanitarian diplomacy on behalf of MSF’s global operations to ensure that the needs of our patients are understood by the people shaping international and medical policies. The US-based HRT includes the Humanitarian Representatives to the United Nations and the Humanitarian Representative to the United States.
Project
MSF-USA is seeking a Policy and Advocacy Intern, who will support the Global Health Advocacy and Policy (GHAP) Team on various projects. The Policy and Advocacy Intern may also be asked to support projects for the Humanitarian Representation Team.
The Policy and Advocacy Intern should be prepared to help with research projects (some ad hoc and short-term, some more in-depth), legislative and events monitoring, admin support, including contact database management and meeting coordination. Legislative and events monitoring and research will focus on global health topics covered by the GHAP Team dossiers, which include: access to medicines, antimicrobial resistance, global health governance and financing, sexual and reproductive health, and climate and environmental health. The intern will also assist with
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materials development and meeting preparation, such as drafting briefing documents and copyediting.
Current or recent graduate-level students or law students pursuing work in a field related to the GHAP Team’s work, including public policy, law, global health, public health, or international relations, would best suit this position. Candidates with demonstrable interest in and experience with at least one of the GHAP Team dossiers: access to medicines, antimicrobial resistance, global health governance and financing, sexual and reproductive health, or climate and environmental health, would best suit this position.
The term for this position would be Spring 2024 from January – May.
Tasks
• Conduct strategic research and analysis for the GHAP dossiers and global health topics broadly
• Attend and summarize external meetings, events, and legislative hearings on topics relevant to the work of the team (primarily online)
• Assist in the preparation of briefing documents and other information for advocacy and policy engagements
• Monitor and analyze legislative developments and events related to the GHAP dossiers and global health topics broadly
• Oversee contact database entry and management
• Assist with copyediting and proofreading
• Assist with assorted administrative tasks, including, but not limited to, internal communication, SharePoint folder organization, and meeting minutes and coordination
• Other tasks as assigned
Required Skills
• Current or recent graduate-level students or law students pursuing work in a field related to the work of the GHAP Team (health policy, global or public health, international relations, or humanitarian action)
• Demonstrated interest or experience working on at least one GHAP dossier: access to medicines, antimicrobial resistance, global health governance and financing, sexual and reproductive health, and climate and environmental health
• Demonstrated interest in medical humanitarian aid and the mission of MSF
• Demonstrated interest (personal, professional, or academic) in international work
• Familiarity with US global health actors, including policymakers, multilateral organizations, private sector stakeholders, and/or civil society organizations
• Experience with legislative and event monitoring and/or policy analysis
• Strong research and analytic skills
• Excellent attention to detail, strong writing, and proofreading ability
• Initiative and confidence to work independently and ask questions in a fast-paced work environment
• Creativity, curiosity, and willingness to delve into new topic areas to build and share knowledge
• Knowledge of or desire to learn about US politics, the UN system, policy development, international humanitarian actors, and contexts where MSF operates
• Working knowledge of Microsoft Office Suite, including MS Word and Excel
• Experience using a CRM tool is an asset, but not required
We do not accept phone calls or emails during the recruitment process. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted. Applications without a cover letter will be disregarded.
Please note that neither relocation assistance nor visa sponsorship will be offered for this position.
Our staff works a hybrid schedule with the ability to come into either the NYC office or regional spoke (Washington, DC or Oakland, California) a minimum of 2 times a week. The required days are Tuesdays and Wednesdays from January to June and September to December. In office work attendance during July and August is optional.
Your Safety Matters: Vaccination and booster against COVID-19 is a requirement at MSF – USA.
Equal Employment Opportunity and Non-Discrimination
MSF-USA is committed to building a diverse, unbiased, and inclusive workforce. MSF- USA is an equal opportunity employer; we recruit, hire, train, promote, develop, and provide other conditions of employment without regard to a person’s gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, race, religion, age, national origin, disability, marital status, pregnancy status, veteran status, genetic information, or any other differences consistent with applicable laws. This includes providing reasonable accommodation for disabilities, or religious beliefs and practices. Members of communities historically underrepresented in the Humanitarian Aid sector are encouraged to apply.
If you have a disability of some kind and are interested in applying for employment and need special accommodations to use our website to apply for a position, please contact Human Resources by emailing us: employment.msfusa@newyork.msf.org. Reasonable accommodation requests are considered on a case-by-case basis.
Type
HQ
Pay Class & Contract Type
Intern Nonexempt
Compensation
Starting salary $17.00 per hour (commensurate with experience)
Working Time (Hours Per Week)
20