Vacancy for Secretary of the Bonn Agreement & Executive Secretary of the OSPAR Commission
Applications for the post of Secretary to the Bonn Agreement and Executive Secretary of the OSPAR Commission are now open.
Closing date for applications: 4 December 2026
Starting date: 1 September 2027, 3-year appointment (initially)
Location: Secretariat offices, London
Basic salary: Approximately £108 100/year (exempt from UK income tax)
Profile: The person to be appointed should have reached a high educational standard at a university or in a professional qualification, preferably (but not necessarily) in a subject related to environmental sciences, maritime or environmental law, environmental engineering, or environmental management. Work experience in this field at a senior level is essential.
The Executive Secretary is the senior executive official of the OSPAR Commission and heads its Secretariat which is based in London. The role includes the title of Secretary to the Bonn Agreement, a sister organisation supported by the Secretariat. The person appointed should have at least 10 years’ relevant work experience and, ideally, this should include experience of working with, or in, international organisations or similar administrative experience. It would also be desirable for candidates to have background knowledge of, and/or work experience with, the problems of marine environmental protection and pollution-control measures and related international and/or European Union regulation. Experience in working with policy making, for instance within national administrations will also be a strong advantage.
Description of the post:
The Executive Secretary personally, or through the staff of the Secretariat, discharges the following functions. They:
- ensure the Secretariat effectively supports the Contracting Parties in their work in delivering the objectives of the OSPAR Commission and the Bonn Agreement;
- are responsible to the OSPAR Commission and the Bonn Agreement for the day-to-day management of the business, for drawing up budgets and for the control of the income and expenditure;
- act as Executive Secretary at meetings of the Commission and the Bonn Agreement;
- ensure that the Secretariat services all meetings of the subsidiary bodies and perform any other tasks that are entrusted to them by the Commission/Bonn Agreement or by its Chairs;
- support and manage the Secretariat staff in accordance with recognised good practice, ensuring that workloads are reasonable and shared fairly across the team and that activities are focused on the priorities of the OSPAR Commission /Bonn Agreement.
The Executive Secretary is expected to contribute to policy formulation through the preparation of documents setting out options for consideration by the Commission/Bonn Agreement and/or by their subsidiary bodies.
The post requires regular overseas travel and the working of long and irregular hours.
Interviews will be held in person in London.
Applicants’ data will be handled in line with the OSPAR Privacy Policy, https://www.ospar.org/privacy
Instructions for Applicants