Senior Conference Advocate & Strategic Advisor

Part-Time, Hourly Contractor

Program: Affordable Nutrition Coalition (2026 Pilot)

Reports to: Coalition Director (Taylor Quinn)

The Senior Conference Advocate & Strategic Advisor will combine high-trust conference representation and relationship-building with targeted strategic advisory support to advance the Coalition’s 2026 strategy: pairing rigorous, mainstream-ready evidence with trusted messengers in the rooms where food system funding and policy decisions are shaped.

The Advisor will work alongside the Coalition’s cohort of organizations, providing technical and strategic guidance within their area of expertise.

• Ramp-up: August–early September 2026
• Primary execution: September–November 2026, with an emphasis on the fall international conference season
• Reevaluation date: November 30, 2026

• Attend selected priority international conferences and convenings on behalf of the Coalition; international travel is expected.
• Represent Coalition perspectives credibly in international development, food security, food systems, and smallholder agriculture settings.
• Build and maintain trust-based relationships with decision-makers across multilateral agencies, development banks, large NGOs, and foundations.
• Identify and pursue side meetings, informal briefings, and follow-up conversations during and after events.
• Capture practical insights from conferences—including what resonated, what pushback emerged, and who was influential—to inform Coalition learning and future engagement.

• Review and/or draft conference-specific talking points, meeting briefs, audience-specific advocacy tools, and preparation materials for Coalition advocates and coalition organizations.
• Participate in the development of the Affordable Nutrition Toolkit
  , including reusable templates, talking-point cheat sheets, Q&A tools, nutrient snapshots, and related materials.
• Advise on engagement strategies and framing for mainstream development and food system audiences, informed by field experience and sector credibility.
• Provide feedback on Coalition translation outputs—including briefs, one-pagers, and Q&A tools—to strengthen clarity, rigor, and audience fit.
• Participate in targeted preparation and debrief calls related to conferences and high-leverage stakeholder meetings.

During travel and conference periods:

Hours will vary depending on preparation requirements, conference schedules, and follow-up needs.

When not traveling:

Approximately 0–5 hours per week of strategic engagement, flexing with the conference cycle.

The role will focus on lightweight, practical deliverables, including:

• Participation in selected priority conferences and completion of agreed follow-up actions in coordination with the Coalition Director.
• A simple running record of key contacts, meetings, and next steps.
• Brief post-event debrief notes capturing key takeaways and recommended next moves.
• Reviewed, edited, or drafted messaging and talking points for upcoming conferences and stakeholder engagements.

• Hourly rate: Competitive compensation based on the candidate’s home geography.
• Billing: Hourly, invoiced on an agreed cadence (e.g., monthly), with travel-related work, conference time, and advisory hours itemized.

Significant professional experience in international development, food security, food systems, and/or smallholder agriculture.

Proven experience credibly representing organizations at major international conferences, forums, and convenings.

Demonstrated ability to build trusted relationships…