Consultancy to lead communications, digital visibility and engagement for the WIO LMMA Alliance

Consultancy to lead communications, digital visibility and engagement for the WIO LMMA Alliance

IUCN is seeking a consultant to lead communications, digital visibility and engagement for the WIO LMMA Alliance. This is a consultancy position covering the Western Indian Ocean (WIO) region, including Kenya, Tanzania, Madagascar, Comoros and Mozambique.

Objective of the Consultancy

The main objective of this consultancy is to establish a strong, coherent and community-centred communications function for the WIO LMMA Alliance that increases the Alliance’s visibility, strengthens engagement with coastal communities, partners and donors, and provides a professional digital presence and practical communications systems for the Alliance.

The consultancy will establish the Alliance’s communications strategy and editorial approach, strengthen its visual identity, develop and launch its website, support content and storytelling, manage LinkedIn and other agreed social-media channels, and provide day-to-day communications coordination. The Communications Lead will act as the main communications focal point for the WIO LMMA Alliance, working closely with the Regional Coastal and Ocean Governance Manager, the IUCN Communications Team and the ReSea Project Communications Team. The Communications Lead will coordinate the Graphic Designer and Website Developer and ensure overall coherence and alignment of communications activities across the Alliance, IUCN and ReSea.

Background

Project Reference: P04216 Donor reference: DR04216.69

About IUCN

IUCN is a membership Union uniquely composed of both government and civil society organisations. It provides public, private and non-governmental organisations with the knowledge and tools that enable human progress, economic development and nature conservation to take place together.

Created in 1948, IUCN is now the world’s largest and most diverse environmental network, harnessing the knowledge, resources and reach of more than 1,400 Member organisations and around 15,000 experts. It is a leading provider of conservation data, assessments and analysis. Its broad membership enables IUCN to fill the role of incubator and trusted repository of best practices, tools and international standards.

IUCN provides a neutral space in which diverse stakeholders including governments, NGOs, scientists, businesses, local communities, indigenous peoples organisations and others can work together to forge and implement solutions to environmental challenges and achieve sustainable development.

Working with many partners and supporters, IUCN implements a large and diverse portfolio of conservation projects worldwide. Combining the latest science with the traditional knowledge of local communities, these projects work to reverse habitat loss, restore ecosystems and improve people’s well-being.

About the Project

In September 2024, the first Western Indian Ocean (WIO) Locally Managed Marine Area (LMMA) Forum was held in Mahajanga, Madagascar, bringing together more than 200 participants from nine countries. The Forum resulted in the adoption of the WIO LMMA Declaration and a strong collective call to establish a regional LMMA Alliance. The WIO LMMA Alliance was subsequently officially launched at the Our Ocean Conference (OOC), with a Steering Committee composed of community leaders from across Africa providing leadership and guidance to the Alliance. The Alliance is designed to ensure that coastal communities and LMMA practitioners have a stronger collective voice in national, regional and global processes and that community leadership remains at the centre of regional LMMA development.

The WIO LMMA Alliance aims to address key regional challenges, including the absence of a shared understanding of LMMAs, uneven development across countries, and limited representation of LMMA communities in national, regional and global platforms. It also seeks to promote gender equity and inclusivity in LMMA management, strengthen local leadership and facilitate greater access to knowledge, technical support and financing for community-led marine conservation. The Alliance builds on existing networks and initiatives in the region, avoiding duplication of efforts and working as an umbrella platform to foster collaboration, learning and collective action. It also draws on Madagascar's leadership and lessons learned from MIHARI, the largest LMMA network in Africa, to support the sharing and replication of successful community-led approaches across the region. The broader vision is to contribute to the establishment of a Pan-African LMMA Alliance, with the WIO serving as a starting point and regional learning space.

In support of the establishment of the Alliance, Mission Inclusion (Mi) and International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) implement the Regenerative Seascapes for People, Climate and Nature (ReSea) project in partnership with local feminist organizations in Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, Madagascar and Comoros. The project is funded by Global Affairs Canada (GAC) as part of the Partnering for Climate initiative. Its broader goal is to enhance the physical and socioeconomic resilience of coastal communities in these five countries by accelerating uptake of nature-based solutions and gender-responsive conservation practices to protect, restore, and sustainably manage marine and coastal ecosystems and unlock a regenerative blue economy. The ReSea project contributes to the Western Indian Ocean-led Great Blue Wall (GBW) initiative by supporting the establishment of a network of sustainable, resilient, and inclusive seascapes in the target countries through a people-centric approach.

The GBW initiative is built around four key pillars that align with the Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) and the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement. Pillar 1: Blue Planet focuses on scaling and improving the management and governance of protected and conserved marine areas, with a strong emphasis on equity, gender-responsiveness, and local stewardship—supporting countries to achieve Target 3 of the GBF. Pillar 2: Blue Nature aims to restore and conserve critical ecosystems through gender-responsive Nature-based Solutions (NbS), aligned with GBF Target 2, and guided by the IUCN Global Standard for NbS. Pillar 3: Blue People promotes a regenerative and inclusive Blue Economy by empowering local communities, especially women and youth, in nature-based value chains for climate adaptation, aligned with GBF Target 9. Pillar 4: Blue Partnerships is a cross-cutting pillar focusing on strengthening connectivity at all levels and across different dimensions, including social, ecological, institutional, local, national, regional, international and cross-sectoral connectivity.

Within this broader context, the WIO LMMA Alliance contributes to the Great Blue Wall's ambition for transformative and inclusive ocean governance by strengthening community-led marine governance and supporting the development, recognition and expansion of LMMAs across the region. The overall WIO LMMA Alliance initiative aims to drive transformative change through a functional and inclusive Alliance, increased numbers of LMMAs under effective and sustainable management, legal recognition of LMMAs, financial and technical self-sufficiency including mechanisms for direct access to funding, strengthened local leadership, research and knowledge generation, and stronger LMMA visibility and voice.

Following its establishment and official launch, the Alliance is now entering an important phase of consolidation and growth. Its regional role, community leadership and growing portfolio of activities require a stronger and more coherent public presence to ensure that the Alliance is visible, understood and effectively represented across the WIO and beyond. There is therefore a need to strengthen the Alliance's communications strategy, visual identity, digital presence, storytelling and engagement across social media and other platforms. A dedicated communications team is required to support this process, working closely with the Alliance Steering Committee and IUCN, as well as the IUCN Communications Team and ReSea Communications Team, while ensuring that communications remain community-led, accurate, inclusive, ethical and practical to sustain over time.

Description of the Assignment

The consultant/team will be expected to:

1. Develop and implement the WIO LMMA Alliance communications and visibility strategy

Review existing Alliance communications materials, channels, visual assets and audiences and identify priority gaps, opportunities and communication needs.

Develop a practical communications and visibility plan covering priority audiences, positioning, key messages, storytelling themes, channels, formats, editorial planning and responsibilities.

Develop and maintain a practical content and editorial calendar and establish clear workflows for content development, review, approval and publication.

Advise the Alliance and IUCN focal point on communications opportunities, risks, messaging and visibility around major announcements, partnerships, campaigns and milestones.

Identify opportunities to strengthen the Alliance's positioning and visibility at regional, African and global levels.

2. Lead content development, storytelling and social-media engagement

Develop, edit and coordinate high-quality blogs, stories, news items, social-media content, member and community spotlights, announcements and other public-facing communications.

Create regular content for the Alliance's social-media platforms, including LinkedIn and other agreed channels, and manage content scheduling, publishing and community engagement.

Develop community-centred storytelling that allows LMMA communities and leaders to present their own experiences, priorities, achievements and solutions.

Apply informed consent, safeguarding, attribution and data-protection principles when collecting and publishing stories, photographs, quotations and personal information.

Monitor social-media performance and provide practical recommendations to strengthen reach, engagement and audience growth.

3. Lead communications for key WIO LMMA Alliance events and activities

Prepare and coordinate the communications materials required for major WIO LMMA Alliance events, meetings, campaigns and other key activities taking place during the consultancy period.

Develop event-specific communication plans and materials, including announcements, invitations, social-media content, visual materials, speaker and participant communications, event coverage, stories and post-event communications, as relevant.

Coordinate with the Alliance Steering Committee, IUCN, ReSea and relevant partners to ensure timely and consistent communications before, during and after major events.

Identify opportunities to maximise the visibility of the Alliance and its community leaders through regional and international events and platforms.

4. Strengthen the Alliance's visual identity and communication materials

Review and, where appropriate, refine the existing Alliance visual identity while maintaining its community-led character and alignment with applicable IUCN requirements.

Develop practical visual guidance and editable templates for social-media posts, presentations, reports, factsheets, announcements, events and other priority communication products.

Design infographics, campaign assets, event materials and other visual products identified in the communications plan.

Ensure consistency and quality across the Alliance's communication materials and public-facing products.

5. Design, develop and establish the WIO LMMA Alliance website

Define the website structure, sitemap, navigation, priority user journeys and content requirements in consultation with IUCN and the WIO LMMA Alliance.

Develop, edit and organise the content required for the website, including Alliance information, stories, member and community profiles, resources, publications, news and other relevant content.

Design and develop a functional, accessible and mobile-responsive website using an appropriate content management system.

Migrate and organise agreed existing content and ensure that the website is coherent with the Alliance's communications strategy and visual identity.

Establish the necessary website administration, including hosting, domain, user access, security, analytics, maintenance and other relevant administrative arrangements, and ensure that these are clearly documented and transferred to the Alliance/IUCN.

Provide administrator training, documentation, credentials and full handover of editable/source files and technical materials.

6. Coordinate the communications team, provide strategic support and ensure sustainability

The Communications Lead will act as the main communications focal point and will coordinate closely with the Regional Coastal and Ocean Governance Manager, the WIO LMMA Alliance Steering Committee, the IUCN Communications Team, the ReSea Project Communications Team and relevant IUCN colleagues.

Coordinate the work of the Graphic Designer and Website Developer, ensure consistency across outputs, manage the communications workplan and provide quality assurance.

Provide day-to-day strategic communications support to the Alliance and advise on messaging, opportunities and visibility.

Establish practical systems for content planning, approval, publication, archiving, partner contributions and handover so that the Alliance can maintain its communications beyond the consultancy.

Track basic website and social-media performance and provide concise recommendations to improve visibility, reach and engagement.

Develop a practical communications handover package, including the updated communications plan, content calendar, channel guidance, templates, analytics summary, recommendations and editable/source files.

Ensure that the systems, platforms and products developed are realistic and practical for the Alliance to maintain after the consultancy.

Duration of the Assignment

The assignment is expected to be completed over approximately three months, starting on 21 September 2026 and ending on 30 November 2026, including time for coordination, stakeholder feedback, testing and finalization of deliverables.

Deliverables - Activities - Deadline

Deliverable 1 - Deadline: 21 September 2026

Deliverable 1: Inception, Communications Strategy and Immediate Content Activation, including a rapid communications audit, audience and stakeholder mapping, Alliance positioning and key messages, communications objectives, priority channels, storytelling approach, editorial workflow, practical implementation plan and immediate launch of content production.

Activity 1A: Review existing WIO LMMA Alliance communications materials, visual assets, website/social channels, existing photographs and video footage, relevant project documents and current communication needs.

Activity 1B: Map priority audiences, including LMMA communities and leaders, partners, governments, donors/funders, researchers, media and other strategic audiences, and identify priority visibility opportunities.

Activity 1C: Develop and validate the communications and visibility strategy, positioning, key messages, content approach, editorial workflow, responsibilities and initial implementation calendar with IUCN and the WIO LMMA Alliance.

Activity 1D: Begin immediate content production and publication, including initial social-media posts, stories, blogs and other priority communications based on existing Alliance materials, activities and available content.

Activity 1E: Identify and initiate interviews with WIO LMMA Alliance Steering Committee members and begin developing community-led stories and other content for publication during the consultancy period.

Deliverable 2 - Deadline: 30 September 2026

Deliverable 2: Alliance Visibility and Communications Toolkit and COP 12 Communications Package, including the refined visual identity, complete set of practical editable templates and the communications package required for Nairobi COP 12 in early October.

Activity 2A: Review and refine the Alliance visual identity, including practical guidance on visual consistency and use while maintaining its community-led character and alignment with applicable IUCN requirements.

Activity 2B: Develop and deliver the core editable communication templates required by the Alliance, including PowerPoint presentations, reports, factsheets, one-pagers, social-media formats, event announcements, invitations, banners and other priority materials.

Activity 2C: Prepare a launch-ready communications package for the Alliance’s participation at Nairobi COP 12 in early October, including key messages, event visuals, social-media content, stories, announcements and other materials required before and during the event.

Activity 2D: Produce and publish an initial package of blogs, stories, social-media content, Steering Committee interviews and visual/video content, using existing Alliance materials, photographs and video footage.

Deliverable 3 - Deadline: 31 October 2026

Deliverable 3: Ongoing Alliance Visibility, Storytelling and Digital Engagement Package, establishing and maintaining a strong communications rhythm and increasing the visibility of the Alliance and its community leadership.

Activity 3A: Produce and publish regular content for the Alliance’s social-media platforms, including LinkedIn and other agreed channels, with content scheduling, publishing, community engagement and basic performance monitoring.

Activity 3B: Produce at least one substantive blog or story per week during the consultancy period, covering Alliance developments, LMMAs, community leadership, achievements, lessons and relevant regional issues.

Activity 3C: Conduct interviews with WIO LMMA Alliance Steering Committee members and other relevant community leaders and partners, and transform these into written, visual and/or video stories.

Activity 3D: Use existing photographs and video footage to produce engaging stories, short-form videos and other digital content that showcase LMMAs, community leadership, achievements, lessons and the Alliance’s work.

Activity 3E: Transform selected Alliance and project documents into clear, attractive and audience-appropriate communication products for donors, funders and strategic partners, including briefs, one-pagers, impact stories, presentations and other fundraising and visibility materials.

Activity 3F: Maintain an active communications workflow and editorial calendar, ensuring content continues to be produced and published.

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