Senior / Principal Consultant

Earth Active is a growing, dynamic consulting firm working extensively to support lenders, investors and developers, particularly those financing and delivering projects in emerging markets and challenging operating environments.

Founded by a group of entrepreneurial and highly experienced environmental and social advisors, we help our clients translate complex environmental, social and biodiversity risks into clear, commercially relevant advice, enabling projects around the globe to align with international E&S standards and safeguards and make confident, bankable decisions.

We do this through provision of three key services

• E&S strategy, systems, and capacity building
• E&S assessments, due diligence, and monitoring
• E&S communications.

We are supported by a network of renowned associate experts across biodiversity, human rights and climate change.

Backed by private equity, we tackle complex environmental and social challenges, helping clients unlock finance, strengthen project resilience and deliver more responsible outcomes for nature and people.

Join us in shaping major development projects around the world.

We take a pragmatic, proportionate approach, using finance to drive meaningful environmental and social impact through commercially relevant advice grounded in real project experience.

Our team values open feedback, champions career growth, and cultivates an inclusive, flexible culture where success is recognised, celebrated, and shared.

The role and responsibilities

To support our continued growth, we are looking for a suitably qualified Senior / Principal Consultant to join our ESIA/ESDD team.

You will deliver high-quality ESIA and ESDD projects, helping lenders, investors and developers understand, manage and mitigate complex environmental and social risks, while supporting business development, mentoring colleagues and the continued growth of this specialist service area.

The ideal candidate will have experience managing complex E&S risks and opportunities at the interface of clients, projects and finance, translating technical issues into practical advice that supports informed investment and project decisions.

Experience of negotiation from both the lender and developer perspective will be considered.

Project Management

• Take ownership of our projects, managing project teams, timelines and deliverables ensuring successful project execution and exceeding client expectations, notably;
• Provide robust management of international projects for various sectors, working either directly for lenders, or on behalf of developers to address environmental and social risks associated with project finance in line with international standards and lender expectations.
• Contribute to the management and delivery of Earth Active’s wider portfolio of E&S projects.
• Successfully project manage large scale projects on behalf of the business.
• Leads project planning and scoping by outlining full projects/activities and resources required, e. g., time, people, and skills.
• Contribute to projects by demonstrating excellent commercial discipline to ensure the project commercially delivers against the business plan.
• Liaise closely with key client stakeholders to facilitate the delivery of set project outcomes.

Projects

• Provide a market-leading role in supporting our clients in developing comprehensive E&S reports, management system, disclosures, strategies, or other technical deliverables that enable confident decision-making and facilitate access to finance.
• Work closely with senior and executive stakeholders to align E&S considerations with business objectives and industry best practices.
• Promote collaboration across technical disciplines to deliver complex projects with cohesive and holistic solutions.
• Play a key role in delivering high quality, pragmatic advice and commercially relevant advice, and solutions to environmental problems.
• Understand individual project task requirements, including time allocated, delivery timeframe and scope expectations.
• Support other teams in delivering high quality work for our client base.

Business Development

• Drive business growth by identifying and pursuing new business opportunities, building strong client relationships, and contributing to the development of proposals and presentations.
• Contribute to and manage the successful delivery of proposals and wider business development.
• Support Earth Active’s growth and development plans, strengthening relationships with lenders, investors and developers, and gain experience in the commercial aspects of environmental consultancy.
• Support with identifying opportunities for growing the Business, notably supporting the development of account management plans.

Stakeholder Engagement

• Develop and execute stakeholder engagement strategies, working closely with clients to foster meaningful relationships and enhance their reputation for transparency, responsible practices and effective environmental and social risk management.
• Support the business with effectively managing senior stakeholder management.
• Provide strategic leadership and guidance to clients, helping them develop and implement comprehensive E&S strategies aligned with their business objectives, project financing requirements and international environmental and social standards.
• Provide strategic direction to the team by understanding and making clear connections with other workstreams and broader goals of the project and team.

The successful candidate will have

• Bachelor’s degree in Environmental science, Sustainability, Geography, Economics or equivalent relevant degree
• 7 or more years of experience in the E&S industry, with a significant portion of that experience in a consulting or in-house environment
• Deep knowledge of international environmental and social standards, lender requirements and E&S frameworks and a comprehensive understanding of E&S reporting standards and methodologies
• High level of understanding and delivery in complex programs and projects
• Proven track record in leading and delivering complex projects including strategy development, risk assessment, stakeholder engagement and management planning.
• Exceptional consulting skills with the ability to engage and influence senior stakeholders, translate technical environmental and social risks into practical, commercially relevant advice.
• Strong business development acumen, with a demonstrated ability to identify and pursue new business opportunities, build client relationships, and contribute to proposal development and presentations
• Excellent analytical and problem-solving abilities, with a strategic mindset and the capacity to analyse complex data, metrics, and trends to provide actionable insights and recommendations
• Contribute to managing teams
• Contributes to business development, including identifying work opportunities in existing client relationships, developing compelling and winning proposals and pitch documents
• Ability to work collaboratively with clients and multi-disciplinary teams to help shape and deliver the best solution
• What do we offer
• The opportunity to work on major development and infrastructure projects in regions where impact truly matters
• A chance to use finance pragmatically to unlock real-world environmental and social progress for communities and the planet.
• Fast-track career development opportunities, including early responsibility, exposure to complex work and an annual training budget that actively supports professional development and technical excellence
• Ongoing learning and skill development, supported by diverse projects, mentoring training, professional qualifications and access to an international network.
• The opportunity to work with internationally recognized clients on complex, engaging, and career-defining assignments.
• A culture that recognises, celebrates, and shares individual and team achievements.
• A supportive, fast-paced environment that prioritises open feedback, flexibility, and psychological safety.
• The chance to grow alongside a team that is expanding its capability, expertise, and global reach, strengthening how we work together.
• You will embody our core values by staying curious, outcomes-driven, approachable, collaborative and highly adaptable.
• You will play a key role in contributing to our success by embracing and promoting these values in your work.
• 25 days holiday plus bank holidays, with an additional 3 days’ leave during the Christmas shutdown period.
• Annual discretionary bonuses as well as spot bonuses which are awarded throughout the year to recognise and reward exceptional employee contributions
• 1 month paid sabbatical for employees with four or more years of service
• Enhanced sick leave and compassionate leave allowances
• Flexible working arrangements including homeworking, working from abroad and Flexible Fridays, allowing staff to finish work at lunchtime on a Friday for a well-deserved long weekend
• Support with one relevant professional membership per year by covering the annual membership fees
• A medical cash plan that allows staff to recover expenses for a variety of medical costs. This also provides access to virtual GPs and other health care benefits and discounts
• An annual training budget of £1,000 to support the continuous growth and development of our employees
• Workplace nursery scheme providing employees with reduced tax and national insurance payments on nursery costs
• 16 hours of timeout per year allowing you the time to reset

Our goal is to be a diverse workforce that is representative, at all job levels, of the clients and communities we serve globally.

We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, colour, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, non-disqualifying physical or mental disability, national origin, or any other basis covered by law.

All employment is decided on the basis of qualifications, merit, and business need.

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