Operations Associate

We are seeking a highly organized and proactive Operations Associate to join our team. This position will play a key role in ensuring YCJF's day-to-day operations run smoothly, strengthening the systems and processes that support our global team and partners, in alignment with our values of collaboration, care, and equity.

About the Youth Climate Justice Fund (YCJF) 

The Youth Climate Justice Fund (YCJF) supports youth-led socio-environmental and climate justice movements worldwide through participatory grant-making and capacity strengthening to build trust and bridge gaps between funders and young leaders. The YCJF was publicly launched in September 2023 and is led by a global team of young professionals from diverse backgrounds. We support a community of 120 grantee partners in 50+ countries globally.

Why work with us

At the Youth Climate Justice Fund, you'll join a deeply values-driven, global, and fully remote team committed to redistributing resources to youth-led climate justice movements. We work collaboratively, at the speed of trust, and with care at the center of how we operate, prioritizing learning, transparency, well-being, and shared leadership. Our culture is grounded in mutual support, humility, and joy. We strive to create space for personal growth, creativity, and reflection.

YCJF is composed of Indigenous women, people with disabilities, and people of color, with 90% of its members from the Global South, reflecting the communities and contexts we exist to serve. Our broader community, including staff, Regional Committees, and our Governing Body, spans 21 countries, with 77% from Global Majority regions. We are a gender-diverse organization, with over 75% of our members identifying as women or gender-diverse people, and we continue to build an ecosystem that centers lived experience, intersectional justice, and meaningful representation at every level of our work.

Purpose of role

The Operations Associate will play a key role in keeping YCJF's day-to-day operations running smoothly, ensuring that the systems, processes, and administrative support behind our work are efficient, reliable, and well-coordinated. Working across a global team and a growing network of partners, the Operations Associate will help create an operational environment where colleagues can focus on advancing YCJF's mission, knowing that essential processes are well managed.

Working closely with the Director of Operations and the Manager, Finance & Operations, the Associate will coordinate essential operational functions, including invoicing and payments, contracting, systems administration, and event logistics. The role will serve as an important point of contact for staff, consultants, vendors, and external partners, ensuring that administrative processes are timely, well organized, and responsive to the needs of the team.

The Associate will also contribute to strengthening YCJF's operational infrastructure by maintaining accurate records, improving workflows, and identifying opportunities to make everyday processes simpler and more effective. We are looking for someone who is highly organized, detail-oriented, proactive, and genuinely enjoys making things work better. Beyond managing administrative tasks, this person will bring a service-oriented and collaborative mindset, anticipating needs, solving problems, and helping colleagues navigate operational processes with ease. They will play an important role in building the dependable, thoughtful, and adaptable operational foundations that enable YCJF and its partners to thrive.

Primary responsibilities
The job holder will have the following key responsibilities: 

1. Invoicing and Payment Coordination
Coordinate YCJF’s day-to-day accounts payable processes and ensure that vendors, consultants, and other service providers are paid accurately and on time.

• Serve as the primary focal point for invoices and vendor payments across YCJF.

• Receive, review, organize, and process invoices, ensuring appropriate documentation and internal approvals are in place.

• Coordinate with the Finance and Operations manager to ensure payments are processed within agreed timelines.

• Maintain clear communication with consultants, vendors, and internal colleagues regarding payment status, missing documentation, or required follow-up.

• Track outstanding invoices and payments and proactively follow up to prevent delays.

• Support Managers in ensuring consultants and service providers engaged by YCJF are paid according to their contractual terms.

• Maintain organized and up-to-date payment documentation and records within YCJF’s financial and operational systems.

• Support reconciliation and organization of YCJF credit card transactions and related documentation.

• Assist the Finance team with compiling financial information or documentation required for reporting, audits, or internal review.
   

2. Contracting
Coordinate YCJF’s contracting processes and ensure contracts and related documentation are complete, accurate, and easily accessible.

• Prepare and coordinate contracts, agreements, and amendments for consultants, staff, governance members, vendors, and other service providers using YCJF-approved templates and processes.

• Coordinate contract review, approval, signature, and execution with relevant YCJF colleagues and fiscal sponsor partners.

• Ensure required documentation is collected before contracts are finalized or payments are processed.

• Track contract timelines, renewals, amendments, payment schedules, and end dates, proactively prompting relevant colleagues when action is required.

• Maintain an organized central repository of executed contracts and supporting documentation.

• Ensure contracts and related operational records are consistently named, filed, and easily retrievable.

• Support the Operations team in improving contracting templates, workflows, trackers, and documentation practices.

• Liaise with YCJF’s fiscal sponsor and other external partners on routine contracting and administrative matters.
   

3. Systems
Support the effective management of YCJF’s operational systems, tools, subscriptions, and organizational records.

• Maintain an overview of YCJF’s operational platforms, software subscriptions, licenses, and service providers.

• Coordinate renewals, user access, subscriptions, and routine platform administration.

• Support onboarding and offboarding by coordinating access to relevant systems, platforms, shared drives, and communication tools.

• Ensure operational information, records, and documentation are kept accurate, organized, and up to date across YCJF’s systems.

• Maintain clear information-management practices so that key organizational records are easy to locate and retrieve.

• Support the administration and maintenance of operational tools such as Monday.com, Google Workspace, financial platforms, HR systems, and other organizational systems.

• Track upcoming renewals, subscriptions, contracts, and operational deadlines and ensure relevant colleagues are notified in advance.

• Identify duplicate, outdated, or inefficient systems and flag opportunities to simplify or improve YCJF’s operational infrastructure.

• Support implementation of new systems and operational tools when required.
   

4. Events
Support the planning and delivery of YCJF’s internal and external events, retreats, convenings, and meetings.

• Coordinate event logistics including venues, accommodation, catering, transportation, vendors, participant information, and other operational requirements.

• Support travel arrangements and logistics for staff and participants where required.

• Maintain event trackers, timelines, budgets, vendor information, and logistical documentation.

• Liaise with venues, travel providers, consultants, and other vendors before and during events.

• Support preparation of participant information, schedules, logistical briefs, and operational communications.

• Assist with onsite coordination and troubleshooting during YCJF events when required.

• Support post-event administrative processes including vendor payments, documentation, reconciliation, and record keeping.

Profile
The following offers an aspirational view of our ideal candidate profile; however, we encourage applications from candidates with a wide range of experiences and backgrounds, especially those from underrepresented groups. 

Essential

• At least 2 years of experience in operations, administration, finance coordination, project support, or a related field.

• Demonstrated experience coordinating administrative processes, including invoice processing, payments, contracting, record keeping, or vendor management.

• Strong organizational skills and attention to detail, with the ability to manage multiple tasks, track deadlines, maintain accurate records, and ensure timely follow-through.

• Experience working with digital tools and organizational systems, with the ability to learn new platforms quickly and maintain well-organized information and documentation.

• Strong interpersonal and communication skills, with the ability to coordinate effectively with colleagues, consultants, vendors, and external partners across different contexts.

• A proactive, solutions-oriented approach to work, with the ability to anticipate administrative needs, identify gaps, troubleshoot issues, and improve everyday processes.

• Ability to work independently, exercise sound judgment, handle confidential information responsibly, and know when to seek guidance or escalate matters.

• Commitment to climate justice, youth leadership, and values of equity, care, accountability, and inclusion.

Desirable

• Experience working in youth-led, grassroots, international, non-profit, or other values-driven organizations.

• Experience supporting finance and administrative processes, including accounts payable, expense reconciliation, financial documentation, or audit preparation.

• Familiarity with contracting workflows, vendor coordination, and working with fiscal sponsors or other external administrative partners.

• Experience administering organizational platforms such as Google Workspace, Monday.com, financial management systems, HR platforms, or similar tools.

• Experience supporting the logistical coordination of events, retreats, convenings, or international travel.

• Experience working with globally distributed, multicultural teams across different countries and time zones.

• Lived experience in and/or close connection to communities and movements advancing social, environmental, or climate justice.

Reporting and Team Structure

The Operations Associate reports to the Director of Operations and works closely with the Manager, Finance & Operations, the wider Operations team, and colleagues across YCJF. The Associate supports the day-to-day coordination of invoicing, payments, contracting, systems administration, and event logistics, serving as a key point of contact for routine operational matters. The role also liaises with fiscal sponsors, vendors, consultants, and other external partners to ensure that operational processes are timely, accurate, and well-coordinated, while escalating matters requiring financial approval, strategic direction, or management decisions to the appropriate colleagues.

Benefits

We offer competitive compensation aligned with our values of equity and global parity, meaningful opportunities to shape an evolving organization, and the ability to work autonomously while contributing to an ambitious mission. YCJF provides four weeks of annual leave, an additional two-week organization-wide end-of-year break, all locally recognized public holidays, cost-of-living adjustments, and flexible working arrangements, including allowances for remote-work costs.
Our benefits package includes comprehensive health insurance (medical, vision, and dental) with coverage for dependents, life insurance, bereavement leave, and policies designed to support staff wellbeing and the emotional realities of climate justice work.

--

Location:  Remote – with flexibility across time zones Preferably based in a Global Majority country
Location type:   Remote
Reporting to:     Director of Operations
Annual salary:   $45,000 USD, including benefits, with potential
                            cost-of-living adjustments of up to 20%
Contract type:    One-year – renewable subject to funding
Working hours:   Full-time
Candidate level:  Experienced non-manager


To apply for the role

To apply for this role, please submit here a copy of your CV/resume and a cover letter outlining your interest in the role and how you fulfil the requirements set out in the job announcement. Please ensure you send your CV and Cover letter in the following format: full_name_CV_org_name_role and full_name_role_CL.

Please note: to ensure the security of your application and to ensure that your data complies with GDPR regulations, applications via email will not be accepted.

*The deadline for applications is Monday 30th of November, 9:00 am CET.