Consultant – Digital Storytelling for Sahel Collaboration and Communications – Remote

BACKGROUND

Mercy Corps has been present in Niger since 2005, focusing on improving food security, livelihoods, gender, social cohesion, governance and emergency response outcomes. Mercy Corps has also been working in Burkina Faso since 2016 with activities in conflict research and livestock programming. Our work in these areas contributes to local communities’ resilience to shocks and stresses and enables them to achieve long-term, inclusive and equitable development. Mercy Corps’ vision for change requires the private sector, government and civil society to work together to create meaningful and sustainable change.

The Sahel Collaboration and Communication (SCC) project led by Mercy Corps focuses on resilience, learning, and adaptive management, exemplifying USAID’s collective impact in the Sahel. SCC enables USAID’s implementing partners, civil society, government partners, and research institutions to jointly understand and prioritize development actions and continuously adjust them based on real-time results.

SCC is looking to procure the services of an experienced and skilled Digital Storytelling Consultant to develop, provide quality control over and/or oversee final edits of communications products that tell a unified story of USAID’s collective impact and expertise on resilience–emerging out of research activities, knowledge sharing, and peer learning events being coordinated by SCC and other communications and media outreach. The Digital Storytelling Consultant will help the SCC team (which includes a 6-member communications team from partner Equal Access International comprised of local journalists and communicators in Niger and Burkina Faso) produce high-quality communications products that meet USAID’s graphic standards and content requirements.

The Digital Storytelling Consultant will work remotely to help SCC finalize: compelling photo libraries with captions and keywords; short high-impact videos with subtitling, voice-over, soundscapes and editing; and other high-quality communications products (online newsletters, blogs, animations, interactive slidedecks, infographics, etc) that tell a cohesive story and help partners, donors and other stakeholders to showcase and understand the results emerging from USAID resilience programming.

SCC is seeking the services of a versatile Digital Storytelling Consultant who can provide quality control and final edits over content developed by others to produce creative, engaging, high-quality and fit-for-purpose audiovisual products (videos, photos, blogs, etc) or new content in French and English to support the communication and media activities being conducted by SCC.

CONSULTANT ACTIVITIES

The SCC is looking for a remote skilled Digital Storytelling Consultant to develop and/or provide quality control and final edits for a variety of communication products including but not limited to:

• Support the SCC team to strategically document key themes and tell compelling digital stories that showcase promising resilience practices and resilience programming knowledge guided by proactive collaboration, adaptation and collective learning to achieve results. Ensure these stories are data-driven and promote community and local practitioner assets, voices and perspectives in line with Mercy Corps’ core values around Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.
• Develop (or review and edit) draft photo and video briefs and/or storyboards to ensure there is a clear compelling storyline and appropriate content, framing and transitions before filming/photography.
• Provide quality control over SCC photo libraries with captions and keywords to ensure the photos selected meet norms for thematic content, framing/composition, color correction, resolution, sharpness, etc, and that the captions are appropriate.
• Provide quality control over short high-impact (<5 minute) videos with subtitling, voice-over, soundscapes, transitions and marking. (Samples, visual marking suite content and video bumpers will be provided.) Help edit and finalize videos produced by other SCC personnel, working with these staff to address comments from reviewers.
• Provide quality control over communications products (like online newsletters via MailChimp, blogs or postings for Facebook, etc) produced by other SCC personnel, working with these staff to improve the messaging and layout to tell a compelling story and address potential comments.
• Develop creative, innovative, high-impact digital communications (animations, interactive slidedecks, infographics, etc) to showcase promising resilience practices and resilience knowledge to make SCC communication products more accessible and engaging.
• Track status of each digital communication product in process until finalized for dissemination (including review/approval by key SCC staff and partners as appropriate).
• Provide capacity building training-of-trainer sessions for SCC communications staff on producing creative, engaging, high-quality and fit-for-purpose audiovisual products (videos, photos, blogs, animations, etc); provide technical support to the Equal Access International communications team on training workshop content for other USAID partner communications staff.

CONSULTANT ESTIMATED DELIVERABLES

• Support production/finalization of at least 6 high impact videos
• Support finalization of one blog, posting or article per month over the course of the consultancy (6 total)
• Produce high-impact digital communications such as animations, slidedecks, infographics, etc (5 total)
• Support publication of one newsletter every 3 months (2 total)
• Ensure SCC photo library includes captions and keywords
• Training-of-trainer sessions provided for staff over 5 working days

TIMEFRAME / SCHEDULE

This consultancy is for approximately 40 days between December 2022 and June 2023 (with possibility of extension).

ACCOUNTABILITY

The Digital Storytelling Consultant will report to the Chief of Party. The consultant will work with various members of SCC (specifically, the team of Equal Access International and knowledge management staff or consultants) as deemed necessary.

REQUIRED EXPERIENCE & SKILLS

The Digital Storytelling Consultant must have excellent English and French skills with an eye for engaging multiple stakeholders in creative and dynamic ways. The preferred consultant should be able to demonstrate an understanding of development issues and how these can be communicated to tell complex stories taking place in complex contexts. Knowledge of the Sahel and USAID communications and marking would be an added advantage. The successful consultant should have experience in crafting and overseeing communications and media products using a professional suite of software. The desired consultant should also have a willingness to engage in creative ways, framing complex communications in ways that are easy to understand and meet quality standards.

Interested consultants must have the following qualifications:

1. 5-10 years of experience in a relevant technical field
2. Proven experience in digital communications (photography, video/film, animation/blogs/virtual newsletters/presentations) with an eye to design and language that engages the audience; experience with USAID marking and communication requirements a plus
3. Willingness to work in a fast-paced environment with tight deadlines
4. Excellent written and spoken English and French skills
5. Able to work on various deliverables between November 2022-May 2023 (with possibility of extension)
6. Available to work for approximately 40 days over 6 months (6-7 days per month)

APPLICATION

Interested consultants are requested to submit:

1. A cover letter outlining relevant experience, suitability and planned inputs (equipment, materials and software) for this role. Please include your proposed daily rate with justification based on past rates for similar work.
2. A detailed CV with at least 3 traceable references.

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
Achieving our mission begins with how we build our team and work together. Through our commitment to enriching our organization with people of different origins, beliefs, backgrounds, and ways of thinking, we are better able to leverage the collective power of our teams and solve the world’s most complex challenges. We strive for a culture of trust and respect, where everyone contributes their perspectives and authentic selves, reaches their potential as individuals and teams, and collaborates to do the best work of their lives.

We recognize that diversity and inclusion is a journey, and we are committed to learning, listening, and evolving to become more diverse, equitable and inclusive than we are today.

Equal Employment Opportunity
We are committed to providing an environment of respect and psychological safety where equal employment opportunities are available to all. We do not engage in or tolerate discrimination on the basis of race, color, gender identity, gender expression, religion, age, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin, disability (including HIV/AIDS status), marital status, military veteran status or any other protected group in the locations where we work.

Safeguarding & Ethics
Mercy Corps is committed to ensuring that all individuals we come into contact with through our work, whether team members, community members, program participants or others, are treated with respect and dignity. We are committed to the core principles regarding prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse laid out by the UN Secretary General and IASC and have signed on to theInteragency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme. We will not tolerate child abuse, sexual exploitation, abuse, or harassment by or of our team members. As part of our commitment to a safe and inclusive work environment, team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner, respect local laws and customs, and to adhere toMercy Corps Code of Conduct Policies and values at all times.