Communications Officer

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) works worldwide to protect and assist people affected by conflict and violence and to promote the laws that protect victims of war. A neutral, independent and impartial humanitarian organization, the ICRC is based in Switzerland. It employs 17,000 people in 100 countries and is financed mainly by voluntary contributions from governments and national Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.

The ICRC's Regional Delegation for the Pacific is seeking a Communication Officer, based in Canberra. The role develops and implements innovative communication products, activities and events in line with the priorities of the Regional Delegation and consistent with the ICRC's communications policies.

The Communication Officer:

Overseas the communication and related strategies, plans of action, monitoring, reporting and related tasks of the ICRC's Regional Delegation for the Pacific. The Communication Officer is specifically responsible for communication activities in Australia and New Zealand.

Implements relevant activities and develops tools for: operational communication, community engagement, promoting international humanitarian law (IHL), building National Red Cross / Red Crescent Society communication capacity, public and digital communication, networking and engagement, information analysis / environment scanning, public affairs and resource mobilization.

Identifies, conceptualizes, creates, and coordinates content collection and produces communication materials (web editorial, audio-visual, social media posts, photo galleries, videos, web casts) and drafts and pitches content to media (news releases, blog pieces and articles).

Organizes events (panels, workshops, etc) and exhibitions, promoting the ICRC, key contexts and themes, assists other ICRC staff with communication and promotional aspects of their events, and develops marketing products for the Delegation, including exhibitions, banners, posters and brochures.

Supports communication-related training and coaching for the Regional Delegation staff, including representatives of departments other than Communications.

Maintains and improves networks of relationships related to matters of interest to the ICRC, including by disseminating information relating to ICRC mandate / activities and matters of institutional priority to a variety of audiences; participating in external meetings, briefings, conferences and events.

Ensures an understanding of media and perceptions of issues of interest to the ICRC (being local, regional or global) and follows political, security, military and humanitarian developments, as well as other issues relevant to the ICRC\'s reputation / perception and capacity to operate in the region.

Skills and qualifications

• University degree or equivalent in a relevant field such as communications, political science, international relations or journalism.
• Minimum 3 years' work experience in a field relevant to communication and / or prevention.
• Strong understanding of the ICRC's work and the seven Fundamental Principles of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement.
• Strong interest in international humanitarian affairs (knowledge and understanding of international humanitarian law and the Red Cross / Red Crescent Movement will be considered assets).
• Sound knowledge of the political, social and media environment in the Pacific: work experience or other knowledge of New Zealand and / or Pacific nations are assets.
• Proven ability to develop and implement communication strategies, work with media and communications professionals and experience in online communications and / or audio-visual production (including familiarity with photo and video editing) are assets.
• Excellent writing, communication, presentation, networking, organizational and computer skills, including familiarity with digital communication tools.

Conditions

The position is full-time (100%), open-ended contract, based in Canberra.

The salary is AUD105'000 plus 12% super. The post is eligible for salary sacrificing. The ICRC offers an additional monthly contribution to private health insurance.

Applicants must be entitled to lawfully reside and work in Australia and must be available to travel.

How to apply

To apply, a letter of motivation and a CV with at least two referees should be sent electronically to canberra@icrc.org.

The deadline for applications is Friday 19th September 2025 midnight (AEST). Only those selected for an interview will be contacted.