RFP-Lead Author(s)-Mountain Publication

Hiring of Lead Author/(s) (Individual Consultant) for a publication-Elevating Mountain Voices: The Case for DRI in Mountains (working title)

Background and context

The Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI) is a multi-stakeholder global partnership of national governments, UN agencies and programmes, multilateral development banks and financing mechanisms, the private sector, and academic and knowledge institutions. It aims to address the challenges of building resilience into infrastructure systems and the development associated with it. The vision, mission, goal, and objectives of CDRI are explicitly linked to the post-2015 development agendas. The Coalition will also contribute to the resilience of the global infrastructure systems in an increasingly interconnected world.

Mountain Resilience Programme

CDRI is developing a Mountain Resilience Programme to support resilient and people-centric infrastructure systems, including community and critical (power; telecom; transport – including roads, bridges, tunnels, ropeways, helipads, etc; health; water) infrastructure in mountain regions. The programme will cover mountain regions in Asia, Latin America, Europe and Africa. This programme will:

• Advocate for infrastructure resilience to safeguard lives, livelihoods and nature within the mountain ecosystem. 
• Provide an international platform focussed on DRI for climate adaptation in mountain geographies.
• Spearhead global and regional collaborations for robust risk information, knowledge sharing, capacity building and innovation, to address shared climate and disaster risks. 

With the aim of developing a comprehensive programme based on country needs assessment and collaboration, over the last year, CDRI has consulted diverse stakeholders including Member Countries, International Organizations, Multilateral Development Banks, Academia, Think Tanks and Civil Society Organizations, on the needs and priorities of mountain regions. The consultations have highlighted the need for risk informed decisions backed by the best available science and context-specific standards and codes, local knowledge, Indigenous practices, and Ecosystem-based Adaptation (EbA).

With this background, CDRI intends to develop a publication which:

• Establishes the need and identifies opportunities for DRI in the mountains
• Highlights good practices and examples
• Captures voices from mountain communities and stakeholders.
• Aids advocacy on Mountain DRI agenda with governments and potential partners at global platforms, bilateral discussions, and other forums. 

Key Responsibilities

Detailed scope of work

The key responsibilities of the Coordinating Lead Author(s) will be as follows. 

• Producing the draft of the publication, as per mutually agreed structure, in collaboration with various partners/contributors. The Coordinating Lead Author(s) is expected to be the pen holder for the final draft and provide strategic guidance to the various contributors. 
• Undertaking landscape analysis and research for the different sections.
• Identifying, coordinating with and supervising various partners/contributors with support from the Mountain Resilience Programme team.
• Coordinating with the Programme Team at CDRI. The Programme Team includes Senior Director - Program Management & Technical Support, Director – Advocacy and Communications, Lead Specialist - Advocacy, Lead Specialist – Technical Studies, and Analyst - Advocacy.
• Provide inputs and respond to requests from copy-editors and graphic designers.
• Identify and support opportunities for dissemination and promotion of the publication.
• In case the RFP is awarded to two suitable candidates, the lead authors will work in coordination with each other.

Indicative contents of the publication

A 50-to-55-page manuscript including - Preface, Foreword, Acknowledgement, References, etc. 

Broad sections of the publication:

1. Define DRI, in context of mountains (impacts, challenges, opportunities) ~ 5 to 6 pages
2. Collection of 15-20 case studies (from countries, organizations, CDRI fellows, CDRI’s ongoing work) ~ 30 pages
3. 10-12 voices from key stakeholders, including communities, experts and influencers bringing diverse perspectives on the criticality of DRI in mountains. ~ 10 to 12 pages
4. Call for collective action on DRI in mountains ~ 2 pages

Strategic Guidance to the Publication

• Contribute to the development of timelines for different milestones towards the development of the publication in coordination with the Mountain Programme Team, and to ensure timely production of inputs to the publication.
• Contribute to the broad theme and flow of the publication.
• Identify potential meetings, online workshops, and other kinds of fora that could contribute to the publication- help design and conduct meetings, online workshops, and other kinds of fora, with assistance from the Programme Team to scope out the content of each section and ensure coherence between them, considering the core messages of the publication.
• Identify peer reviewers and ensure that their suggestions are incorporated in the publication.
• Considering the rationale and objectives of the publication and the thematic focus define the core messages for consideration by the CDRI Secretariat and Programme Advisory Group. 
• Ensure complementarity with other global knowledge initiatives that focus on issues of disaster and climate resilience.

Drafting of the Report

• Prepare a roadmap for all components that will guide the conceptualization, timelines and drafting of all chapters within the publication. 
• Participate in briefings as required. Ensure that feedback and recommendations are integrated into subsequent drafts of the publication.
• Finalize the draft chapters in close collaboration with CDRI Programme Team and Peer Reviewers. 
• Review the preliminary text (Foreword, Index, List of Tables and Figure, Abbreviations, ISBN number etc.) and post-text (Bibliography, Annexures, contributing author credits etc.) 

Design and outreach of the publication

• Advise on the design and layout of the final version of the publication, in both print and digital versions, 
• Review the final proofread version of the publication to ensure high-quality 
• Advise the CDRI Secretariat and Programme Team in the development of a communication strategy for the publication and participate as required in launch events, and briefings to CDRI Members and the media.
• Advise the Programme Team in engaging the potential users as well as other stakeholders during the process of development.

Key technical and core competencies and soft skills

• Knowledge of the political, social, cultural, and economic landscape that conditions the challenge of critical infrastructure resilience in CDRI Member Countries and globally;
• Having a strong network with experts and institutions that have worked in the realm of infrastructure resilience in mountain regions would be appreciated;
• Extensive experience of interacting, engaging, and working with a large pool of experts and institutions who have expertise in infrastructure resilience would be desirable;
• Demonstrate strategic vision in the area of climate and disaster risk management, resilience and sustainability. 
• Strong track record and proven experience of producing high-quality research, data analysis and publication is essential.
• Excellent report writing, presentation and editing skills in English including analytical skills (quantitative and qualitative) and the ability to communicate and summarize the key findings.
• Excellent inter-personal, teamwork, communication and time management skills;

Expected deliverables

Roadmap documents for all components of the Publication

The detailed implementation roadmap is to be prepared and submitted to CDRI in the first one month from the start of the assignment.

Progress Review of all components within the Publication

Interim progress review of the work under all chapters /sections of the publication in months 2 & 4

Zero Order Draft 

The Zero Order Draft will be submitted to CDRI for a first-level internal review at the end of 5 months from the start of the assignment. Together with the Programme Team, the lead author will identify the peer reviewers for the first-order draft.

First Order Draft

The First Order Draft will be submitted for peer review in month 6 of the assignment. The Report will need to strike a balance between the needs of a technical and a political audience (regulators, policymakers, financial institutions, etc.). This Peer Review process is expected to take 1 month. 

Final Draft

The Final Draft will be submitted to CDRI in month 8 of the assignment after incorporating the feedback and comments received from the peer reviewers and CDRI.

Support the process of copy-editing and designing

CDRI will lead the copy-editing and designing of the publication. The Lead Author is expected to provide suggestions and inputs, as required, for the finalization of the publication.

Period of engagement

The duration of the assignment will be 9 months (December 2024 – August 2025)

Qualification criteria

Evaluation Criteria for Qualification:

• Advanced university degree, in a field relevant to civil engineering, environmental engineering, environmental science, sustainable development, disaster and climate resilient infrastructure, environment management and sustainable finance.
• Minimum 15 years of relevant experience in research, policy and practice in disaster risk management and resilience.
• Professional experience traversing diverse regions and geographies, especially in mountain regions. 
• Proven record of producing high-quality global reports and publications on resilient infrastructure and related topics (relevant proof to be submitted).

Submission of proposals

Consultants should submit a technical proposal and financial proposal for the detailed Scope of Work (SoW) as mentioned above. Proposals should be prepared with scanned copies of all necessary documents and converted into separate PDF files – each having different passwords. The file must be named as.

• [Consultant name] Technical Proposal (Open PDF file)
• Financial Proposal (Name of Assignment) (PASSWORD protected file)
• Clarifications by Bidders: Bidders requiring any clarification on the RFP document may contact the Procurement Division of the CDRI in writing by email: [email protected]
• Technical Proposal: A project proposal document covering the Consultant’s interpretation of the overall SoW. The document should contain the overall approach toward the delivery of the project too. (not more than 3 pages)
• Financial Proposal: Consultants shall quote an all-inclusive lumpsum price covering all aspects mentioned in the scope of work, for the suggested time, as per the format given in Annexure-I. All payments shall be subject to tax deduction at the source per India's tax laws.
• THE PROPOSAL IS TO BE SUBMITTED through EMAIL to [email protected] on or before 18 November 2024 by 11:59 PM IST with the subject line: “PROPOSAL SUBMISSION FOR “Selection of CDRI Mountain DRI Publication Lead Author” [your name].” Proposals received later than this deadline are liable for rejection.
• The email should include the password-protected-PDF file listed above as an attachment. Each Consultant should send only one email for the specified service. Multiple emails may lead to the disqualification of the bidder.
• Note: The Financial Proposal PDF should be password-protected. The password for FINANCIAL PROPOSAL MUST NOT BE SHARED ALONG WITH THE PROPOSAL. The password for the financial proposal will be requested separately.
• Use Times Roman font to send passwords and ensure readability.
• The password of the Financial proposal will be asked after the evaluation of the Technical proposal.
• Validity of Proposal: The proposal must remain valid and open for acceptance for a period of 60 days from the date of opening of the proposal.

Evaluation

1. The consultant will be selected following a Quality Cum Cost Basis (QCBS) of selection.
2. Proposals shall be evaluated as follows: Evaluation Criteria for Technical Bids 100 points:

Standards of quality

Information and data created according to the Scope of Work should follow internationally accepted standards and practices. The publication must adhere to CDRI’s Editorial Style Manual.

Reporting Structure

The Consultant will work in close coordination with the Programme Team comprising of
Senior Director - Program Management & Technical Support, Director – Advocacy and Communications, Lead Specialist - Advocacy, Lead Specialist – Technical Studies, and Analyst - Advocacy, providing regular updates on progress, challenges, and key decisions.

Other Terms & Conditions

1. The proposals should be valid for 60 days after the final submission date.
2. CDRI reserves the right to cancel this Request for proposal before or after the receipt of proposals or after opening the proposal and call for fresh proposals. CDRI also has the right to reject any proposal without assigning any reason.
3. Proposals incomplete in any respect will not be considered.
4. Please note that the consultant must clearly disclose the contractual and payment terms in its proposal.
5. CDRI reserves the right to hire more than one consultant.

The consultants are requested to submit their proposal through email to [email protected] by 23:59 hrs (IST) on 18 November 2024. Responses received after the stipulated time or not in accordance will be summarily rejected.

Please ensure that your proposal is sent ONLY to ABOVE MENTIONED email ID before the closing date & time. Proposals sent/copied to any other email ID (other than above) OR received after the bid closing date & time (mentioned above) will not be entertained.