Manager, Proposal Development

Conservation International protects nature for the benefit of humanity. Through science, policy, fieldwork, and finance, we spotlight and secure the most important places in nature for the climate, biodiversity, and for people. With offices in 30 countries and projects in more than 100 countries, Conservation International partners with governments, companies, civil society, Indigenous peoples, and local communities to help people and nature thrive together.

POSITION SUMMARY - This position is based in Cape Town-South Africa, Johannesburg-South Africa, or Nairobi-Kenya

CI is launching an initiative to strengthen the financial stability of Africa’s Keystone Protected Areas (KPAs). These KPAs are critical for biodiversity conservation and serve as the core of larger ecological systems in landscapes. This will be achieved through technical assistance facilities/ workstreams that will develop conservation finance capacity (at the global, national, and KPA level). CI will lead the strategy and management of the program, while working in partnership with co-management partners and local stakeholders to develop, execute, and mobilize conservation finance transactions, resulting in financial flows to targeted KPAs during the project period.

Within this context, Conservation International (CI) seeks a Manager, Proposal Development to lead and support the design, writing, and coordination of high-quality proposals across public and corporate philanthropic funding streams (including corporate foundations). This role will be central to advancing CI’s fundraising priorities in Africa and globally, ensuring that proposals are compelling, strategically aligned, and donor-compliant. The Manager will collaborate with program, finance, and monitoring teams, steward donor relationships, and maintain CI’s proposal knowledge base to secure significant funding commitments for conservation initiatives.

RESPONSIBILITIES

Proposal Development & Fundraising

• Lead grant prospecting and identify potential funding partners across public and corporate philanthropic donors (including corporate foundations)
• Draft clear and persuasive project descriptions, problem statements, objectives, outputs, and activities.
• Develop tailored proposals, concept notes, budgets, pitches, and due diligence forms for diverse donor audiences.
• Support the Director in cultivating and stewarding relationships with public-private donors, leveraging networks to secure large financial commitments.
• Coordinate with CI’s global government, corporate, and public funding teams to integrate Africa opportunities into global pipelines.
• Provide thorough copy edits and ensure proposals meet donor templates, formats, and submission requirements.
• Proofread all documents for accuracy, consistency, and completeness before submission.

Budget & Financial Alignment

• Collaborate with finance teams to ensure budgets align with proposal narratives.
• Prepare and refine budget justifications/narratives as required by donors.
• Check coherence between activities, timelines, human resources, and financial allocations.

Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning

• Work with program and M&E staff to define results frameworks (outputs, outcomes, indicators).
• Integrate donor-required logframes, results chains, or theories of change into proposals.
• Ensure Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning components are clearly articulated in all submissions.

Knowledge Management & Process Coordination

• Maintain and update CI’s stock text, boilerplate language, and past performance reports.
• Keep proposal development processes on track by scheduling meetings and ensuring internal deadlines are met.
• Provide project management support for large proposals and manage smaller grant/contract submissions independently.
• Communicate with project staff to obtain information for proposals and support work plan development.

Analytics & Pipeline Development

• Maintain a live database of global and regional public and corporate donors engaged in CI’s focus areas.
• Track trends in corporate philanthropy (including corporate foundations), and public funding to inform fundraising strategy.
• Use CRM tools for pipeline management and revenue forecasting.
• Support reporting on fundraising progress and coordination with key partners.

WORKING CONDITIONS

• Typical office environment with occasional extended hours.
• Local and/or international travel may be required.
• Ability to work in remote locations or under difficult working conditions.
• Flexible working hours will be discussed during the interview process, aligned to the requirement to be available to work across time zones.
• This is a fixed-term assignment, expected to last 2 years initially, with potential for extension, based on performance and funding.

QUALIFICATIONS

Required

• Bachelor’s degree in environmental sciences, international development, or related field.
• 4 to 6 year of experience in proposal development and grant writing, including public and private funding streams.
• Excellent command of written and spoken English at first language speaker level.
• Strong interpersonal and cross-cultural communication skills.
• Proven ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously and coordinate interdisciplinary teams.
• Experience working with finance teams on budget alignment and justification.
• Knowledge of donor requirements, compliance standards, and proposal formats.
• Excellent organizational skills, attention to detail, and ability to meet deadlines.
• Track record of initiative, independent work, and collaboration with dispersed teams.
• Passion for conservation and commitment to CI’s mission.
• Candidate must be eligible to live and work in the country in which they apply to work.

Preferred

• Experience with CRM tools and donor pipeline management.
• Proficiency in French and/or Portuguese would be an advantage.

To apply for this position, please submit a resume and cover letter.

Application Deadline: January 30, 2026 (11:49 PM EST). (Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis)

See all Conservation International Career Opportunities HERE

Conservation International is committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all individuals. We believe in hiring based on merit and qualifications, ensuring a fair and inclusive hiring process for everyone.