Brief for the position of

Chief Executive Officer

 Candidate Brief Chief Executive Officer

Contents
Message from the Chair 3

About ClientEarth 4

Recognition 6

Strategic Context 7

Financial Overview 10

The Role 11

The Person 14

How to Apply 15

odgersberndtson.com clientearth.org 2
 Candidate Brief Chief Executive Officer

Message from
the Chair

In 2022 ClientEarth will undergo a major transition in leadership when our

Founder and Chief Executive, James Thornton, passes the reins to a new
Chief Executive. This marks a hugely exciting moment of opportunity for
us all. James’s visionary leadership and legal mastermind has created
an organisation that is recognised as one of the world’s most ambitious,
influential and impactful charities fighting for environmental justice, and
winning. We have helped governments to write environmental laws, and
regulators to enforce them. We have smoothed the way for environmental
lawsuits in China, helped communities in Africa’s last great rainforest cut
illegal logging, and we have accelerated the closure of Europe’s biggest
coal plant.

ClientEarth started in 2007 with James as its only employee. Now we are
over 250 people, in eight offices around the world, tirelessly working to
change things for the better for life on Earth. To coincide with the change of
leadership, we are also at the early stage of designing a new management
structure suited to the next phase of our strategy, one that will give us
the institutional strength to deliver enormous impact in this critical decade,
and beyond.

The incoming Chief Executive will assume full responsibility for the
leadership of ClientEarth – its future direction, its sustainability and impact,
and its highly talented people around the world. He or she will also be able
to draw on the advice and experience of James in his new advisory role as
President & Founder.

The Chief Executive’s job is one of the most important in the world for the
future of our planet and its people. We are looking for someone to lead with
courage and humility – above all a leader who is truly aligned with our values
and our cause.

I hope you will be inspired to apply.

Howard Covington
Chair of the Board of Trustees

odgersberndtson.com clientearth.org 3
 Candidate Brief Chief Executive Officer

Our planet is changing. Rising carbon emissions are

About
ClientEarth accelerating climate change, our forests are disappearing,
the air we breathe and the oceans we depend on are being
polluted. Vulnerable plants and animals are under threat,
But we can fight back. We are fighting back
Urgency Over the last couple of years, we
have seen millions of people taking
Time is short and we must act now,
to the streets in countries across
if we don’t, we will lose our last
the world to demand action from
chance to rebalance our relationship
their leaders. Young people, in
with our incredible planet and its
particular, have led the way – they
systems, which supports all life
know that the decisions being taken
on Earth.
now will decide what kind of world
they will inherit. Politicians in many
The damage is still being done
parts of the world have listened
Human activity has already led to and we have seen declarations of
warming of the Earth’s temperature climate emergencies and ambitious
by 1.1°C of since 1850-1900, green legislative agendas.
and over the next 20 years, global
We have seen an explosion in
temperature is expected to reach
the use of the law to protect the
or exceed 1.5°C of warming. We are
environment and to tackle climate
seeing the real-world impacts of
change. There is now a much wider
this today. The summer of 2021
understanding of the power of the
was Europe’s hottest on record,
law, with environmental groups
wildfires have raged across every
and individuals using the courts
continent on the planet and
to demand justice. Environmental
extreme flooding has caused death
rights and human rights are
and devastation across dozens
increasingly being connected,
of countries. People are already
increasing the power of individual
starting to be displaced as their
actions. More broadly, we have
homelands become uninhabitable.
seen huge growth in progressive
Climate-related social unrest
activism and movements, such
and economic hardship is rising
as social justice and anti-racism,
swiftly in some parts of the world.
which have deep connections to
These trends will continue as the
our work. New economic models
world heats, and it is the poorest
are being developed that support
who will be hit hardest and first.
the transition and these are gaining
We cannot ignore the challenges interest and credibility.
that the world faces today, they are
We are at a critical moment in
greater than at any time in human
the history of our planet and the
history. But that must not blind
momentum towards developing a
us to the opportunities that are
sustainable way of living has never
coming from the unprecedented
been stronger. We must all build on
momentum from all parts of society
this momentum and super charge
for action to tackle climate change
the transition, if we can do so then
and protect nature.
everyone will benefit.

odgersberndtson.com clientearth.org 4
Candidate Brief Chief Executive Officer
Our journey
ClientEarth started in 2007 with
a single member of staff, our
founding-CEO James Thornton,
and an ambition to scale-up the
use of the law as a tool to tackle
environmental challenges. Today,
we are more than 250 people
working on actions in more than
50 countries and united by a single
mission: to use the power of the
law to bring about systemic change
that protects that the earth for –
and with – its inhabitants.
In the years since we started, we
have shown the enormous power
of the law to drive positive change.
We have blocked the construction
of coal-fired power plants that
would have been devastating for the
climate and the people forced to
live in their shadows. We’ve forced
governments to prioritise the health
of their citizens and take action on
climate change. We’ve helped to
protect critical species and pristine
habitats. We’ve been able to achieve
all of this and more thanks to the
contributions of our incredible staff,
the partners that we’ve worked with
and the donors that have supported
our work so generously.
odgersberndtson.com
Going from strength to strength
As an organisation we have gone
from strength to strength. We have
evolved and grown, we have moved
into new countries and continents.
We’ve built new partnerships
and collaborated with thousands
of different organisations and
individuals across the environmental
movement. We’ve worked with local
experts and adapted the way that we
work in order to deliver impact across
the five continents where we now
work. Throughout that time, though,
some things haven’t changed.
We have always thrived on
collaboration and partnership, both
inside and outside organisation.
We’ve been hopeful and optimistic
about what can be achieved, rather
than lamenting what is already lost.
We’ve focused on where we can
have the greatest impact, always
looking to bring about long-lasting
change. We’ve been pragmatic
and engaged with people and
organisations across the societies
where we operate. We’ve innovated
and found new ways to creatively
deliver our mission. We’ve valued
expertise, hard work and high quality
in everything that we do.
These are things that will never
change but we also know that the
most successful organisations
are constantly evolving, innovating
and taking risks. They challenge
themselves to get better in everything
that they do, they fix problems that
they see, and they strive to become
more efficient and effective.
ClientEarth has grown rapidly and
consistently for many years, as a
result we have been able to increase
our impact and to develop new
areas of work that will allow us to
be more effective in delivering our
mission. But such swift growth
creates challenges, and we know
that there are a number of areas
where there are issues that we need
to address. We must make sure that
during the rest of this decade we are
able to deliver our highest.
We are now at a critical point for our
work: the next decade will set the
future course of our planet and will
define whether it will be possible
to achieve our vision for the future.
We know that we can’t achieve this
vision alone and that there are many
groups and individuals that have
important roles to play as part of a
wider environmental and societal
movement. We also know that the
road ahead won’t be easy but there
are causes to be optimistic as we
look at the world today.
clientearth.org 5
 Candidate Brief Chief Executive Officer

Recognition

‘ ‘
Environmental lawyers have made their
boldest move to date against
“greenwashing” in advertising campaigns
by oil and gas companies.
ClientEarth, a non-profit legal group,
submitted an official complaint under
international guidelines on Tuesday
arguing that BP is misleading consumers
over its low-carbon credentials in recent
advertisements – the company’s first
For the third time, the UK government
has been slammed by the courts for
failing to produce an adequate plan to tackle
the growing problem of air pollution, in a
landmark judgment that will force ministers
back to the drawing board in their efforts to
clean up dirty urban air.
Mr Justice Garnham, who heard the case,
said: “The history of this litigation shows
that good faith, hard work and sincere

’
global campaign in 10 years. promises are not enough and it seems
court must keep the pressure on to ensure
FINANCIAL TIMES compliance is actually achieved.” He noted
a “real risk” from air pollution, said the
government’s plans were “seriously flawed”
and commended ClientEarth as a “valuable

’
monitor of the government’s efforts”.
THE GUARDIAN

‘
Unlike the polished surfaces and sharp
edges of many corporate law firms in
Brussels, ClientEarth’s Brussels offices
look like those of a normal activist group:
Its lawyers, all of whom spoke passionately
about why they worked there, weren’t wearing
suits. The coffee on offer was organic.

‘
Financing in particular remains a major
The unorthodox approach is working.
concern, as capital continues to flow
ClientEarth lawyers across London,
into fossil fuels. Over the past five years,
Brussels and Warsaw are taking numerous
ClientEarth has built a unique team of
governments to task over their failures
corporate and finance lawyers to follow the

’
on air pollution, chemical regulations and

’
money – and staunch it.
transparency.
POLITICO THE ECONOMIST

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 Candidate Brief Chief Executive Officer

In 2022, ClientEarth will begin a new 5-year strategic

Strategic
Context period. ClientEarth has been developing a new strategic
framework to guide its development during this period.
This framework will reiterate our The strategic framework aims to
organisational vision and mission respond to the urgency of the
of a healthy planet where nature crises of climate change and the
and people thrive together. It will destruction of nature. It recognises
reframe the global challenges that although global change is not
we focus our work on; clarify our happening fast enough we are
highest priority impact areas; and nonetheless seeing unprecedented
set out the parameters for ensuring momentum and opportunities to
ClientEarth is strong and resilient as use the power of the law to drive
an organisation as we continue to systemic change globally.
grow through this period.

Overview: Draft Strategic Framework

other legal

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Candidate Brief Chief Executive Officer
ClientEarth’s greatest strategic
challenge in the current decade will
be to ensure we are delivering our
highest impact between now and
2030, whilst also building a stable
and resilient global organisation.
The key themes in our new strategic
framework are:
Global challenges
We intend to organise our work
around a number of intersecting
global challenges. This is a
reformulation of our current
global challenges model and is
designed to recognise the inter-
connectedness of the challenges
we work on.
Changing systems
The key to lasting impact is to
change the system. We have
deliberately reformulated the global
challenges that we focus on as
systems challenges. We want to
adopt a holistic, systems change
lens to help us find the most
promising places to intervene
in these systems to deliver our
highest impact.
Urgency & risk taking
The urgency of the crises of climate
change and the destruction of
nature demand that we deliver our
highest impact over the next five to
ten years. This means that we need
to be highly disciplined in focusing
our resources on the most urgent
issues and where we can leverage
the most change. also It also means
being more radical, taking more risks
and almost certainly failing more.
odgersberndtson.com
Global challenges and
solutions
Global challenges need global
solutions. We want to focus on the
most strategically important places
globally and deliver globally aligned
legal strategies. We anticipate that
the most strategically important
geographies for ClientEarth to work
in over the next five years will be
Europe, Asia, tropical regions, and
major financial centres.
Innovation and creativity
Innovation and creativity with the
law are central to our approach.
To ensure that we create the space
for innovation and creativity, we are
establishing the ClientEarth Lab.
The purpose of the Lab will be to
support ClientEarth to make sure
that it remains at the legal cutting
edge, delivering our mission with
urgency and boldness in a fast-
changing world.
Putting partnership front and
centre for higher impact
A key focus area over the next
five years will be to strengthen our
approach to partnership working
and stakeholder engagement to
achieve greater collective impact
with our partners and across the
wider public interest law field.
clientearth.org 8
Candidate Brief Chief Executive Officer

Building the field

Whilst we will continue to deliver
our own legal interventions (through
litigation and other types of cases,
legal advocacy and influencing),
during this period we will increase
our emphasis on strengthening
environmental rule of law and
building the field of environmental
public interest law in strategically
important jurisdictions.

Justice & intersectionality

We recognise that the needs of
people and planetary needs are
inextricably intertwined. At the heart
of our challenges is the requirement
to ensure that the needs of people –
including energy, food, water, health,
housing, income and work – are met
fairly without overshooting planetary
boundaries. This requires a
balanced, holistic and intersectional
approach to our work.

Organisational design
In 2021 we have also engaged
in an extensive piece of work to
review our organisational design
and operating model to ensure
that it is fit for the future direction
of ClientEarth as we evolve from
being a predominantly European
organisation to being a truly
globalone. In 2022, under the
leadership and direction of our new
Chief Executive we will need to
refine and finalise this design and
begin to implement it.

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 Candidate Brief Chief Executive Officer

ClientEarth’ s income growth has accelerated over the

Financial
Overview last 3 years.
This has allowed us to fund more in fundraising, and in core functions
lawyers, expand our programme and systems to ensure that these
of work and increase our impact underpin our growing programmes
as the climate emergency
During the last 3 years, ClientEarth’s
becomes more urgent. But it also
income has doubled, as a result
brings the challenges of balancing
of the success of our efforts to
income streams to remain resilient,
diversify funding sources, reduce
meeting free Reserves targets,
reliance on a small number of
and dealing with the demands
key donors, and build our on-
placed on our organisational
line presence to support digital
support capacity. All of this must
fundraising. Our fundraising strategy
be managed carefully.
for 2022-2024 focuses on investing
In October 2019, ClientEarth in further growth of unrestricted
received an unprecedented gift income to ensure that this is at a
from the DG Charitable Settlement faster pace than the more easily
of $16.7m, from the sale of accessible restricted grant funding.
David Gilmour’s guitar collection. This is key to ensuring that we
Whilst the funds received were not remain in a robust financial position.
formally restricted to any particular
use by the donors, they expressed
wishes regarding their use – to
fight climate change and build
the capacity of the organisation.
The funds were therefore voluntarily
designated by the Board for these
purposes over the medium term.
This was a transformational gift
for ClientEarth, providing flexible
funding for innovation in our fight
against climate change, investment

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 Candidate Brief Chief Executive Officer

The CEO holds ultimate executive authority for ClientEarth

The Role
as the organisation’s internal and external leader.
Job Purpose Chair of the Board to manage
trustee-level governance
The CEO leads the ClientEarth
processes and committees, and
Executive Team and broader Senior
ensure appropriate oversight over
Leadership Team (SLT) to define and
ClientEarth’s strategy and impact.
execute against ClientEarth’s vision,
mission and strategy. The CEO looks n  ounder & President – The
F
out for emerging trends and drives Founder & President is a specialist
innovation in how the organisation adviser, not an executive. He
uses the law to protect nature will be available to the new CEO
and people. to advise them in connection
with any matters where his
The CEO champions ClientEarth’s
insights might add value, such
impact across partners, donors, their
as fundraising from donors. A
own network and other stakeholder
strong, collaborative relationship
groups, including the media and
based on trust and mutual respect
policy-makers, to accelerate the
between the CEO and the Founder
use of the law on behalf of the
& President will be important for
environment in new and innovative
their working relationship and the
ways. As ClientEarth’s leader, the
organisation as a whole.
CEO drives a unified and clear
purpose, culture and values, and n  xecutive team and wider Senior
E
rallies teams across the globe Leadership Team (SLT) – The
around a clear and empowering CEO leads the Executive Team
strategy. and the wider leadership team to
ensure measurable success for
The CEO works closely with the
all initiatives and alignment of the
ClientEarth Global Board of Trustees
overall strategy.
to enable the functioning of the
organisation’s Trustee governance n  xternal Funders & Partners –
E
processes and enable appropriate The CEO develops and maintains
Trustee-level oversight and steer on successful relationships with
ClientEarth’s strategic direction. funders and ensures alignment
between funding and strategy.
Working Relationships The CEO also drives ClientEarth’s
distinct impact in collaboration
The CEO needs to work
with partners.
collaboratively with stakeholders
across the organisation to truly
embed and inspire a consistent
view of the organisation’s mission
and impact. Key relationships are
with the:
n  oard of Trustees – The CEO is
B
held to account on performance
by the Global Board of Trustees,
and provides frequent updates
to the Board on strategy, metrics
and performance indicators.
The CEO works closely with the

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Candidate Brief Chief Executive Officer
Key Responsibilities
Define and Champion ClientEarth’s
Vision and Mission:
n  ollaboratively works with the SLT,
C and listening while inspiring
Trustees and other stakeholders
to set ClientEarth’s overall mission
and intended impact.
n Defines strategic priorities and
plans and virgorously champions
alignment, rallying the organisation
behind a unified purpose and
strategy.
External Leadership:
n C
 hampions ClientEarth’s brand and
mission externally through the press,
participation at events, conferences,
social media and through their
professional global network.
 etermines how to best use the
D
n
Founder & President’s network and
expertise in support of the external
leadership and representation
of ClientEarth, fundraising and
partnership building.
Internal Leadership:
D
 evelops, empowers, and motivates
n
a high-performance team that is
results-oriented and collaborative.
Provides leadership to the staff and
other stakeholders, maintaining
effective communication systems
across cultures and geographies
and ensures well-defined roles
and responsibilities for all team
members.
odgersberndtson.com
n  eads a collaborative culture
L n
and shared mission across
ClientEarth and its geographies,
demonstrating strong empathy
colleagues to deliver on
ClientEarth’s purpose.
n  romotes and fosters an open
P and communicates cross
and collaborative community,
unlocking the true potential of
ClientEarth’s global teams and
matrix structures.
n  hampions and promotes equality,
C
diversity and inclusion across the
organisation.
Programmatic Strategy & Delivery:
n  rovides strategic direction
P process, working alongside
on ClientEarth’s programmatic
delivery, maintaining alignment to
the organisation’s overall strategy
and impact focus.
n  ncourages coordination between
E policies, processes and systems
programmes across geographies
to achieve the highest impact.
Ensures alignment between local
geographic entities on strategy
and operational procedures to
enable effective organisational
matrix working.
Organisational Performance
n  esponsible for ensuring
R improvement initiatives for
the organisation effectively
executes its governance,
constitutional and legal
responsibilities.
 he CEO oversees the budget,
T
operational excellence and
compliance while ensuring all
areas of the organisation have
the functional support required to
be successful.
n  ets clear measurable targets,
S
organisationally, and holds
the Senior Leadership Team
to account on maintaining
operational excellence and
delivering on impact.
n  orks to ensure the organisation’s
W
long-term financial wellbeing
and growth by overseeing the
financial planning and investment
ClientEarth’s CFO.
n  eads the evolution of
L
ClientEarth’s operating model
ensuring organisational structure,
enable effective scaling in line
with strategy and mission.
n  nsures that functions
E
(Operations, IT, HR, Finance)
effectively support all areas of
the organisation to achieve
their goals.
n  romotes continuous
P
simplification and better ways
of working.
clientearth.org 12
Candidate Brief Chief Executive Officer
Location
The CEO position will be located
either in London or Brussels
(ClientEarth’s two major
international offices) and will
involve regular travel within Europe
and occasional travel to the US and
other locations in Asia or Africa
and elsewhere. ClientEarth now
operates a flexible/agile working
model whereby people can opt to
work up to 80% of their time from
home and 20% in the office.
odgersberndtson.com
Change Management and
Organisational Development
n  ets, leads, models, and promotes
S
an inclusive and participatory
work culture that is entrepreneurial
and creative, and encourages
innovative, solution-orientated
thinking.
n  evelops and implements
D
ClientEarth’s ambitious growth
strategy to increase the
organisation’s footprint and impact
across geographies, functions and
core activities.
n In partnership with the SLT, refines
the organisation’s operating
model, governance structure and
partnership strategy.
Fundraising
n  evelops and maintains
D
relationships with core strategic
donors and proactively seeks to
strengthen ClientEarth’s donor
base. Is an active senior fundraiser
for the organisation, exploring and
supporting new opportunities for
funding growth.
n  elegates agency to the Founder
D
& President, where appropriate, to
support on strategic fundraising
activity and nurturing donor
relationships.
Partnerships
n  versees the development
O
and execution of ClientEarth’s
partnerships strategy, course-
correcting, where needed, to
ensure alignment to ClientEarth’s
strategy and intended impact.
n  evelops and maintains key
D
strategic relationships in order
to further the aims of the
organisation and maximise results
as a partner enabler and field-
builder, leveraging impact through
collaboration.
clientearth.org 13
 Candidate Brief Chief Executive Officer
Experience and Knowledge
The Person
n  proven track record in strategic
A
and inspirational senior leadership
of a complex, international
organisation (essential).
n  trategic leadership: planning and
S
coordination (essential).
n  ignificant experience in senior
S
management roles (essential).
n  n appreciation of how the law can
A stakeholders.
be used in innovative ways for a
social or environmental purpose.
n E
 xperiece of leading and managing
teams across a number of disciplines
and geographies (essential).
n  xperience and/or understanding
E n
of workings of Board/Trustees
groups (desirable).
n  xperience with ensuring the
E n
financial health and stability of a
growing business or charity in a
multi-currency setting (essential).
n  xperience of advocacy,
E n
influencing and partnership building
to drive social impact (essential).
Key Skills & Competencies
n  edication and commitment to the
D n
mission of ClientEarth.
n  utstanding verbal and written
O risks to advance ClientEarth’s
communication skills.
odgersberndtson.com
 ble to identify macro-trends and
A
n
act on them with purpose.
n  convener and bridge-builder;
A
able to bring different parties
together in a constructive
conversation.
n  xcellent interpersonal skills, an
E
‘open-door’ style vis-à-vis ability
to communicate effectively
and inspire all staff and external
n  mpathetic; attentive and
E
responsive listener demonstrating
genuine interest for the views and
values of different constituencies
in a debate.
 iplomacy, flexibility, warmth and
D
sensitivity, drive, passion and
determination.
 ultural sensitivity and
C
commitment to equality, diversity &
inclusion, anti-racism and gender-
transformative approaches.
A global outlook and mindset.
n Innovative mindset to encourage
an entrepreneurial environment.
n  roblem solver and solutions
P
driven.
 bility to identify and manage risks
A
and willingness to take appropriate
environmental agenda.
clientearth.org 14
Candidate Brief Chief Executive Officer
How to
Apply
All appointments are made on
merit. We strongly encourage
applications from candidates
from communities which are
under-represented at senior
leadership levels.
odgersberndtson.com
Key Dates
Closing day for applications is 21st January 2022.
Following a long list meeting of the Selection Panel, successful candidates
will be invited to attend preliminary interviews with Odgers Berndtson in
February 2022.
First round of interviews with ClientEarth will take place w/c 7th March;
informal meetings will take place w/c 14th March; second stage interviews
will take place w/c 21st March.
How to apply
In order to apply, please submit a comprehensive CV along with a covering
letter which sets out your interest in the role and encapsulates the aspects
of your experience relevant to the required criteria.
The preferred method of application is online at: www.odgers.com/84304
If you are unable to apply online, please email: evie.day@odgersberndtson.com.
All applications will receive an automated response. All candidates are also
requested to complete an online Equal Opportunities Monitoring Form which
will be found at the end of the application process. This will assist ClientEarth
in monitoring selection decisions to assess whether equality of opportunity
is being achieved. Any information collated from the Equal Opportunities
Monitoring Forms will not be used as part of the selection process and will
be treated as strictly confidential.
Personal data
In line with GDPR, we ask that you do NOT send us any information that
can identify children or any of your Sensitive Personal Data (racial or ethnic
origin, political opinions, philosophical beliefs, trade union membership, data
concerning health or sex life and sexual orientation, genetic and/or biometric
data) in your CV and application documentation. Following this notice, any
inclusion of your Sensitive Personal Data in your CV/application documentation
will be understood by us as your express consent to process this information
going forward. Please also remember to not mention anyone’s information or
details (e.g.: referees) who have not previously agreed to their inclusion.
Contact details
For a conversation in confidence, please contact:
Emillia Billett: emilia.billett@odgersberndtson.com;
Sarah Lowndes Jones: sarah.lowndesjones@odgersberndtson.com
We are committed to ensuring everyone can access our website and
application processes. This includes people with sight loss, hearing, mobility
and cognitive impairments. Should you require access to these documents
in alternative formats, please contact evie.day@odgersberndtson.com.
Also, if you have any comments and/or suggestions about improving
access to our application processes please do not hesitate to contact us
response.manager@odgersberndtson.com.
clientearth.org 15
clientearth.org odgersberndtson.com