Editorial Review and Proofreading of UN Local2030 Coalition Content

Host entity: United Nations Local2030 Coalition

Areas of expertise: Communication, advocacy, public information, Knowledge management, research, reporting, Writing, editing, proofreading

Application deadline: 06/11/2026

Mission and objectives

By bringing together the United Nations system and local development actors, the Local2030 Coalition bridges global goals with local needs. Its primary mandate is to ensure that the United Nations system possesses the tools, frameworks and mechanisms required to systematically engage with local and subnational governments, national authorities, businesses, community based organizations, civil society, youth and academia. By connecting global targets with local realities, the Coalition fosters multilevel governance, incubates innovation, channels financing and scales context specific solutions to ensure that no one and no place is left behind.
Operational pillars
Guided by its 10-Year Strategy, the Coalition delivers on its mandate through three core operational pillars:

Advocacy
Increasing awareness of localization, elevating local leaders into global policy debates, and mobilizing political and financial commitments.

Action
Strengthening multi-level governance systems, building local capacities and scaling up funding mechanisms for multi-stakeholder local initiatives.

Monitoring
Empowering local and subnational actors to track progress, collect spatialized data, produce Voluntary Local Reviews and integrate local insights into national frameworks.

To operationalize this mandate, the Coalition translates advocacy, action and monitoring into concrete, high-impact strategies across three core lines of work. By empowering local actors, the Coalition elevates local leadership in global governance and builds institutional capacities on the ground. By scaling up local action and finance, it bridges planning with funding to deploy investment-ready, subnational solutions. Finally, through tracking local impact, it advances data-driven monitoring, Voluntary Local Reviews (VLRs) and evidence-based reporting to ensure local progress shapes national and global agendas.

Assignment context

The Local2030 Coalition is the United Nations system-wide platform for localizing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It brings together local and regional governments, the UN system, national governments, civil society, the private sector, and other partners to accelerate progress on the 2030 Agenda at the local level.

As part of the key milestones leading up to the SDG Summit in September 2027, the Local2030 Coalition Secretariat will publish a series of flagship reports, policy briefs, strategy papers, and digital content. Over this initial 12-week assignment (November 2026 – January 2027), an Online UN Volunteer is needed to support editorial review and proofreading to ensure high language quality, editorial consistency, and alignment with UN standards.

Because our publication schedule is event- and milestone-driven, the workload for this 12-week assignment will fluctuate:

Peak Periods (High Intensity): During the 2 to 3 weeks prior to major report launches, the volunteer will be expected to review draft publications, executive summaries, and policy briefs on tight turnarounds (~10 to 15 hours/week during launch windows).

Non-Peak Periods (Low/Flexible Intensity): Between publication cycles, the workload will decrease significantly (0 to 2 hours/week), focusing on ad-hoc website updates, blog posts, or light document reviews.

We encourage candidates who appreciate a flexible schedule and are available for focused, on-demand support around key publishing milestones.

Task description

Duties and Responsibilities
Under the guidance and supervision of the Local2030 Coalition Secretariat Communications Officer, the Online UN Volunteer will support the team during a 12-week period (November 2026 – January 2027) by performing the following duties:

Editorial & Proofreading Support:
Review and proofread upcoming reports, articles, briefs, and official documentation for grammar, spelling, punctuation, clarity, and readability.

Ensure consistency in tone, structure, formatting, and alignment with the UN Editorial Manual and Local2030 brand guidelines.

Rephrase technical or complex local SDG implementation concepts into clear, engaging language suitable for a diverse global audience.

Web Content & Digital Assets:
Edit website copy, news updates, blogs, and multimedia captions prior to online publication.

Ensure hyperlinking, terminology, and key SDG localization concepts are standardized across web pages.

Expected Deliverables:
Thoroughly proofread and edited draft publications, briefs, and web articles within agreed turnaround times.

Standardized terminology and consistent formatting applied across all assigned documentation in alignment with UN editorial guidelines.

Constructive feedback provided via standard tools (e.g., Track Changes or Google Docs suggestions) for final management review.

Supervision, Coordination & Workflow:
Orientation & Onboarding: The volunteer will receive an initial briefing call and written guidance outlining workflow expectations, priority topics, and relevant style guides.

Task Assignment: Assignments will be shared directly via email/cloud links with clear deadlines specified in each task request.

Feedback Loop: All edits will be submitted using tracked changes for review and final endorsement by the Communications Officer. Regular check-ins will be maintained via email/chat to provide guidance and feedback.

Skills and experience

Editing & Proofreading: Minimum of 2 to 3 years of experience in professional editing, copyediting, proofreading, or editorial review.

UN & SDG Knowledge: Familiarity with the UN Editorial Manual, UN style guidelines, and the 2030 Agenda / Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Experience editing UN publications, policy briefs, or multilateral report formats is strongly preferred.

Complex Content Simplification: Proven track record of reviewing technical development concepts and converting them into clear, engaging language for global audiences.

Full eligibility requirements, conditions of service and application instructions are available on the official UNV platform.