Smallholders Representation Working Group Update – July 2019

In January 2019, interested stakeholders came together in Singapore to discuss on the governance and objectives of the platform. Participants attending the workshop unanimously agreed that to bring about a change, work must be done to ensure smallholder inclusivity within the platform. In order to achieve this, the Smallholders Representation Working Group was created and assigned the main responsibility of coordinating actions to identify and secure adequate smallholder representation within the GPSNR governance.

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Since its establishment a few months ago, the Smallholders Representation Working Group has been working consistently and collectively to accomplish its mission. The group has been actively involved in understanding, strategizing and testing the methods by which the platform can ensure adequate and relevant smallholder inclusion. 

In its work to date, the group has selected 11 Working Group members as “Country Champions” who have extensive regional knowledge regarding the rubber supply chain. These members have been in charge of conducting interviews of various smallholder associations and organizations in their assigned country or region. The Working Group also refers to these “Country Champions” as “GPSNR Ambassadors” because of the role they play in creating awareness about the platform. In the past few months, they have helped promote the platform internationally, specifically in Natural Rubber producing countries, by interacting with several organizations, companies and government authorities in different regions of the world. This in turn has helped create curiosity and interest regarding the platform with local stakeholders and in the international rubber community.  

To further this process, the Working Group is currently planning on organizing a series of workshops in various rubber producing regions of the world, including Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam in Asia Pacific, Brazil in Latin America and Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana and Liberia in Africa. The objective of these workshops will be to understand the local needs and motivations of smallholders and onboard organizations representing  smallholders to join the platform. The Working Group agreed these workshops will be a chance to facilitate an open and constructive discussion between the participants, including smallholders, smallholder representatives and other rubber stakeholders. By organizing multiple workshops in different regions of the world, the Working Group is trying to ensure appropriate coverage of the vast and diverse global natural rubber supply chain.  

Through these workshops and the onboarding work done by the Country Champions, the group will be able to identify relevant smallholder representatives, in view of onboarding them as GPSNR members, to ensure smallholders representation in the GPSNR governance is achieved by the next General Assembly in March 2020.

It has been encouraging to see volunteer members of the Working Group actively participate and contribute to fulfill the tasks and responsibilities assigned to the team. Going forward, the Working Group Co-chair expects more involvement of the members as the group implements its developed action plan of organizing regular events like the regional workshops aimed at the betterment of Rubber Smallholders.

More To Explore
Members

Following the Conversation with GPSNR Topic Talks! (Members Version)

The GPSNR Topic Talks series is organised by the GPSNR Secretariat and presented by GPSNR members. The presentations cover several themes around sustainability and the global natural rubber supply chain.

The series kicked off on 27 October with a presentation by Philippe Thaler from CIRAD, on the implications of EU legislation on imported deforestation. View the webinar recording or download the slide deck from this webinar using the links provided. 

The second webinar’s theme was on smallholder solutions and featured two separate presentations. “A landscape-level approach to inclusion and capacity building for rubber smallholders” was presented by Rizki Permana from SNV, Widyantoko Sumarlin from Kirana Megatara, and Tony Hill from Proforest. Speaking from experience with the Kelola-Sendang project in South Sumatra, the presenters explained how SNV, with Proforest support, worked with rubber smallholder groups in the jurisdictional initiative, which helped to forge new links between the smallholders and a crumb rubber factory buyer in the Kirana group. 

Next, “Exploring Smallholder Solutions in the Rubber Sector – The Processing and Sale of Rubberwood to Support Smallholder Financing in Indonesia” was presented by Amy Smith from WWF, Gerald Tan from HeveaConnect, with Renée Corstens and Remco Geervliet from Financial Access. This presentation shared the findings of a study which analyzed the potential of rubberwood to serve as a mechanism to support smallholder financing in Indonesia. You can view the webinar recording or download the slide deck for this webinar using the links provided.

The next theme is Assurance and smallholders, and how we can learn from existing schemes. PEFC’s CEO Ben Gunneberg presented a webinar last night, elaborating on PEFC’s approach to standard-setting and certification. He also showcased PEFC’s current collaborative projects with their national members and companies to support smallholder producers, and how these will benefit GPSNR members and the work GPSNR is engaged in. You can view the webinar recording or download the slide deck for this webinar using the links provided.

Continuing with the same theme of Assurance and smallholders, FSC will be presenting on 8 December, an overview of smallholder certification solutions. Members may register for the webinar in the subsequent section of this article.

We are also pleased to announce an addition to the Topic Talks lineup: ‘REDD+, are carbon credits impacts overstated?’. This new presentation, jointly organized with GIZ and which will be held on 10 December, puts the spotlight on reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD+) with an introduction to the REDD+ methodology, followed by a discussion with the authors of a recently published study, “Overstated carbon emission reductions from voluntary REDD+ projects in the Brazilian Amazon”. Members may register for this Topic Talk in the subsequent section of this article.

Assurance and Smallholders: Learning from Existing Schemes Part 2

“FSC Smallholder Certification Solutions”

8 December | 7PM (GMT+8)

Click here to register

Presented by: FSC

The presentation will cover FSC’s solutions for smallholders to become certified. First, an overview of the evaluation of certification solutions for smallholders will be given. FSC’s existing solutions will be covered, with a focus on the benefits for FSC Group Certification. Next, solutions in the pipeline will be covered, addressing the impact of pilot projects and highlighting success stories.

REDD+, are carbon credits impacts overstated?  

10 December | 3PM (GMT+8)

Click here to register

Jointly Organized by: GIZ 

Presented by: GIZ and authors of the study

Using REDD+ projects to offset carbon emissions through avoided deforestation and the financial support of local communities is popular but also highly debated. Especially, voluntary REDD+ projects are regularly criticized as inefficient or even greenwashing. This presentation will provide an introduction to the REDD+ methodology. The authors of a recent critical study, “Overstated carbon emission reductions from voluntary REDD+ projects in the Brazilian Amazon” will then present their findings and suggestions as a basis for discussion.

GPSNR Staff November 25, 2020

Impacts and Assurance Associate (Smallholder Representation and Shared Investment Mechanism)

 

Position Impacts and Assurance Associate (Smallholder Representation and Shared Investment Mechanism)
Department Impacts and Assurance
Reporting To Impacts and Assurance Manager
Employment Type Full Time
Work Arrangements Flexible
Effective Date ASAP
Location Southeast Asia

PURPOSE OF POSITION

The Impacts and Assurance Associate will be responsible for supporting smallholder engagement and representation and managing GPSNR’s Shared Investment Mechanism projects and processes. This role will also contribute to other organisational workstreams such as communications, admin support, and finance.

ABOUT GPSNR

Founded in 2019, the Global Platform for Sustainable Natural Rubber is an international, multistakeholder, voluntary membership organisation, with a mission to lead improvements in the socioeconomic and environmental performance of the natural rubber value chain. GPSNR currently has 300+ members which represents over 60% of global natural rubber volume.

At GPSNR, we value diversity in experiences and backgrounds. We are an Equal Opportunity Employer and our employees are people with different strengths, experiences and backgrounds, who share a passion for improving sustainability and equity practices in supply chains. Diversity for us not only includes race and gender identity, but also nationality, age, disability status, parenthood, sexual orientation, religion and many other parts of one’s identity. All of our employee’s points of view are key to our success, and inclusion is everyone’s responsibility.

ABOUT YOU

You are driven by a passion to generate meaningful change in the tropical commodity sector, particularly through enhancing the livelihoods and capabilities of smallholder farmers. Your main responsibilities include support the operational processes of the Shared Investment Mechanism, overseeing the implementation and monitoring of SIM projects, and facilitating smallholder participation in the platform, ensuring they are actively engaged and well informed about ongoing initiatives. You communicate clearly across cultures, work well independently, and can manage competing priorities in a fast-paced, international environment. You bring both operational rigour and the interpersonal warmth needed to engage effectively with diverse stakeholders.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

  • Support the management of GPSNR Shared Investment Mechanism process, including overseeing open calls for SIM projects, evaluation cycles, fund tracking, and coordination with working groups, governance bodies, and finance. Ensure templates, documentation, and guidance materials are maintained and accessible.
  • Support the management of full project lifecycle for SIM funded projects, from agreement negotiation through implementation monitoring to reporting and close out. This includes managing contracts and payments, reviewing progress reports, identifying and mitigating/escalating risks, and ensuring alignment with deliverables, timelines, budgets, and GPSNR requirements.
  • Plan and conduct field visits to verify GPSNR project implementation, engage with project stakeholders, and prepare field reports with findings and recommendations.
  • Support smallholder engagement activities, including coordination of interpretation and translation, meeting logistics, stakeholder communications, maintenance of smallholder records and onboarding processes, and manage the Rubber Wiki platform.
  • Support the communications team in activities related to smallholder engagement and SIM projects, including developing relevant communication content.
  • Contribute to broader organisational workstreams, including administrative support, meeting coordination, and cross team collaboration.
  • Perform additional duties as assigned.

REQUIRED COMPETENCES & QUALIFICATIONS

  • Ability to manage a broad range of responsibilities, including administration and finance, while handling multiple priorities effectively.
  • Strong project management skills, with the ability to manage multiple projects and processes across different geographies and stakeholder groups.
  • Excellent organisational and administrative skills with strong attention to detail and accuracy.
  • Self-disciplined and proactive, with good judgment in identifying and escalating risks and the ability to work independently with minimal supervision.
  • Clear and effective communication skills to ensure efficient and effective information exchange.
  • High level of emotional intelligence and sensitivity when engaging with stakeholders from diverse backgrounds, including team members, smallholder farmers, corporate representatives, civil society, and government partners.
  • Strong problem solving ability and adaptability to changing conditions and competing priorities.
  • Initiative in developing strategies, procedures, and documentation templates to support platform operations.
  • High level of emotional intelligence and team citizenship.
  • Willingness to travel to project sites in natural rubber producing countries, including Southeast Asia and West Africa.

ADVANTAGEOUS COMPETENCES & QUALIFICATIONS

  • Prior experience in project management in the sustainability, agriculture, or development sector.
  • Experience in stakeholder coordination, fund administration, or governance processes in an international or multistakeholder environment.
  • Familiarity with natural rubber supply chains, smallholder livelihoods, or tropical commodity sectors.
  • Familiarity with digital platforms for knowledge sharing or community engagement.

Please send your application to cheewei@gpsnr.org with the email subject: [IA Associate (SH&SIM) – Your Name]

GPSNR Secretariat April 29, 2026
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