Pros
I had an amazing time working with brilliant colleagues there. The organization was incredibly caring and understanding, providing flexible working hours that allowed for an excellent work& life balance -this came after changes triggered by the pandemic. The office itself was lovely, a very safe and healthy place for women, which I found refreshing. Also they are really on top of their game making the place more diverse. The management in my area was superb, and I couldn't have asked for better leadership. I was able to learn a lot under their guidance. Overall, the atmosphere was chill, and everyone was laidback and easy to work with... for the most part, and if you stayed in line with the Centre´s approach. People-wise, I thoroughly enjoyed my time and would highly recommend it to anyone looking for a caring workplace in a lovely city. But certainly not for people seeking transformational impact.
Cons
The organization is incredibly rigid and old-fashioned, particularly in the Science, Policy and Nature Economy areas. It is not very open to change and is unwilling to address the fast transformations required to tackle biodiversity loss and climate change. Instead, the Centre embraces neo-classical economics with submissive acquiescence, sitting in its comfortable but almost fictitious UNEP affiliation, unaware of its own lethargy and how it reproduces harmful policies. The salaries are dreadful, more akin to internship allowances. Recruitment works in mysterious ways. I was hired as an APO despite having more experience than some of the the POs I worked with. Later, when I got promoted to PO, I found myself line managing APOs with more experience than me. This invalidates peoples' previous work and makes some feel like they regressed in their careers when they took this position.