Call for Independent Contractor

United States Institute of Peace

Independent Contractor: Policy Specialist

Remote or Washington D.C.

Release Date: July 29, 2024

Proposal Due Date: 5pm EST on August 12, 2024

Introduction and Background

The United States Institute of Peace (USIP) is a national, nonpartisan, independent institute, founded by Congress and dedicated to the proposition that a world without violent conflict is possible, practical, and essential for U.S. and global security. In conflict zones abroad, the Institute works with local partners to prevent, mitigate, and resolve violent conflict. For more information, please visit http://www.usip.org.

USIP’s Center for Thematic Excellence (CTE) is the hub for thematic programs whose work cuts across the Institute’s regional centers. Housed within CTE, the Learning, Evaluation and Research (LER) team aims to make USIP a more evidence-based, learning and impactful organization. LER is the Institute’s hub for standards on project design, monitoring and evaluation (M&E), learning, and research. The team works to enhance and strengthen the systems and practices for capturing, sharing, and leveraging knowledge across USIP to enable learning and improve decision making at the project, program, and organizational levels. 

Purpose of the RFP

USIP is seeking an independent contractor to help its Learning, Evaluation, and Research (LER) Team disseminate the findings and recommendations from the recently completed project, Peacemaking in a Turbulent World as a policy specialist. The key audience/s for the findings and recommendations are senior policymakers and practitioners in the conflict management and peacemaking field. The policy specialist will help refine and package the current project findings to make them relevant and practical for policy planners and implementors in the U.S. government, the United Nations (UN), other international organizations, and nongovernmental organizations (NGO). The work will include identifying the most relevant audiences, designing a dissemination/engagement strategy, and working with the LER team to implement the strategy. The policy specialist will have a Master’s level degree and 8-10 years of demonstrated experience in conflict management and peacebuilding, with direct relevant experience in at least one of the following: the U.S. government, a multilateral agency, or international non-governmental organization (NGO).

Background and Scope of Work

As part of the Peacemaking in a Turbulent World (PTW) project, USIP convened an expert panel of eminent scholars and researchers to explore lessons learned in the management of conflicts in prior periods of global turbulence – principally, during the post-Cold War era (roughly the 1990s) – and their implications for today. The panel met three times over a four-month period from 2023 to 2024, informed by background papers that provided a review of recent research and findings. The first session examined trends, drivers, and dynamics of current conflicts and how they differ from conflicts in the past. The second session investigated the capacity of states, international organizations, and NGOs to engage in peacemaking and challenges to traditional approaches such as peacekeeping, mediation and negotiation. The third session considered ethical and operational dilemmas facing today’s peacemakers and drew lessons learned from experience. The sessions produced three discussion papers and one overall report with policy recommendations.

The next phase of the project is to engage strategically and effectively with relevant policymakers and practitioners to promote the uptake of the recommendations among governmental and nongovernmental strategic planners and other key decision-makers at the policy level. To facilitate a process of dissemination and engagement, USIP is soliciting proposals for a contractor to work with USIP staff to:

• Provide a report that identifies the most relevant audiences;
• Produce a report that packages current findings to make them relevant and practical for policy planners and implementors in the U.S. government, the United Nations, other international organizations, and NGOs;
• Produce a report outlining a dissemination/engagement strategy for LER to further the reach of the findings and recommendations; and
• Coordinate with the LER team to implement the strategy through events and briefing papers.

The consultant is expected to provide services for 3 months.

Tentative Timeline

A tentative timeline for the completion of deliverables is provided below. USIP will work with the selected proposer to finalize deliverables and deliverable due dates upon selection.

Expected Type of Contract: Firm-fixed price.

Submission Requirements

Any proposal that does not contain all items listed below may be considered nonresponsive. For more detail on the selection process, including corresponding evaluation criteria, please see Section V below. To be considered under this RFP, please submit the following:

1. Technical Requirements To be considered, please submit a cover letter of no more than 3 pages (1-2 is preferred) with the following information:
   1. Motivations Summarize your motivations for applying, with focus on your interest in evidence-informed policy in the field of conflict management and peacemaking.
   2. Previous Experience Based on the information provided in this RFP, describe your knowledge and experience of engaging with senior policy planners and other relevant decision-makers. Describe at least two projects of similar scope and complexity the offeror has worked on previously. Provide a point of contact with telephone number and email address for each of the described projects. 
2. Curriculum Vitae (CV) Please provide a CV of no more than 3 pages. CVs will not count towards technical narrative proposal page limit.
3. Cost Proposal Provide a detailed budget specifying hourly or daily rate and any other costs and a budget narrative. Budget must be in US dollars. Detailed budgets should be in spreadsheet format. A template may be found here.
4. Certification Page Complete and sign the Certification Page below and submit with the proposal.
5. Exceptions to Contract Terms (optional) Any exceptions to the attached USIP Terms & Conditions must be clearly outlined in an annex to the submitted proposal. The annex will not count toward the technical proposal page limit.

Selection Process

Schedule

USIP may adjust dates in the schedule or cancel this RFP at any time prior to contract award.

Evaluation Criteria

Proposals will be evaluated based on the criteria below. For more detail on each submission requirement, see Section IV of this RFP. The USIP Selection Committee will review all proposals received on time using the evaluation criteria established below based on the best value offered to USIP. The Selection Committee reserves the right to reject any or all proposals, in whole or in part, to award multiple contracts, and/or to enter into negotiations with any party, in the best interests of the Institute.

General Instructions and Terms

1. Complete proposals must be submitted by email to David Connolly at Dconnolly@usip.org by 5pm EST on August 12, 2024.
2. The Institute is not liable for any costs incurred by offerors prior to issuance of an executed contract with the Institute.
3. Submissions must be typed and submitted electronically and must include all submission requirements outlined in the Submission of Requirements section of this RFP. No changes or corrections to a response will be allowed after the deadline.
4. All submissions should be in English and US dollars.
5. Any questions concerning this RFP should be directed to Sandra Tombe at Stombe@usip.org. Pertinent responses will be made available to all offerors by email. No inquiries will be accepted after specified time and date.
6. Any proposal not addressing all RFP requirements may be considered non-responsive. Late proposals may be rejected as non-responsive.
7. This RFP is not an offer to enter into an agreement with any party, but rather a request to receive proposals from offerors (organizations or persons) interested in providing the services outlined herein. Such proposals shall be considered and treated by USIP as offers to enter into a contract.
8. USIP shall not be obligated for the payment of any sums whatsoever to any recipient of this RFP until and unless a written contract between the parties is executed.
9. Unless stated otherwise within this RFP, the selected Contractor shall be responsible for providing all equipment and/or supplies required to perform the services.
10. The selected Contractor shall not discriminate against any person in accordance with Federal, state, or local law.
11. The submission of any materials to USIP in response to this RFP will constitute (i) a representation that the Offeror owns or has unrestricted license to use and license such materials and all intellectual property expressed therein; and (ii) the grant of a non-exclusive license to USIP to use such materials and intellectual property for any purpose, including specifically the evaluation, negotiation, and documentation of a contract with any party.
12. Offeror will commit to adhering to the attached USIP Terms & Conditions, else risk removal from consideration. Exceptions to these terms must be clearly outlined in an annex to the Technical Proposal. Please reach out to [David Connolly] to request a copy of USIP Terms and Conditions if they are not attached to the solicitation.

Certification Page
(Please submit with the proposal)