Legal Policy Manager

To minimise the risk of unconscious bias, we ask that applicants remove certain identifying elements from their CVs. Further information is provided below but please note that, if you do not remove these details, we reserve the right to withdraw your application from review.

About us

Established in 2021, Opportunity Green is a fast-growing not-for-profit organisation that helps to identify and unlock opportunities to tackle climate change. We build ambitious coalitions, support climate vulnerable countries in international negotiations and find innovative legal pathways to fight climate change.

Our legal team works on climate legal actions relating to the aviation, shipping, agriculture, finance, steel and medium-heavy duty vehicles sectors in the UK, EU, and internationally. We provide strategic legal analysis to support decarbonisation in these sectors; undertake legal interventions, including legal challenges and litigation; and engage in legal advocacy, including submissions to international courts, states, and the United Nations. Our advocacy team works with UK and Brussels policymakers to drive ambitious decarbonisation measures, with a current focus on the aviation and shipping sectors.

What’s the role?

We are now looking for a Legal Policy Manager with strong Brussels policy making experience, to support our legal work in the aviation sector and particular on the upcoming review of the EU’s Emissions Trading System relating to aviation (aviation ETS) and its proposed expansion, among other upcoming EU legislation for the aviation sector. You will be part of our eight-person legal team (who are mostly UK-based), and work closely with those leading our cutting-edge aviation workstream. Based in Brussels yourself, you will also be working closely with our Advocacy team, from our Brussels office. We are looking for someone capable of legal analysis and work, but who is also comfortable with policy strategy and advocacy. This is not a legal-only role.

The role involves undertaking strategic legal work to support policy and advocacy outcomes in the aviation sector, with a focus on the EU. You will use your legal skills to analyse existing legislation, and feed into future legislation, to help unblock perceived legal barriers to aviation decarbonisation and raise policy ambition. Your legal analysis will support policy briefings, consultation responses, and knowledge-building amongst NGOs, particularly (initially) in relation to the aviation ETS and other upcoming key EU legislation. This is a huge opportunity to really make a difference on climate that will require proactivity and nimble thinking.

Stakeholder engagement and advocacy skills are also critical, as you will be engaging with Brussels-based policymakers (including those in the EU Institutions) and other organisations such as NGOs, to maximise the impact of Opportunity Green’s work. You may also be involved in other areas of the legal team’s work, including litigation.

Our legal team is already achieving outsized impact with a great team spirit. Since opening our Brussels office earlier this year, our small but well-regarded EU advocacy team is already building great relationships with key stakeholders and impacting policy conversations.

We are looking for someone who is analytical and organised, but who is also a people person with great communication skills, a collaborative approach and a passion for fighting climate change. Opportunity Green is a growing organisation so you will also be involved in supporting other aspects of work, such as contributing to funding proposals, developing campaign strategy, providing legal input into communications, and taking part in our committees.

About the candidate

We are looking for a candidate with:

• A passion for using their legal skills to tackle climate change and as a lever for systemic change.

• Strong understanding and demonstrated experience of the Brussels policymaking environment.

Desirable skills and experience:

• A qualified lawyer (ideally qualified in the EU) with post qualification experience (essential).

• Strong EU policy and legal knowledge, and experience applying this, is essential. Ideally including in relation to the EU’s Emissions Trading System and other environmental legislation.

• Ability to write high-quality legal analysis, reports and policy briefs with excellent attention to detail.

• Strong communication skills, including ability to distil complicated legal arguments into clear, compelling narratives.

• Ability to work independently and manage workload effectively.

• Committed to collaboration, curiosity and continuous learning.

• Demonstrates good judgement and takes responsibility for delivering outcomes within their area of work, escalating issues where appropriate.

• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.

• Experience collaborating with external stakeholders, including non-legal experts (e.g. other NGOS, legal counsel, policy makers, funders).

• French language skills (written and verbal) are desirable, but not essential.

Diversity and inclusion

Diversity and inclusion are important principles at Opportunity Green. We believe that diversity and inclusion make teams stronger and more effective. We are committed to fair and equitable employment practices, and we are striving to ensure that a variety of voices and experiences are included in our organisation. Our commitment to diversity and our parental leave policy are available to view on our website, here.

We will consider all applicants who meet most or all of the essential competencies regardless of their identity or background. That said, we know that diverse candidates may be reluctant to apply for jobs where they don’t meet 100% of the criteria outlined in the job description. We encourage anyone to apply who can demonstrate the variety of skills and experiences relevant to meeting the requirements of this role.

We recognise that many diverse experiences and perspectives are not represented in our current workforce, and are seriously underrepresented across the non-profit sector in general, and as such, we particularly welcome applications from people with disabilities, non-white people, people from marginalised backgrounds, and members of the LGBTQIA+ communities.

To learn more about our application process and receive advice on how to prepare in such a way as to showcase your full potential, please find our Application Guide here.

What we offer

The successful candidate will be offered an annual salary of €60,000. Please note that Opportunity Green has fixed salary scales. When hiring we always hire at the bottom of a band and do not enter negotiations with new employees as negotiations have been historically shown to disadvantage women and minorities.

We take our team’s well-being and professional development seriously. In addition to a competitive salary, we offer:

· A commitment to work/life balance, with a 4-day work week at 28 hours.

· 8% employer-contributed group pension plan

· A generous holiday entitlement of 20 days’ holiday per year, including 4 extra-legal days, plus bank holidays (in Brussels) and office closure between Christmas and New Year’s that does not count towards your holiday entitlement (and expectation that you fully disconnect when taking time off).

· A progressive family leave policy, including 26 weeks’ paid leave for both parents, as well as other support.

· Lots of flexibility within a hybrid working arrangement, with regular opportunities to come together as a team.

· Support for your professional development as part of Opportunity Green, with a budget to support your learning & development plus opportunities to lead projects, publish content, learn from experts, work directly with policymakers and stakeholders, and take part in conferences and events.

However, it is important to note that while this role is permanent, employment is always reliant on Opportunity Green continuing to receive philanthropic support from our funders, which we expect every member of the team to play their part in working towards.

How to apply

To minimise the risk of unconscious bias, we ask that applicants remove certain identifying elements from their CVs. If you do not remove these details, we reserve the right to withdraw your application from review.

• Photos

• Name – if needed, please use ‘Applicant’

• Age

• Email and/or phone number

We also reserve the right to withdraw your application from review if you use AI tools such as Chat GPT to complete the sift questions / write your CV.

Unfortunately, if you do not already hold the right to work in Belgium, Opportunity Green will not be able to consider your application at this time.

The closing date for applications is 5 January 2026 at 11am CET.  

We actively encourage applicants to reach out if there are any reasonable adjustments we can make to help them demonstrate their full potential in the hiring process. 

Please get in touch at recruitment@opportunitygreen.org and we can discuss how to best make the recruitment process as accessible and comfortable for you as possible.

You can read our application guide here.

What happens next?

Shortlisted candidates will be invited for an online interview to discuss their experience and suitability for the role. After this, candidates that are most suitable for the vacancy will be invited for an in-person interview in our London office, for which there may also be a short task. Travel will be reimbursed for non-London-based applicants (within the UK).

Online interviews are likely to take place w/c 19 January. In person interviews will likely be shortly after this (w/c 26 January).

We reserve the right to ask for references during the recruitment process.

If you have any questions, or you need any reasonable adjustments at the application stage, please contact recruitment@opportunitygreen.org.