Reports to: Director, Organised Crime and Policing Studies
Department: Organised Crime and Policing
Salary range: €55,000-€65,000 1FTE based on skills and experience, salary will be pro-rated based on agreed hours per week for this part time role
Location: Brussels
Contract: Fixed Term Contract until October 2026, Part-Time
Applicants must have the legal right to work in the European Union at the time of application. Please note that we are unable to sponsor visas, or work permits for this position.
About RUSI
The Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) is the world’s oldest and the UK’s leading defence and security think tank. Its mission is to inform, influence and enhance public debate on a safer and more stable world. RUSI is a research-led institute, producing independent, practical and innovative analysis to address today’s complex challenges.
RUSI’s Energy and Security Programme delivers evidence-led, policy-relevant analysis on the intersection of energy systems, geopolitics, climate science and national security. Our work helps governments, industry, and civil society understand how energy markets, technological and climatic change, and global supply chains impact national and international security, and vice versa.
About the role
The successful candidate will lead a project of networking and research to bring together security, defence, energy and climate communities. You will identify pathways to improve knowledge sharing and coordination on energy and climate security issues by forming a new RUSI-led community, founded in Brussels. The successful candidate will work closely with RUSI Europe, RUSI’s Energy and Security Programme and other RUSI research groups to deliver a programme of events, culminating in a published research paper. You will work from our Brussels Office in order to build an impactful community.
Key Tasks
- Build and maintain a network, via formal and informal engagements, spanning core defence and climate teams within the European Commission, NATO, European defence ministries and defence industries.
- Use this network to develop agendas for two Strategic Dialogues with the aim of supporting the Munich Security Conference in February 2026 and NATO Summit Ankara in July 2026 discussing:
- Dual-use technologies and supply chains,
- How sustainability can support resilience targets.
- Lead organisation and delivery of a one-day conference in Brussels on dual use technologies and resilience in energy, climate and defence.
- Lead the organisation and delivery of two track 1.5 dialogues, one in Brussels and one in London, on UK-EU collaboration on climate and energy security, ensuring appropriate stakeholders are represented and engaged. · Lead drafting of a public Insight Report of up to 7,000 words including insights from the dialogues, research interviews when needed, and an analysis of how defence understands and is responding to climate change.
- Lead on external and internal project reporting, including monitoring and evaluation.
- With the support of RUSI’s Communications and Marketing team, produce a set number of public-facing communication material, including commentary pieces, Op-Eds, and Multimedia, on topics and themes related to the European Energy Security.
The above list of duties is not exhaustive. The post holder will be required to undertake such duties that may reasonably be expected within the scope and grade of the role.
Person Specification
Essential skills and experience:
- Examples of previous network-building initiatives within key institutions such as the European Commission and European governments. Preferably for defence and/or climate issues.
- A strong professional track record of delivery and insight on defence, climate and/or energy in a research, government or private sector setting.
- Excellent communication, interpersonal and negotiating and influencing skills, including the ability to communicate effectively and manage relationships with a wide range of stakeholders who do not necessarily agree on key issues, including both defence and climate communities
- Excellent communication skills, orally and in writing with a particular interest in communicating technical information to a non-technical audience.
- Excellent communication and interpersonal skills including the ability to communicate effectively with a wide range of stakeholders and ability to present complex information and demonstrating strong literacy skills.
Desirable Criteria
- Experience of managing research and/or convening projects involving government, including financial management.
- Experience of solution-oriented thinking, linking research to policy recommendations or solutions.
- Evidence of previous policy publications.
Our expectations
We expect all staff to abide by and promote our RUSI’s Vision and Values https://rusi.org/content/values and Equal Opportunities Statement
Application Process
We want to hear from all voices and particularly encourage individuals of diverse and marginalised communities to apply. If there is a requirement in the job description which you feel you don’t quite meet but are still keen to apply, then please do.
To apply, please click on the apply button and follow the instructions.
- Your CV.
- Cover Letter of no more than 1 page explaining your interest in the role and any significant relevant skills and/or experience.
The closing date for applications is 23:59 BST on 14 th November 2025.
Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis, and the closing date brought forward if needed. Early application is strongly encouraged. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.
Please DO NOT submit multiple applications for this vacancy. We no longer accept applications to our recruitment mailbox, applications received in our mailbox will not be processed.
Equal Opportunity and Values
At RUSI you will be appreciated and valued. Our stakeholders, transactions, and projects are international and diverse, so we work hard to create inclusive teams that support our efforts and each other. We are committed in promoting equality and diversity in our workforce and make it as diverse as the communities we serve. Our recruitment data helps us monitor the effectiveness of our recruitment practices in order that we can continue to improve on creating a more diverse workforce.
We’re aware that the questionnaire may not capture the rich complexities of our backgrounds and identities, so we apologise if these are not best described. Please note that this data will be kept confidential and separated from your job application. If you are uncomfortable sharing, choose "Prefer not to say" or skip the questions entirely.
If you have any questions, please contact hr@rusi.org