About Us

The Sunrise Project is a network of passionate changemakers driven by a shared mission to scale social movements that can drive the urgent transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy. We believe in the power of people to solve the climate crisis, and we work alongside partners around the world to shift the systems — financial, political, and cultural — that are holding back climate action.

Since launching in Australia in 2012, Sunrise has grown into a global network of independent organisations with over 140 staff across 13 countries. We work behind the scenes to support bold strategies, build capacity in the climate movement, and catalyse collective action for impact at speed and scale. Our work is grounded in strong relationships, deep collaboration, and a fierce commitment to justice.

We’re proud of the culture we’ve built — one that centres trust, care, and the belief that how we work matters as much as what we do. We actively strive to reflect our values in how we lead, collaborate, and show up with our partners and each other. You can read about our values here.

About the role 

As Senior Content Strategist, you will play a pivotal role in creating and shaping narratives that elevate how The Sunrise Project engages its global network of philanthropic partners.  This newly created role will work closely with relationship managers and senior leaders across the organization to craft high-impact narratives, develop content systems, and implement AI-enhanced tools to streamline narrative creation process where strategic.  

Far beyond grant writing, this position is about crafting compelling, high-caliber stories and donor materials that inspire action across a diverse global network of philanthropic partners. You'll translate complex strategies into emotionally resonant content that reflects the authentic voices of our program teams and the communities we serve.. This is an opportunity to bring creativity, strategy, and craft to a fast-growing global campaigning and philanthropic entity, ensuring that the stories we tell not only inform but mobilize resources, advance equity, and catalyze systemic change.

This role offers an exceptional opportunity for a strong writer to contribute to foundational work at the intersection of philanthropy,  technology and climate communications. Success in this position requires building deep trusting relationships across the Sunrise Project network, becoming a strategic partner rather than solely a service provider. You will handle sensitive information and build scalable content processes that form the foundation of our most compelling stories, requiring both exceptional relationship skills and strong ethical judgment in story development.

About the team

The Philanthropic Partnerships Team at The Sunrise Project is the dynamic engine behind mobilizing financial resources to power strategic interventions across the global climate justice movement. As a relatively new and rapidly evolving team, we act as the “connective tissue” between The Sunrise Project network of entities and our philanthropic partners—ensuring that our partners are inspired, valued, and deeply engaged collaborators. With a focus on high-impact stewardship, creative collaboration, and strategic storytelling, our goal is to build a resilient and diverse funding base to accelerate clean energy transition. This is an exciting moment to join a growing team at a global philanthropy working at the intersection of justice, climate, and clean energy.  

About you

You are a skilled writer that turns sophisticated, complex program strategies into purposeful communications that deepen relationships with funders and allies—focusing on clarity, connection, and creativity rather than one-size-fits-all content. You'll collaborate with senior leaders and AI consultants to produce compelling content, using AI to enhance creativity while maintaining human expertise. While AI tools can expand our capacity, we know that they cannot replace the expertise, discernment, and adaptability of a skilled human writer and communications strategist—especially when it comes to ensuring content accuracy and tailored messaging for our diverse network of philanthropic partners. 

You will help establish governance structures, define workflows, and build customisable resources—such as templates and toolkits—that support efficient, consistent, and values-driven communications across the TSP network. 

Key Responsibilities:

• Crafts high-caliber, compelling narratives—including proposals, impact reports, and donor communications—that inspire philanthropic action and reflect our mission.

• Leads narrative strategy and messaging, identifying powerful themes and ensuring alignment with organizational priorities and audience interests.

• Builds trusted relationships with executive leadership and program staff to uncover, develop, and elevate authentic stories with dignity, nuance, and impact.

• Translates complex programmatic and data insights into clear, engaging content across formats and platforms while maintaining consistent brand voice.

• Champions innovative approaches to storytelling, leveraging technology and AI where appropriate while preserving human-centered narratives.

• Develops and maintains a centralized content and asset library, ensuring ease of use and brand consistency across teams.

• Collaborates cross-functionally with design, legal, and program teams to deliver polished, timely, and compliant content.

• Tracks trends in donor communications and storytelling, bringing creative, fresh approaches to donor engagement and narrative framing.

• Builds and manages a knowledge management tool and related workflows (including AI-enhanced approaches) that improves how our network creates and shares information, working within strategic frameworks established by senior leadership.

• Collaborates with consultants to develop custom GPTs and automated content processes, testing and refining tools to ensure they meet real user needs across all entities. 

• Ensures AI-enhanced systems maintain brand consistency and content quality while providing training and support to help teams maximize their effectiveness.

Required Skills and Experience    

• Exceptional writing and editorial skills, with a portfolio demonstrating clarity, creativity, and the ability to tailor messages to diverse audiences—including philanthropic and mission-aligned stakeholders (or similar).

• Proven experience developing content strategies that align with organizational goals and adapt across channels (e.g., memos, reports, decks, websites).

• Track record of working in high-trust, relationship-oriented environments, preferably within philanthropic, nonprofit, or advocacy sectors; able to translate complex programmatic work into accessible and compelling narratives.

• Strong conceptual thinker, able to rapidly generate content ideas, test multiple approaches, and creatively problem-solve under deadline pressure.

• Demonstrated experience with AI-enhanced content tools, automated workflows, and ability to collaborate on technical tool development and training;

• High level of emotional intelligence with excellent interpersonal, communication and group facilitation skills;

• A working knowledge of how social movements achieve change including both elite engagement and outside pressure strategies;.

• A passion for supporting action on climate change and a commitment to social justice.

• Track record of using content to influence or inspire action, such as for donor engagement, campaign mobilization, or public awareness efforts.

• Experience contributing to or maintaining brand and editorial guidelines, including tone of voice, visual standards, and accessibility considerations.

Desirable Skills and Experience   

• Background in journalism, editorial leadership, or long-form storytelling, with a demonstrated ability to extract meaningful narratives from complex or technical information.

• Experience working in philanthropy, climate, advocacy, or global justice sectors, with an understanding of power dynamics, equity-centered messaging, and values-aligned communications.

• Multilingual or multicultural experience, especially in global or distributed teams, with sensitivity to linguistic nuance and audience diversity.

• Experience in networked or matrixed organizations, especially where influence and collaboration matter more than hierarchy.

• Ability to build scalable content systems, including templates, governance protocols, and processes that increase efficiency and consistency across teams.

• Familiarity with AI-enhanced content tools (e.g., ChatGPT, Jasper, Notion AI), not just as writing assistants but as systems for scaling workflows or unlocking team creativity.

Job Requirements

• You must have full working rights in the country in which you will be working. The Sunrise Project is unable to sponsor applicants for employment visas.

• Employment background checks are required.

• Previous employment reference checks will be required for successful applicants

• Intermittent travel with advanced notice may be required.

How Sunrise Supports its Staff

The Sunrise Project Australia is committed to creating a workplace that supports our staff to do their best work and develop professionally. We have the following in place to help us achieve that, noting pro rata will apply for part time staff and/or temporarily appointed staff:

• Superannuation 12.5% & Salary Sacrifice for Superannuation

• Sunrise Time Off:

  • Additional Annual Leave 5 days p.a.

  • Long Service Leave available after 5 years of service

  • Birthday Leave 1 day p.a.

  • Solidarity and Community Leave 1 week p.a

  • Cultural Leave 4 days p.a (+ floating public holidays)

  • Gifted Leave (over Christmas and New Year)

  • Paid Parental Leave of 7.5 mths (inclusive of GPPL) - gender-neutral & inclusive of all family types, incl. Parental Return To Work & Keeping In Touch Program

  • Life Leave up to 40 days p.a. for significant personal reasons

• Flexible Working Policy

• Employee Assistance Program

• VIDA - An AI tool to support you working safely remotely

• Generous allowances for:

• Workspace Benefits incl: A Macbook, initial $2,000 for home workspace and IT equipment + $800 every 2 years + up to $75/mth phone/data/internet.

• Shared office support

• Regular all-org and team meetings & retreats

• Learning & Development Program incl. a professional development budget for you

• Coaching & manager support with regular 1:1 meetings

• Annual performance & development reviews with 360 feedback

• A co-developed work plan to ensure clarity on your role & key responsibilities

How to apply for this job

We recognize that racism, sexism, ableism, homophobia, classism and other forms of discrimination creates structural barriers that impact opportunities to formal education and experience. When assessing candidates we look at more than the jobs you've been paid to do but the range of ways you've picked up skills and knowledge throughout your life. This is why we assess candidates on how well they respond to application questions. You will be asked to respond to short answer questions and share a past writing sample.