Turn difficult questions into rigorous analysis and practical policy for a more secure, productive energy and transport system.
Location: Remote-first within Australia; access to shared workspaces in Melbourne and Sydney, quarterly in-person team meetups, and an annual catch-up with our international colleagues (usually June or July).
Employment: Ongoing, full-time with flexible working hours. Part-time considered.
Salary: $130,000–$180,000 plus superannuation per annum (full-time equivalent).
Reports to: Director of Policy & Analytics
Applications close: Monday 28 September, however applications will be processed as they come in and so we recommend applying as soon as practical.
Who we are
Energy Futures Foundation is an independent, philanthropically funded not-for-profit working to deliver an energy and transport system that is affordable, secure and has minimal impacts on people and the environment.
We are backed by T&E, a global leader in transport and clean energy, and are the Australian arm of a network of more than 150 industrial, commercial and policy experts working across Europe and the Asia-Pacific to accelerate a zero-emissions future.
We focus on unloved, highly technical abatement opportunities in sectors responsible for 15% of global emissions. Australia now faces converging policy windows across five connected problem spaces:
- Commercial transport electrification
- Zero-emissions and low carbon fuels development
- Distributed energy storage, charging and generation infrastructure
- Carbon valuation and emissions accountability
- Scaling zero or low-emissions critical mineral and pre-production supply chains
In our first year, we took up the fight for clean road freight in Australia, the biggest gap in our national net-zero plan. We launched Freight Forward as a national platform to convene industry, policy makers and unions. We presented the Australian Government with an investable policy roadmap designed to displace billions of litres of diesel from our supply chains and strengthen Australia’s energy security.
We’re scaling up to follow through on that mission and expand our impact across maritime, aviation and green exports.
The opportunity
Our ambition is to build an unusually effective Australian institution for the transition: one that can recognise a high-leverage problem or policy window early, assemble the evidence and coalition around it, and carry it from “someone should” to a real policy, market or institution.
As Policy & Analytics Lead, you’ll join EFF’s small founding team and lead agreed policy projects from the first question through analysis, a persuasive proposal and engagement with the people who can act on it. You’ll report to the Director of Policy & Analytics, who sets EFF’s overall policy agenda, analytical standards and narrative, and holds final sign-off on published numbers. Within that direction, you will own the quality, delivery and practical influence of your projects.
What you’ll own
- Own agreed policy projects. Work with the Director to define the problem, intended outcome and plan of work, then take responsibility for delivery. Develop practical policy, regulatory or investment proposals that account for incentives, costs and implementation.
- Build and test the evidence. Build, interrogate and review financial, economic and sector models, from technology costs to program costings and investment barriers. Ground the work in Australian primary sources, test assumptions and make uncertainty and limitations explicit.
- Make the argument land. Turn analysis into persuasive submissions, policy briefings, reports and presentations. Write succinctly for the reader and connect the evidence to EFF’s wider case for change.
- Develop the case with others. Build and manage relationships for your projects across government, industry, research and partner organisations. Test proposals with the people affected, draw on T&E’s international expertise and represent EFF’s agreed evidence and positions within your remit.
- Strengthen the team’s analytical work. Develop reusable models, reliable evidence records and practical AI workflows that improve research and analysis. Work with colleagues and external experts, make the work easy to review and take findings through our quality and publication checks.
What impact looks like
Your projects will give government, industry and partners evidence they can trust and practical proposals they can act on. The analysis will stand up to scrutiny, and the writing will make its significance clear to the people making the decision.
EFF will be able to deliver more substantial policy work with consistent rigour and follow-through across its growing set of programs across freight, maritime, aviation and beyond.
What you’ll bring
We are looking for evidence that you can:
- Frame an ambiguous policy or commercial problem, identify the questions that matter and develop practical options for addressing it.
- Build and interrogate financial and economic models, and present the findings clearly enough to support policy or investment decisions.
- Exercise sound judgement on evidence: trace claims to reliable sources, test assumptions and explain honestly where uncertainty or limitations remain.
- Turn complex analysis into persuasive written argument for senior policy and decision-making audiences, and adapt it for different readers.
- Own a substantial policy project through to delivery, build trusted working relationships and judge when to act independently, seek expertise or escalate.
You may have developed these capabilities in economics, public policy, engineering, finance, research, consulting, government, advocacy, industry or through a less conventional path.
We care more about the quality of your thinking and what you have delivered than a particular degree, title or career path. Strong quantitative capability and policy judgement are essential.
Experience in transport, energy or freight, Australian policy processes or advocacy is useful.
What you can expect from EFF
- Scope that matters. You will work closely with the Director of Policy & Analytics and EFF’s founding team. You will help frame important policy questions, own substantial projects and develop your work with partners who can put it into practice.
- Serious AI capability. We’ve invested heavily in our AI foundations. You will have access to leading AI tools without individual usage limits and work with a founding team designing an AI first operating model for policy advocacy. You will have room to experiment, build your capability and shape how EFF uses AI responsibly and for impact.
- Flexible, sustainable work. We are remote-first and offer flexible hours. We aspire to build capacity through better choices and systems, not routine overwork.
- An international network. T&E, Europe’s leading clean-transport advocacy organisation and a founding partner of EFF, connects us with more than 150 industrial, commercial and policy experts across Europe and the Asia-Pacific.
- A culture of growth, kindness and frankness. We value curiosity, useful feedback, surfacing problems early and making disagreement productive.
The reality of the role
EFF is young, ambitious and deliberately lean. Evidence will sometimes be incomplete, priorities will evolve and policy windows will move. This is a hands-on role: you will work with the data, inspect sources, write the brief and speak with the people whose decisions matter.
You are likely to enjoy this role if you like getting to the bottom of a difficult question, forming a view and testing it with others. You will need to make useful progress under uncertainty and be willing to change your position when the evidence warrants it.
We will agree priorities and make trade-offs explicit. You will have room to act independently within your projects, with the Director providing context, challenge and review. We expect people to keep commitments, flag risks early and follow through on agreed decisions.
How to apply
Write to us at careers@energyfuturesfoundation.org with:
- Your CV, LinkedIn profile or another concise account of your work.
- A note of no more than 600 words answering:
- Which part of EFF’s mission or which policy problem most motivates you, and why?
- Tell us about a difficult question you turned into analysis or a policy proposal that helped someone make a decision. What was your contribution, what did the evidence show and what changed?
Applications close: Monday 28 September, however applications will be processed as they come in and so we recommend applying as soon as practical.
You’ll hear from us within 5 business days.
You can request a reasonable adjustment at any stage of the application or recruitment process by contacting us at careers@energyfuturesfoundation.org. You do not need to disclose a diagnosis.
Applicants who require visa sponsorship are welcome to apply. EFF can sponsor a visa in appropriate circumstances; please tell us about your current Australian work rights and whether you would require sponsorship.
Information submitted through the recruitment process will be handled in accordance with our privacy statement, available at www.energyfuturesfoundation.org/privacy