Freelance Consultant: Integration & Community Project Scoping

## **LHI Germany | Call for Applications**

Freelance Consultant: Integration & Community Project Scoping

**LHI’s Expansion to Berlin**

Lifting Hands International is seeking a freelance consultant to support an initial scoping process for a potential community-based integration initiative for refugees, migrants, and newcomers in Berlin.

This is an exploratory assignment. LHI is not launching a pre-designed project at this stage. Instead, we want to better understand where we could add value in a way that is locally grounded, realistic, partnership-based, and not duplicative of existing work.

## **About Lifting Hands International**

Lifting Hands International is a humanitarian organization supporting refugees, displaced people, and vulnerable communities through practical aid, psychosocial support, education, livelihoods, and community-based programming.

Across our global work, LHI supports and runs projects ranging from emergency and basic-needs assistance to psychosocial support, education, livelihood recovery, community centers, and refugee resettlement support. Our programs include, among others, humanitarian aid distributions in Ukraine, psychosocial support programming for conflict-affected communities in Greece, livestock and livelihood recovery projects in Uganda, and resettlement and community support work in the United States.

LHI’s approach is practical, partnership-oriented, and community led. We often work through or alongside trusted local actors, especially where they are already embedded in the community and well positioned to understand local needs.

In Germany, LHI is exploring whether there may be a meaningful role for a small, locally grounded initiative focused on integration, social connection, community-building, and reducing isolation among refugees, migrants, and newcomers.

## **Purpose of the consultancy**

The purpose of this assignment is to help LHI understand whether there is a feasible and useful role for us in Berlin’s integration and community-support landscape.

The consultant will help answer questions such as:

- What needs and gaps are local actors currently seeing around integration, isolation, social connection, and community support?
- Which organizations, initiatives, or grassroots groups are already active in this space?
- Where would LHI risk duplicating existing work?
- Where could flexible support, partnership, funding, or project development capacity be useful?
- What would a realistic first development step look like?

The assignment should produce a practical recommendation on whether and how LHI should proceed.

The initial focus is expected to be Berlin, but the scoping process may also consider whether another location in Germany, or an additional location alongside Berlin, could offer a stronger or more feasible entry point.

## **Scope of work**

The consultant will conduct a practical, decision-oriented scoping process to help LHI understand whether and how it could add value in Berlin’s integration and community-support landscape, or whether another location in Germany should also be considered.

The assignment may include the following work and outputs:

1. Initial approach and work plan
Prepare a short inception note outlining the proposed approach, priority questions, stakeholder categories, and timeline for the two-month scoping phase.
2. Stakeholder and actor mapping
Map relevant Berlin-based organizations, initiatives, community groups, and possible partners working on refugee support, migrant support, integration, social connection, psychosocial/community wellbeing, and anti-isolation.
3. Stakeholder conversations
Conduct conversations with selected local actors to better understand current needs, service gaps, duplication risks, partnership opportunities, and practical constraints.
4. Needs, gaps, and opportunities summary
Prepare a concise snapshot of key findings, including where local needs appear strongest, what is already being addressed by existing organizations, and where flexible support from LHI could be useful.
5. Location and entry-point assessment
Consider whether Berlin remains the most suitable initial focus, or whether another German location, or an additional location alongside Berlin, should also be explored.
6. Pilot or partnership options
Develop 2–3 realistic low-cost options for how LHI could potentially support, partner, or pilot work. These options should include considerations around target group, possible partners, feasibility, risks, and estimated resource needs.
7. Final recommendation
Prepare a clear final recommendation on whether and how LHI should proceed.

## **Assignment details**

This is a freelance consultancy for an initial two-month scoping phase.

- Estimated level of effort: up to 80 hours over two months, with flexible scheduling and delivery against agreed outputs.
- Fee: €25/hour net, up to a maximum of €2,000 net, plus VAT if applicable.
- Location: Berlin, Germany