Applications for this role will be reviewed in early January, and the final deadline for submission is January 12, 2024. The ideal candidate should be based in South Africa, and this opportunity is a 1 year, fixed-term, part-time role at 20 hours per week.

The Mozilla Foundation is a nonprofit public benefit organization. Our mission is to ensure that the Internet is a global public resource, open and accessible to all. Join us and become part of our mission to promote openness, innovation, and opportunity online!

Twenty years ago, this meant building a browser and protecting the open web. Today, it also includes making sure AI and data driven technology is more trustworthy. In order to focus on places where Mozilla can impact the next era of our work, we are increasingly working on the topic of trustworthy AI. For us, this means especially two things: human agency is a core part of how AI is built and integrated, and corporate accountability is real and enforced.

About the Team

In today’s rapidly evolving digital landscape we grapple with issues like digital surveillance, AI-enabled discrimination, recommender systems that promote mis/disinformation, and inequitable access to technology. It is not enough to just acknowledge these challenges. We need to actively address them. This is why Mozilla is committed to responsible computing - training the next generation of technologists to build a more just, healthier tech ecosystem that’s in the public interest.

So in 2018 Mozilla launched The Responsible Computing Challenge (RCC) to spotlight and award promising approaches to developing more socially responsible university undergraduate curricula and pedagogy in the computing and technology-related fields. Based on the premise that today’s computer scientists wield profound power over billions of people with the code they write, the Challenge strives to empower and educate a new wave of graduating technologists who bring more well-rounded thinking to the design of tech products, better understand the human impact of the tech tools they craft, and ultimately play a leading role in a culture shift toward a more just ecosystem in the tech industry.

Our aim is to advance on the long arc of the Challenge’s ultimate purpose: a pedagogical shift in how computing and related fields are taught at the undergraduate level, offering a new way of thinking that advises and evolves the talent pipeline flowing into the tech ecosystem, and ultimately, a more “just tech ecosystem.” A more just (or equitable) tech ecosystem includes training future technologists with a well-rounded view of tech and society, helping industry discern how to hire candidates who think critically about social issues, and influencing culture in the broad computing field to prioritize expertise across subject areas, policies, and social norms.

RCC is now active across the USA, Kenya, India with the next launch being in South Africa.

About the role

We are seeking a Responsible Computing Youth Coordinator who will join the RCC team as it launches in the South African higher education space. In your role, you will support the South African Fellow, and the Program Associate, in developing and implementing the program’s strategy in South Africa. You will serve as a link between internal administrative and operational efforts, and external community-building and outreach initiatives. You will help to align Mozilla’s strategy and implementation in South Africa with local student needs, networks, and organizational group interests across the country. This involves outreach activities and familiarity (or a willingness to gain familiarity) with various student groups like Student Representative Councils (SRCs), the South Africa Union of Students (SAUS), and the South Africa Student Congress (SASCO), to 

help build opportunities for students to engage with responsible computing topics and issue areas beyond the classroom, and 

assist RCC in working with these groups to understand and address barriers for students to significant and lasting employment in the South African tech ecosystem.

The ideal candidate will be someone who has a proven dedication for issues of social impact, equity, inclusivity and how these presents in tech, has tackled leadership and responsibility commitments through their undergraduate education and in student organizations, and who is looking to learn more about topics including inter alia AI, data privacy, and platform accountability.

As a  Youth Coordinator at Mozilla, you will help…

• Identifying and building community relationships between student bodies, organizations and initiatives (30%)
• Assisting the South African Fellow and the Program Associate with the strategy design of the program's regional expansion (20%)
• Serving as a local student ambassador for RCC in South Africa and a thought partner (10%)
• Providing feedback on the South African student experience landscape (10%)
• Providing administrative support to South African grantees and partners (10%)
• Supporting Mozilla cross-programmatic and RCC global opportunities and efforts ( 10%)
• Undertaking marketing, communication and social media activities (5%)
• Supporting the planning of local events (virtual and in-person), such as workshops, conferences, and career fairs (5%)

Your Professional Profile:

Either currently pursuing the final year of a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree at an accredited university in South Africa, or a recent graduate (less than 1 year from graduation). Candidates do not need to have a degree in Computer Science (CS) or related fields, but familiarity with CS/related topics and interdisciplinary curricula is a bonus.

Key proficiency

• Strong oral and written communication skills (English, although a working familiarity with other official South African languages is a bonus)
• Strong understanding of the South African student experience and landscape
• Standout colleague – demonstrates willingness to learn and is flexible in assignment needs
• Self-sustaining – projects require team members who can work with minimal oversight
• Initiative - takes initiative while doing analysis to explore additional opportunities

Salary and Benefits Information:

The Mozilla Foundation is dedicated to fair and equitable compensation for our staff. We aim to pay a competitive and market-based salary based on the responsibilities and requirements of the role. We do not ask for, or take into account, salary histories in our offer process.

The starting salary ranges for this role (for 20 hrs/week) are listed below. 

• South Africa:  [R300,721.50 - R338,226.05] [target salary offer - R310,385.42]

  [$16,875 - $18,980.14] [target salary offer - $17,417.82]

The range for your specific location will be discussed in screening conversations if your application is successful.

We offer the following benefits:

• Private Medical Insurance
• Extended Sick Leave
• Global Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
• Retirement Plan contributions
• Paid Time Off: 20 days annual leave + sick days and your birthday  
• Company Holidays + Shutdown
• Wellness budget
• Professional Development budget
• Top up program for Pregnancy and Parental leaves

Benefits are subject to change at any time at the discretion of Mozilla Foundation.

Mozilla Foundation Hiring Practices:

Mozilla understands that valuing diverse creative practices and forms of knowledge are crucial to and enrich the company’s core mission. We encourage applications from everyone, including members of all equity-seeking communities, such as (but certainly not limited to) women, racialized and Indigenous persons, persons with disabilities, and persons of all sexual orientations and gender identities and expressions. We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status. 

We will ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment. Please contact us to request accommodation at accommodation@mozillafoundation.org.