Researcher - Hiring in process/Finished, not possible to apply

LUCSUS has a long and successful history of research with an international reputation throughout the entire sustainability field and offers nationally leading Master’s level degree. About 30 researchers/ teachers are active at LUCSUS.

Researcher in sustainability

Subject description

The EPICC (Environmental Policy Instruments across Commodity Chains - Comparing multi-level governance for Biodiversity Protection and Climate Action in Brazil, Colombia, and Indonesia) project applies a multi-level governance and environmental justice approach to selected commodity chains (cattle, palm oil, gold and tin). By mapping the governance and power links that connect these multiple territories and legal systems with the European market, the project seeks to identify and analyse leverage points, blind spots and shed light on the micro and macro conditions that may facilitate the mitigation of environmental and social impacts that occur at the selected locations of production (in Brazil, Colombia and Indonesia).

The research project centres on the overarching themes of climate change and biodiversity protection within transnational multi-level governance regimes along six different value chains. The project seeks to compare previous Global Commodity Chains studies and the role that transnational networks have in shaping the structure of commodity governance. The project will apply a multi-chain comparative perspective that will generate a comprehensive mapping of the multiple instruments of governance, their convergence, their tensions and the ways in which they overlap, and reciprocally support or undermine each other. Furthermore, the project emphasizes the political ecology of commodity production and circulation, drawing on insights from economic anthropology and world ecology. In particular, we aim to look at the relationship between strategies to minimize the costs of natural resources and labour, on the one hand, and the drivers of biodiversity loss and GHG emissions, on the other.

Work duties

Detailed description of the work duties, such as:

• Research on environmental policy instruments across supply chains, with a focus on cattle and gold mining in Colombia.
• Coordinate and carry out fieldwork and data collection in Colombia, conducting interviews with policy-makers, private corporations, civil society organisations and local stakeholders in selected regions, review policy documents.
• Organize stakeholder interaction and workshops in Colombia.
• Participate in project meetings and relevant international conferences.
• Lead project milestones and deliverables as well as write academic articles on multi-level governance for biodiversity protection and climate change mitigation.
• Actively collaborate with EPICC project partners in the partner countries.
• Seek external research funding for related projects.
• Willingness to contribute to teaching and supervision of graduate students.

Qualification requirements

Applicants must have:

• A PhD or equivalent research qualification with a background in research on sustainability, environmental governance and policy.
• Very good oral and written proficiency in English and Spanish, Portuguese language skills are an additional benefit.
• Documented knowledge and experience in stakeholder engagement, collaborative and transdisciplinary research in multi-partner research projects.
• Documented knowledge and experience in coordinating and carrying out fieldwork in complex contexts, preferably having experience from Latin America.
• Documented knowledge and experience in project relevant research methods, for instance, discourse analysis, policy analysis, participatory social network analysis.
• In addition to a doctorate, the applicant must submit a comprehensive list of subject-relevant (peer-reviewed) publications.

Assessment criteria and other qualifications

• Good knowledge of environmental policy instruments and multi-level governance.
• English and Spanish language competencies.
• Experience in and ability to communicate complexity to local stakeholders.
• Proven track record of scientific publications in high-quality peer reviewed journals.
• Previously obtained external research funding.
• Some previous experience in supervision and teaching is an additional benefit.

Consideration will also be given to good collaborative skills, drive and independence, and how the applicant’s experience and skills complement and strengthen ongoing research within the department, and how they stand to contribute to its future development.

Terms of employment 24-month position, 60%, with preferred start date 2021-04-01

Instructions on how to apply Applications shall be written in English and be compiled into a single PDF-file containing:

• résumé/CV, including a list of peer-reviewed publications and external grants successfully received
• a general description of past research and future research interests (no more than one page) with a focus on the EPICC project and the planned methods to be used, with a focus on cattle and gold mining Colombia.
• contact information of at least two references.
• copy of the doctoral degree certificate.