Eawag, the Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology (Dübendorf, Switzerland) and WSL, the Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (Birmensdorf, Switzerland), are internationally recognized research institutes within the ETH Domain (Swiss Federal Institutes of Technology). They offer excellent facilities for interdisciplinary research and share common goals towards education, research, and technology transfer at the highest international level.
Within the Blue-Green Biodiversity (BGB) Initiative of Eawag and WSL, we invite applications for a
PostDoc position (80-100%, 2 years) on «Inter- and transdisciplinary integration at the interface between science, policy and practice»
This ‘accompanying research’ (‘Begleitforschung’) project will focus on inter- and transdisciplinary (ITD) integration at the interface between science, policy and practice, using the BGB Initiative as an empirical case study. The project will be part of a broader effort within Eawag and WSL to foster systematic learning across larger research projects, programs or initiatives (Wings, Trapego, Trebridge, Extremes) with a view to developing ‘how to’ practical knowledge for designing and implementing future projects, programs or initiatives and for supporting academic careers at the interface between science, policy and practice. In particular, the project will address the following questions:
- How is ITD integration structured at the program and project level?
- What challenges and opportunities do both program and project leaders and members experience in terms of integration? What strategies do they employ to overcome challenges and leverage opportunities?
- What best practices and lessons learned can be derived for future projects, programs or initiatives aiming at fostering integration at the interfaces of science, policy and practice?
- What challenges and opportunities do early career researchers in the field of biodiversity research face in establishing their academic career at the interfaces of science, policy and practice?
- What lessons learned can be derived to support early career researchers in establishing academic careers at the interface?
The successful candidate must have earned an excellent PhD in integrative studies (sustainability science, social sciences – e.g. sociology, political science -, science and technology studies, environmental sciences) and must have experience in ‘accompanying research’, i.e. inquiring into inter- and transdisciplinary processes taking place at the interface between science, policy and practice. Candidates must have experience in applying different qualitative research methods (e.g. semi-structured interviews, participant observations, focus groups, co-creation workshops), conducting qualitative content analysis of collected data (e.g. inductive and/or deductive coding) and writing scientific peer-reviewed publications. Successful candidates should be intrinsically motivated to contribute to inter- and transdisciplinarity in both theory and practice and are expected to have good integrative skills and high social and emotional intelligence. The Postdoc will be sitting and working with other BGB Postdocs at Eawag. The position is fixed to a period of two years and preferably starts in spring 2023.
Eawag is a modern employer and offers an excellent working environment where staff can contribute their strengths, experience and ways of thinking. We promote gender equality and are committed to staff diversity and inclusion. The compatibility of career and family is of central importance to us. For more information about Eawag and our work conditions please consult www.eawag.ch and www.eawag.ch/en/aboutus/working/employment.
If you are excited about working on this timely and challenging research topic within an international and interdisciplinary research team and with the excellent research facilities that Eawag has to offer, then we are looking forward to hearing from you.
Applications must be submitted by 20 February 2023 and should include a CV, a publication list, two recommendation letters as well as two writing samples (e.g. dissertation chapter, conference article or published article).
For further information, please contact Dr Sabine Hoffmann.
We look forward to receiving your application. Please send it through this webpage, any other way of applying will not be c
