3 PhD positions on environmental justice & circular economy (UCLouvain)

June 25, 2024 - Categorised in: -

At UCLouvain, the Institute for the Analysis of Change in Contemporary and Historical Societies (IACCHOS), the Louvain Research Institute in Management and Organisations (LouRIM), and the Louvain Platform for Partnership Research on Ecological and Social Transition (LPTransition) are seeking to recruit 3 PhD research fellows in the following areas 

  • PhD1 – One doctoral fellowship in sociology and organization studies, with competences in settling of ethical conflicts in organizational settings, for 4 years 
  • PhD2 – One doctoral fellowship in management and social entrepreneurship, with competences in participatory governance, for 4 years 
  • PhD3 – One doctoral fellowship in human or social geography, with competences in quantitative and/or qualitative analysis of environmental justice issues, for 4 years

Description 

THE RESEARCH PROJECT  

The 3 PhD research fellows will work together in the research project “Analysing and Identifying the Circular Economy’s contribution to a just Transition. A Transdisciplinary Environmental Justice Approach in the Brussels Capital Region” (AICE-T-) 

The aim of the AICE-T project is to identify and analyse the potential contributions of circular economy initiatives to achieving just transitions. The AICE-T project asks the following two research questions: 

  1. what are the existing practices used by circular economy initiatives to address the social and environmental issues raised in the context of their activities? 
  2. how to create capacities of engagement of actors in the circular economy initiatives for contributing to improved environmental justice outcomes, in particular through social learning on values conflicts and the formation of shared narratives of change?

To address the research questions, the AICE-T project will use an innovative transdisciplinary research design, combining an assessment of existing circular economy initiatives in the Brussels Region with a set of participatory research methodologies geared toward capacity building and the fostering of organisational change. The full project text can be downloaded here.  

 

THE RESEARCH ENVIRONMENT 

The researchers will benefit from the research environment of the different teams that contribute to the AICE-T project and will be hosted in the offices of one the supervisors. These research teams have been awarded several major national and European research grants in the past. With their strong focus on high quality research and with research covering the fields of management, organizational and labour sociology, human geography, political science, and philosophy, they offer a vibrant and stimulating interdisciplinary research environment.  

The different websites of the project promotors can be accessed here.  

More specifically, the different PhD research fellows will conduct their PhD under the supervision of the following teams of co-promotors:  

  • PhD1 One doctoral fellowship in sociology and organization studies, with competences in settling of ethical conflicts in organizational settings – Matthieu de Nanteuil (promotor) and Tom Dedeurwaerdere (co-promotor) 
  • PhD2 One doctoral fellowship in management and social entrepreneurship, with competences in participatory governance – Julie Hermans (promotor) and Tom Dedeurwaerdere (co-promotor)
  • PhD3 One doctoral fellowship in human or social geography, with competences in quantitative and/or qualitative analysis of environmental justice issues  – Brendan Coolsaet (promotor) and Tom Dedeurwaerdere (co-promotor) 

 

PHD BENEFITS 

The positions are strongly research oriented with very limited organizational duties and no teaching obligations. We offer a competitive remuneration package (including a monthly allowance, social security and insurance expenses) and generous funding of research related activities (participation to conferences and research missions in selected developed and developing countries). The research fellowships are granted for 4 years (full time contract, 38h/week schedule). 

 

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION 

Further information on the application procedure can be obtained from Chantal Herman, chantal.herman (at) uclouvain.be 

For additional information about the positions, you can contact the (co)promotors : matthieu.denanteuil (at) uclouvain.be, tom.dedeurwaerdere (at) uclouvain.be, julie.hermans (at) uclouvain.be , brendan.coolsaet (at) uclouvain.be  

 

APPLICATION PROCESS 

Starting date: 1st of October 2024 

Application deadline: 19th of August 23h 

Interview: 3rd of September 2024. Applicants should keep this date free to be able to participate to the interview. 

 

Submission process 

Please apply online through https://jobs.uclouvain.be/    

The application should contain the following documents 

  • Your detailed CV 
  • A motivation letter (max 2 pages) 
  • A copy of your master thesis and/or a published peer-reviewed paper 
  • Name of 1 or 2 reference persons we could contact for information on your profile

Please do not include additional documents beyond those listed above. 

 

Requirements 

Qualifications: master Degree or equivalent  

Languages: The daily research work will be in English. However, 2 of the 3 research fellows will also conduct fieldwork in French in Brussels. We therefore seek to hire 2 PhD research fellows with good English and good French language skills and 1 PhD research fellow with good English skills. 

< 1 research fellows: only good English skills required 

< 2 research fellows: good English and good French language skills required  

 

Selection process 

Application deadline: 19th of August 23h (Brussels time zone) 

Interview: 3rd of September 2024, between 9h and 13h, in 1348 Louvain-la-Neuve. Candidates who are selected will be invited for an in-person interview in Louvain-la-Neuve. Applicants should keep this date free to be able to participate to the interview. 

Starting date: 1st of October 2024 

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