Post doctoral researcher Improving the implementation and performance of Marine Governance; what is the role for digital governance tools?

Wageningen University & Research

Wageningen, Netherlands 🇳🇱

Your job

Do you hold a PhD degree in Political Science, Human Geography, Sociology, Environmental/ Marine Science or a related field? Do you have experience in social scientific research of complex sustainability governance issues? Then you may be the one we are looking for!

The Environmental Policy Group of Wageningen University has a vacancy for a post-doctoral researcher for the Horizon Europe funded programmes Improving the PERformance of MArine GOVernance (PERMAGOV), which ENP coordinates, and the BLUE4ALL project.  
The successful candidate will explore the role that digital governance tools play in overcoming institutional barriers to change, and how these tools enable development and implementation of strategies that contribute to the realization of the European Green Deal and EU’s commitments to establish effective MPA networks.

PERMAGOV focuses on improving the implementation and performance of EU marine policies to reach the goals set in the European Green Deal. It aims to identify and overcome critical institutional barriers that hinder the implementation of EU marine policies. PERMAGOV, being a consortium of social scientists, decision-makers, industry and NGOs, will co-develop and demonstrate the applicability of a Marine Governance Performance Assessment Framework. The outcomes of the assessment will feed into the co-creation of collaborative and digital Marine Governance Strategies that foster the capabilities of actors to implement EU marine policies within the realms of Marine Energy, Maritime Transport, Marine Life and Marine Litter. For each of these four issue areas, cases have been selected that include a dedicated stakeholder (end-user) that is willing to develop a case-specific digital Governance Strategy. The cases for which ENP is responsible fall within the realm of Maritime Transport, Marine Life and Marine Litter. BLUE4ALL is connected to the Marine Life realm and aims to improve social and governance aspects of management and network design of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) by identifying and selecting (digital) tools for MPA managers.

In PERMAGOV, you will contribute to the development of the Marine Governance Performance Assessment Framework by analysing, together with a PhD student, the existing institutional barriers and collaborative and digital governance strategies that shape the governance and capacities of the end-user to improve the performance of EU marine policies. You will do this in three case studies: (1) decarbonizing EU shipping, (2) the regional action plan for marine litter in the Mediterranean sea, and (3) sustainable fisheries in MPA development in Italy (also a case in BLUE4ALL). For two of these cases, you will co-develop – together with the end user and a marine data specialist – a case-specific digital governance strategy. You will also analyze the potential effect that this strategy has on the capacities of end-users to implement and respond to EU marine governance efforts. Additionally, you will support the coordinator of PERMAGOV Dr. Judith van Leeuwen with project and data management, reporting and the organization of project meetings.

The post-doctoral researcher will be positioned at the Environmental Policy group and will directly collaborate with a PhD student, and the supervisory team consisting of dr. Judith van Leeuwen and dr. Hilde Toonen. Consortium partners in both PERMAGOV and BLUE4ALL are different universities and marine related research institutions, marine data specialists and case study end-users from industry and interest groups.

Your qualities

  • A doctorate degree (PhD) in Political Sciences, Human Geography, Sociology, or Environmental / Marine sciences with a strong social scientific component, or a related field.
  • Proven experience with social scientific research into complex sustainability governance issues, preferably in the marine domain and with affinity for studying digital governance tools.
  • Proven qualitative social scientific research skills, and affinity with action research methodology, and participatory methods.
  • Demonstrated ability to successfully publish academic papers in international peer reviewed journals.
  • Communication and organizational skills to communicate and organize flows of information between consortium members.
  • An ability, willingness and commitment to collaborate in a diverse research team and write joint publications in an cross-institutional setting.
  • A creative and critical attitude with an open mind towards transdisciplinary collaboration, and ability to build a network within the domain of the projects.
  • Fluency in English. For this position your command of the English language is expected to be at C1 level. Sometimes it is necessary to submit an internationally recognised Certificate of Proficiency in the English Language. More information can be found here.

We offer you

Wageningen University & Research offers excellent terms of employment. A few highlights from our Collective Labour Agreement include:

  • sabbatical leave, study leave, and partially paid parental leave;
  • working hours that can be discussed and arranged so that they allow for the best possible work-life balance;
  • the option to accrue additional compensation / holiday hours by working more, up to 40 hours per week;
  • there is a strong focus on vitality and you can make use of the sports facilities available on campus for a small fee;
  • a fixed December bonus of 8.3%;
  • holiday allowance of 8%;
  • 3-year contract;
  • excellent pension scheme;

In addition to these first-rate employee benefits, you will of course receive a good salary. Depending on your experience, we offer a competitive gross salary of between €2960 and €4670 for a full-time working week of 38 hours, in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreements for Dutch Universities (CAO-NU) (scale 10). Additionally, a contract for 0.8 FTE can be discussed. Initially, we offer you a contract for 36 months, which will then be extended to an open-ended contract if there is mutual enthusiasm. Of course, we would be happy to discuss this with you if you have any questions.
Wageningen University & Research encourages internal advancement opportunities and mobility with an internal recruitment policy. There are plenty of options for personal initiative in a learning environment, and we provide excellent training opportunities. We are offering a unique position in an international environment with a pleasant and open working atmosphere.
You are going to work at the greenest and most innovative campus in Holland, and at a university that has been chosen as the “Best University” in the Netherlands for the 18th consecutive time.

Coming from abroad

Wageningen University & Research is the university and research center for life sciences. The themes we deal with are relevant to everyone around the world and Wageningen, therefore, has a large international community and a lot to offer to international employees.
Our team of advisors on Dutch immigration procedures will help you with the visa application procedures for yourself and, if applicable, for your family.
Feeling welcome also has everything to do with being well informed. Wageningen University & Research’s International Community page contains practical information about what we can do to support international employees and students coming to Wageningen. Furthermore, we can assist you with any additional advice and information about helping your partner to find a job, housing, schooling. For instance under the “30% rule”, certain categories of international staff can receive tax exemption on approximately 30% of their gross salary.

Do you want more information?

For more information about this position, please contact Dr. Judith van Leeuwen, Associate Professor, by  e mail: judith.vanleeuwen@wur.nl
For more information about the procedure, please contact Noorien Abbas, Corporate Recruiter, by e mail: recruitment.ssg@wur.nl

Do you want to apply?

You can apply directly using the apply button on the vacancy page on our website which will allow us to process your personal information with your approval.
Please upload the following documents online.
1) Letter of motivation
2) Your CV
This vacancy will be listed up to and including 8th May 2023. We hope to schedule the first job interviews on 23rd May 2023.

Equal opportunities

Wageningen University & Research (WUR) employs a large number of people with very different backgrounds and qualities, who inspire and motivate each other. We want every talent to feel at home in our organisation and be offered the same career opportunities. We therefore especially welcome applications from people who are underrepresented at WUR. For more information please go to our inclusivity page. A good example of how WUR deals with inclusiveness can be read on the page working at WUR with a functional impairment.

We are

Wageningen University & Research

The mission of Wageningen University & Research is “To explore the potential of nature to improve the quality of life”. Under the banner Wageningen University & Research, Wageningen University and the specialised research institutes of the Wageningen Research Foundation have joined forces in contributing to finding solutions to important questions in the domain of healthy food and living environment.

With its roughly 30 branch­es, 7,200 employees (6,400 fte) and 13,200 students and over 150.000 participants to WUR’s Life Long Learning, Wageningen University & Research is one of the leading organisations in its domain. The unique Wageningen approach lies in its integrated approach to issues and the collaboration between different disciplines.. An integrated approach to problems and the cooperation between various disciplines are at the heart of Wageningen’s unique approach. WUR has been named Best Employer in the Education category for 2019-2020.

These are the points our employees list as good reasons to come work at WUR: read the 5 reasons to come work at WUR

We will recruit for the vacancy ourselves, so no employment agencies please. However, sharing in your network is appreciated.


POSITION TYPE

ORGANIZATION TYPE

EXPERIENCE-LEVEL

DEGREE REQUIRED

You ad could be here!