December 1, 2020
The Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies is recruiting a Postdoctoral Researcher for SNF funded project “Accounting for Nature: Agriculture and Mitigation in the Era of Global Climate Change”
PERIOD OF CONTRACT: Fixed-term contract, start on September 1st 2021, for 1 year and then renewable for 3 years.
ACTIVITY RATE: 80 % in years 1-3, 50% in year 4
DEADLINE FOR RECEIPT OF APPLICATIONS: 31-01-2021
General description of the project and the position
SNF funded project: “Accounting for Nature: Agriculture and Mitigation in the Era of Global Climate Change.”
This four-year ethnographic project examines how the mitigation of agricultural greenhouse gases is emerging as a sphere of
knowledge and an arena of management through the development of accounting practices and protocols. It aims to explore how
accounting shapes and conditions the way that both climate change, and the work of mitigation, are apprehended within agriculture.
The project will be undertaken by a small research team, including the Principal Investigator (Shaila Seshia Galvin), a Postdoctoral
Fellow, and one PhD student. It is designed to accommodate substantive, independent research, as well as opportunities for
collaboration. Research will be carried out within international and global networks of climate science and policy, as well as within
two countries, Canada and India. Cumulatively, the research responds to calls for cross-scale climate ethnographies (Crate 2011),
and seeks to refine understandings of accounting practice and mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions within complex socionatural
environments of agriculture. The project’s attention to the way that mitigation is apprehended and enacted in an era of global
climate change will generate new empirical and theoretical insights into accounting itself, as a phenomenological field that shapes
human-environment relations.
Mission and activities
The appointed Postdoctoral Fellow will be part of a research team working closely with the project’s Principal Investigator, Shaila
Seshia Galvin, Assistant Professor of Anthropology and Sociology and Faculty Affiliate of the Centre for International Environmental
Studies. The candidate will be fully integrated in the life of the Department of Anthropology and Sociology at the Graduate Institute
(https://graduateinstitute.ch/anso). Committed to theoretical innovation, robust empirical research, and fine-grained
ethnographic fieldwork, the department and its doctoral program foster the study of contemporary issues in global and transnational
terms. The appointed PhD student will also be affiliated with the Centre for International Environmental Studies (CIES).
Candidate’s profile
The Postdoctoral Fellow will lead research into the international networks of climate science and policy that are developing
accounting frameworks and practices to instrumentalize the mitigation of agricultural greenhouse gases. Their research will afford
opportunities to produce single and co-authored publications related to this project. In addition to their research, the Postdoctoral
Fellow will assume responsibility for managing the project website and project activities, such as workshops and events.
PhD in Anthropology or other relevant disciplines/fields (e.g. Geography, Sociology, Environmental Studies). Applicants whose PhD
will be completed by August 2021 are welcome to apply.
Substantial fieldwork experience in the realms of climate change policy and science is necessary, while familiarity with
environmental accounting is an asset.
Highly organized and capable of working independently.
Excellent written and oral communication in English, competencies in other languages an asset.
Experience with website development as well as convening in-person and/or online events, such as workshops and small
conferences, is desirable.
Excellent interpersonal skills and ability to work with others.
We look forward to receiving your application. Your application materials should include: 1) a CV; 2) letter of motivation outlining
your interest in the postdoctoral position; 3) statement of research describing your research trajectory, interests, publications, and
plans; 4) two letters of recommendation; 5) a writing sample (PhD dissertation chapter or article published or in preparation).
Informal inquiries using subject line < Postdoc: Accounting for Nature > are to be sent to: shaila.seshia@graduateinstitute.ch.
Please cc all messages to Ms. Andhina Kusumawidjaja: andhina.kusumawidjaja@graduateinstitute.ch.
We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of age,
marital status, disability status, race, national origin, color, gender, sexual orientation or religion.
For more information, candidates are encouraged to consult the Institute’s website: graduateinstitute.ch
Please note that offers received by post won’t be considered.