Arctic Centre at the University of Lapland is seeking candidates for two post-doctoral positions (24 months) starting on NOVEMBER 2022 (OR AS agreed) The fields of research are: 1) International Relations 2) International law

The Arctic Centre, University of Lapland is seeking to fill two 24-month
full-time post-doctoral researcher positions that will advance the frontiers of
knowledge of the role of non-human nature in Arctic politics and governance.
Both positions are to be based at the Northern Institute for Environmental and
Minority Law in Rovaniemi, Finland and require residence at Arctic Centre during
the respective periods of employment.
The positions are key personnel
appointments for scientific implementation of the project “A Planetary Approach
to Global Arctic politics,” which is funded by the University of Lapland’s
strategic funding scheme under the Global Arctic Responsibility theme.

The Arctic Centre at the University of
Lapland is a national and international hub of information and centre of
excellence that conducts multidisciplinary high-quality research in changes in
the Arctic region. In addition to research, education forms a part of all
activities of the Centre. The Arctic Centre conducts a study programme called
Arctic Studies Programme that serves as an introduction to issues that are
relevant in the Circumpolar North. The Arctic Centre is located in the Arktikum
House, Rovaniemi, Finland.

The Northern Institute
for Environmental and Minority Law (NIEM), established in 1985, is one of
the five research groups at the Arctic Centre. NIEM specializes in environmental
and minority law. Particularly, it has a special focus on researching the law
relating to (Arctic) indigenous peoples, as well as environmental law as it is
applied in the Arctic regions.

Project description and working tasks

To facilitate a profound green transformation of global life, “A Planetary
Approach to Global Arctic politics” project develops novel conceptualisations of
“planetary society” and “planetarisation” of world politics to describe the
ambitious visions and fundamental reorganisation of political practices with the
objective of transforming planet Earth into a safe and peaceful place where all
species can thrive. Empirically the project focuses on the Arctic region which
can be viewed as a showcase of the global ecological crisis and globalisation.
The project asks: What would the social and institutional organisation of Global
Arctic politics look like if planetary justice was put at the front and centre
of politics?

The positions will encompass diverse tasks including:

  • Conduct research on Global Arctic politics and governance from a

    post-anthropocentric perspective
  • Publishing of research results in high-quality international journals and

    other publishing venues
  • Acquisition of supplementary external research funding (e.g., Marie Curie

    postdoctoral fellowship, the Academy of Finland, Kone foundation) for a

    project focusing on post-anthropocentric Global Arctic politics and/or

    governance
  • Organisation of an international workshop on post-anthropocentric approaches

    to Global Arctic politics
  • Popularisation of Arctic science

Required qualifications and merits

We seek two creative and highly motivated persons with a strong publication
record either on Arctic politics and/or governance or global environmental
politics and with a promising research plan on a new, innovative
post-anthropocentric approach to Global Arctic politics that will result in
high-level international publications and external research funding. Successful
candidates should have a PhD in International Relations, international law or a
related field, and excellent oral and written communication skills in English.
To be eligible for this position, the applicants should have completed their
doctoral degree a maximum of five (5) years before the end of the application
period, unless special circumstances exist. The applicants should be able to
work both independently and in close collaboration with others.

Eligibility to apply for Marie Curie postdoctoral fellowship at the Arctic
Centre in the 2023 call will be considered as a highly complementary merit, and
at least one of the successful candidates should fulfil this criterion. For more
information:
https://marie-sklodowska-curie-actions.ec.europa.eu/actions/postdoctoral-fellowships

Application

The application, written in English, should include (in one pdf file):

  • Motivation letter (max. 1 page)
  • Research plan (max. 3 pages)
  • Curriculum vitae (max. 2 pages)
  • List of publications (indicate five most important linked to the thematic

    area of the project)
  • Copy of doctoral certificate

When making the appointment decision, special attention is paid to the quality of
the research plan and to the way in which the candidate’s research is linked to
the other research activities of “A Planetary Approach to Global Arctic
politics” project.

The Postdoctoral Researcher’s salary is based on the university’s salary system
and is fixed at teaching and research personnel’s competence level 5. In
addition, the total salary includes a personal salary component amounting up to
50 % of the task-specific salary component. The positions include six-month
trial period.

The deadline for application is August 15, 2022, either to the
following address: Lapin yliopisto, Kirjaamo, PL 122 (Yliopistonkatu 8), 96101
Rovaniemi, Finland or in one single pdf file via our secure email system: https://securemail.ulapland.fi. In
the secure email system mark the recipient as: rekrytointi(at)ulapland.fi. Title
your letter/email as “A Planetary Approach to Global Arctic politics”. The
application documents will not be returned to the sender. Applications for the
previous call (ended 19.4.2022) will be considered when making selections.

Further information:

University Researcher Sanna Kopra
The Northern Institute for Environmental
and Minority Law
email: sanna.kopra(at)ulapland.fi
Phone +358 40
132 4502