46 FB 9 Research Assistant / PhD Candidate (m/f/d) DFG-funded Research Training Group ECORISK B3b

The DFG-funded Research Training Group "Ecological Regime Shifts and Systemic Risk in Coupled Social-Ecological Systems" (ECORISK), which has been running since 2024, brings together perspectives from behavioural economics, ecological modeling, environmental systems science, geography, geoinformatics, political science and sociology.
Within the framework of three thematic clusters (Ecosystem Dynamics, Human activities and Governance), ECORISK deals with the causes of ecological regime shifts and the systemic risks they pose as well as their consequences in socio-ecological systems.
Intensive agriculture serves as a guiding example. The Research Training Group is located at Osnabrück University, whose diverse research attracts students and scholars from around the world to a liveable city.

In the subproject ›Participatory Interventions to Foster Cooperation in the Face of Regime Shifts and Systemic Risk‹ at the Department of Environmental Economics in the School of Business Administration and Economics, a position as

Research Assistant / PhD Candidate (m/f/d)
(Pay grade 13 TV-L, 75%)


is to be filled on a fixed-term basis until September 30, 2029, starting on October 1, 2026.


Your Duties:

  • Scientific work on the mentioned subproject, which also forms the basis for your own academic qualification in the form of a doctoral degree. Specifically, the work would focus on a) contributing to the review of relevant streams of literature on participatory governance arrangements/capacities to overcome collective action challenges among heterogenous stakeholders; b) designing a suitable participatory intervention to bridge (perceived) distance and promote collective action (skills) among heterogenous stakeholders in the context of sustainable agriculture or food systems; and c) assessing the potential of the selected intervention, e.g. through an economic field experiment or a before-and-after impact assessment.
  • Participation and involvement in the qualification program and activities of the ECORISK Research Training Group, as well as relevant activities of the Chair of Environmental Economics.

Requirements:

  • Very good completed academic (Master’s or diploma) degree in the fields of agricultural, environmental, behavioural or experimental economics, systems science, political science, environmental psychology, environmental policy/governance or a related study program. (Applications from individuals who are about to complete a degree program as described above are also welcome.)
  • Interest in environmental and natural resource governance processes
  • Strong research interest in the (participatory) processes that can generate (the capacities for) inner change for sustainability transformation at the individual and the societal level (for ex. a change in perceptions of social distance/norms, trust, or empathic concern)
  • Very good English language skills in both spoken and written form
  • Competences and experience in quantitative research methods
  • Competences to work independently and collaboratively
  • Motivation to work in and co-create with an inter- and transdisciplinary team working on socially relevant research questions

Additional Qualifications:

  • Excellent analytical skills
  • Experience with one or more of the following:
    • qualitative research methods
    • assisting or conducting (economic) field experiments
    • participatory methods/workshops
    • other forms of stakeholder interactions
  • Very good knowledge of one or more of the following topics:
    • Experimental design
    • Sustainable agriculture
    • (Ecological) Regime shifts and systemic risk
  • Ability to communicate with diverse types of audiences
  • Leadership skills (for ex., concrete experiences with leading or coordinating a small team)
  • Gender and diversity competencies

We offer:

  • Participation in an exciting and highly topical research project
  • A structured doctoral program at Osnabrück University
  • Acquisition of relevant research experience
  • Collegial collaboration in an interdisciplinary, international, and diversity-oriented team that values equity
  • Tailored training opportunities
  • Funding for the participatory intervention and related fieldwork costs (with some flexibility regarding the country of implementation)
  • Opportunities for partial remote work and flexible working hours

Osnabrück University is a family-friendly university and is committed to helping working/studying parents balance their family and working lives.

Osnabrück University seeks to guarantee equality of opportunity for women and men and strives to correct any gender imbalance in its schools and departments.

If two candidates are equally qualified, preference will be given to the candidate with disability status.

Please send applications, including a maximum two-page motivation letter for the advertised position (explaining your motivation and qualifications for and potential contribution to the subproject), a curriculum vitae (CV) (possibly including a list of publications), transcripts of previous academic degrees (Bachelor/Master, including Transcripts of Records), a meaningful writing sample (e.g. chapter from your own article (if available), master’s thesis, or term paper), and the name and email address(es) of one or more potential references (alternative: one or more reference letters), in electronic form as a single PDF file via email by April 30, 2026, to:  ecorisk@uos.de.  Please include the number of the subproject B3b or subprojects you are applying for in the subject line.

For questions regarding this job advertisement, please contact the subproject leader Prof. Stefanie Engel and the postdoctoral advisor to the project, Dr. Juan Felipe Ortiz-Riomalo ( juanfelipe.ortizriomalo@uos.de).

Further information about this subproject (B3b) and the Research Training Group can be found at:  https://www.uni-osnabrueck.de/ecorisk