Postdoctoral Researcher in Public Administration

As modern societies are facing different transformative changes from leading sustainability transitions to coping with digital revolution, there is an acute need to think over also the role of public administration from its structures and processes to the capacities and values it provides. We look for prospective postdoctoral researchers with relevant background and individual research proposals to study in detail these challenges.

DESCRIPTION

The research
We face unprecedented challenges such as climate emergency, food security, mass migration, energy transition, and the global concentration of (digital) technological power that have put our chances for a sustainable future under severe pressure. These challenges require more coordinated and directed global actions (e.g., mission-oriented and other similar challenge-focused and experimental approaches to governance and policies). As the mounting climate crisis and the latest Covid-19 pandemic have clearly shown, technological fixes alone will not suffice to mitigate global challenges. Next to technological advances, societies arguably need major institutional adjustments, or more precisely: capacities to shape the technological solution according to societal needs and challenges. A key feature of such shaping processes are governance institutions. Here, public administrations form a pivotal yet often neglected cog in the social shaping of technological progress. There is a need to develop new, and also to reform old, public administration and policy capabilities for sustainability transitions. Governments need to form new kinds of public-private and public-people relationships to tap into these stakeholders' resources and successfully coordinate the activities of these stakeholders in tackling the societal challenges.

Moreover, public administrations in Europe and beyond face not only the pressure to adjust to the sustainability challenges, but to do this in the context of the ongoing digital revolution. There is the question of how to coordinate this double challenge in a meaningful way. The European Green Deal explicitly states that digital transformation should be at the service of Green Transition, but we (should) know by now that this will not occur automatically. Hence, there is an acute need to think over the role of public administration from its structures and processes to the capacities and values it provides.

We look for prospective postdoctoral researchers with relevant background (in social sciences) and individual research proposals to study in detail (some of) these challenges.

Responsibilities and (foreseen) tasks

• Carrying out literature reviews.
• Novel theory building combining Public Administration with relevant literatures such as technological change, sustainability transitions and other fields.
• Empirical research (e.g. case studies, comparative research, surveys).
• Writing research papers and policy briefs / blogs.
• Supporting administration of research projects.
• Lecturing on the topics of the postdoctoral research.

Applicants should fulfil the following requirements:

• A PhD degree (preferably in public administration, political science or economics; alternatively, a candidate should have a proven track-record in social science research relevant for the project description).
• A clear interest in the topic of the position.
• Excellent command of English.
• Strong and demonstrable writing and analytical skills.
• Capacity to work both as an independent researcher and as part of an international team.
• Capacity and willingness to provide assistance in organizational tasks relevant to the project.

We offer:

• The fully funded position for 2 years and 9 months in one of the largest, most internationalized and leading social science research centers in Estonia with a large portfolio of ongoing pan-European and national public administration, technology governance and innovation studies projects.
• The starting monthly income of at least 2500 EUR gross + employers’ healthcare and social security contributions.
• The chance to do high-level research in one of the most dynamic digital societies globally.
• Opportunities for conference visits, research stays and networking with globally leading universities and research centers in the fields of public administration, innovation studies and sustainability transition.

The position will be financed and implemented as part of the 3-year Horizon Europe Twinning Project ‘Public Administration Capacities for Digital and Sustainability Transitions’ (PADST) starting in Fall 2022 and carried out in cooperation with UCL IIPP (UK), KU Leuven Public Governance Institute (Belgium) and Utrecht University (the Netherlands).

For further information, please contact Veiko Lember ([email protected] ) and Erkki Karo ([email protected] ) or visit https://taltech.ee/en/nurkse .

APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS

To apply for this position please send the following documents in English by 31 October 2022 at the latest by using the link “Apply ”:

• a motivation letter;
• documents proving that the candidate holds the required academic degree (PhD) and has acquired the required education;
• a curriculum vitae and a list of publications;
• a max 3-page research proposal with an indicative publication plan, the research proposal has to be linked to the research activities of the Nurkse Department (https://taltech.ee/en/nurkse );
• other documents considered important by the applicant.

Regarding further information on the application documents and recruitment process please contact TalTech HR [email protected] .