Two Postdoctoral Researchers on Law, Governance and Constitutionalism in the Anthropocene (# of pos: 2)

Tilburg Law School is looking for two talented postdoctoral researchers with research backgrounds in issues of law, governance and/or constitutionalism in the context of the Anthropocene, with a preferred start date of 1 January 2023. 

The research team on Constitutionalizing in the Anthropocene  is hiring two postdoctoral researchers to join their team. This research team, initiated in 2019, draws together a diverse group of experts with backgrounds in legal philosophy, constitutional law, environmental law, international and European law, and public administration, to pursue cross-cutting questions about the consequences that the Anthropocene poses to law and legal institutions, as well as the role that law has held in facilitating and potentially transforming Anthropocene’s societies. It includes conceptual and normative veins of research about the normativity of ‘nature’ and future generations, and the epistemic and ontological dimensions of representation in the Anthropocene. Additionally, the team pursues research about the role of emergent technologies, including genetic modification technologies, climate engineering, citizen sensing technologies, artificial intelligence, and Big Data, and the frameworks of accountability and regulatory oversight required for their effective and equitable use. Finally, the role of law and governance institutions is called into question by the team’s research, including the historic role of law in facilitating the conditions of the Anthropocene, institutional architectures that are capable of operating in the context of fundamental uncertainties, and avenues through which governance institutions can adapt and transform. 

Specifically, we are interested in candidates working in one of the following (or related) themes:

• Representation and posthumanism in law;
• Governance of Anthropocene technologies, including genetic engineering, biotechnologies, climate mitigation, adaptation technologies, citizen science/sensing technologies, AI and Big Data;
• De-growth, de-carbonization and sustainability transformations in international economic law;
• Comparative and transnational analyses of public and private law doctrines implicated by climate and ecological crisis;
• Historical accounts of law’s role in the formation of the Anthropocene.

The initiative is financed by the National Sector Plan on the Transformative Effects of Globalization on Law, and works in collaboration with colleagues at the University of Amsterdam, Maastricht University, and the Open University.    

Tilburg Law School is seeking two enthusiastic colleagues for the position of Postdoctoral Researcher on Law, Governance and Constitutionalism in the Anthropocene in the Department Public Law and Governance. 

We are looking for talented postdoctoral candidates with a research background on issues of law, governance and constitutionalism in the context of the Anthropocene. The selected candidates are expected to independently conduct high-quality research for publication in internationally leading peer-reviewed journals, building on their existing expertise (70% of the appointment). In addition, the candidates will be expected to contribute to the management tasks of the research team (20% of the appointment). In particular, we are looking for candidates who would be interested in either assisting in the editing of an edited volume on legal transformations in the Anthropocene, or in assisting in a review of the impact of the Anthropocene on legal education. Finally, the candidates will have the possibility to engage in limited teaching activities in the field of their expertise.