Postdoctoral Researcher in Databases and Geographic Information Systems at Universitat Pompeu Fabra (Barcelona, Spain), Department of Political and Social Sciences.

17 Apr 2024
Job Information

Organisation/Company

Universitat Pompeu Fabra

Department

Political and Social Sciences

Research Field

Political sciences » Other

Researcher Profile

First Stage Researcher (R1)

Country

Spain

Application Deadline

31 May 2024 - 23:59 (Europe/Madrid)

Type of Contract

Temporary

Job Status

Full-time

Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme?

HE / ERC

Reference Number

101124195

Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure?

No

Offer Description

We are seeking a Postdoctoral Researcher to work in the project Digitalization for Environmental Justice and Biocultural Diversity (DIVERSE), funded by a 2.13m eur-Consolidator Grant of the European Research Council (ERC-CoG). Grant Agreement: 101124195.

The successful applicant will work under the supervision of Dr. Beatriz Rodriguez-Labajos as part of the DIVERSE team. The team will include another postdoctoral researcher, 3 PhD students, a Research Assistant, and a Communication Assistant, and it will be based at the Johns Hopkins University-Universitat Pompeu Fabra Public Policy Center , and the Department of Political and Social Sciences at the Pompeu Fabra University, Barcelona.

The postdoctoral researcher will study the digitalization of grassroots initiatives pursuing environmental justice and biocultural diversity (project description below). The researcher will work with the project PI and another postdoc, with expertise in political ecology and environmental justice, in the development of the conceptual and analytical framework of the project, co-supervise PhD students, and directly manage a core task of the project.

In particular, the postdoctoral researcher will lead the development of a relational database of ‘digital elements in transformative initiatives’ connected to spatial data, and conduct spatial analyses of digital access and presence of grassroots transformative initiatives (GTI) at the international level. Research tools involve PostgreSQL, including the PostGIS extension, and Geographic Information Systems (using QGIS or ArcGIS).

Duration: 3 years contract, with a 6-month probationary period.

Gross yearly salary: 34.896€

Deadline for applications: May 31th 2024

The Postdoctoral Researcher is expected to be physically based at UPF in Barcelona. The position has no citizenship requirement. We encourage applications from underrepresented groups in research, especially those from women.

Specific Tasks:

• Develop a relational database (DB) of ‘digital elements in transformative initiatives’ connected to spatial data, in collaboration with the PI and other team members.
• Prepare a DB front end for adding, and updating values for team members and collaborators.
• Prepare the DB user guide for team members and collaborators.
• Generate data management and ethics protocols. 
• Conduct literature reviews, contribute to data collection on the research topic (through agreements with data providers, and web scrapping publicly available data in compliance with GDPR regulations), undertake geospatial analyses, and support team members undertaking topic modelling.
• Lead and co-author scientific publications.
• Collaborate on the generation project reports
• Participate in project coordination meetings, and help with project coordination
• Engage in project scientific and public dissemination activities

Requirements

Research Field

Computer science » Computer systems

Education Level

PhD or equivalent

Skills/Qualifications

We seek candidates with a track record of completing DB projects and preparing research publications, with a strong commitment to collaborative, inclusive and equity-based work ethics. Required qualifications involve:

• A PhD or equivalent degree in computer science, geospatial science, statistics, management science, information systems, environmental social sciences, political science, or other social science domains. Degree requirements must be satisfied by the time of appointment.
• Demonstrated advanced SQL skills, and experience using PostgreSQL (desirably with the PostGIS extension). 
• Demonstrated experience in geospatial data processing and analysis.
• Experience using R and/or Python (desirably for GIS Spatial Data Analysis and/ or topic modelling).
• Strong interest and background in conducting interdisciplinary research in the themes of the project (e.g., social movements, environmental justice, biocultural diversity).
• Demonstrated ability to conduct independent academic research and experience of delivering an academic research project to completion, including high-impact publication.
• Excellent written and spoken language skills in English are required. Spanish and or Catalan are highly valued. Knowledge of other languages will be valued.
• Experience of smooth collaboration in multi-disciplinary, multi-cultural research teams.
• Ability to manage multiple activities simultaneously, efficiently and on-time, and to meet deadlines.

Languages

ENGLISH

Level

Excellent

Languages

CATALAN

Level

Good

Languages

SPANISH

Level

Good

Research Field

Political sciences

Additional Information
Benefits

The contract includes all the benefits of the Spanish public health and social security system.

Additional funds will be provided for data gathering, conference attendance, and open-access publication. If welcome, the successful candidate will benefit from effectivecareer advice by the PI, who counts on an outstanding track record of research funding.

Selection process

To apply for this position, candidates send the documentation by Interfolio through the following link:  http://apply.interfolio.com/144826

A letter of motivation (max 2 pages) explaining how the candidate fulfils the qualifications mentioned in the job description 

Candidate CV

Two letters of reference and contact information of the two referees. 

One publication (preferably as a first author) or an online sample of a finalised database project.

A copy of the PhD Diploma

A copy of the candidate’s ID card, or passport

Work Location(s)

Number of offers available

1

Company/Institute

Pompeu Fabra University

Country

Spain

State/Province

Barcelona

City

Barcelona

Postal Code

08005

Street

Ramon Trias Fargas, 25-27

Geofield

Where to apply

Website

http://apply.interfolio.com/144826

Contact

State/Province

Barcelona

City

Barcelona

Website

https://www.upf.edu/web/politiques/ofertes-de-treball/-/asset_publisher/QmbKzLOEeWvN/content/upcoming-%7C-postdoctoral-researcher-position-in-databases-and-geographic-information-systems-ref.-cpis-inv-indf-2024-01-/maximized

Street

Ramon Trias Fargas

Postal Code

08005

STATUS: EXPIRED