Research Fellow or RA in Environmental or Food Systems & Policy

Organisation

Cranfield University

School/Department

School of Water, Energy and Environment

Based at

Cranfield Campus, Cranfield, Bedfordshire

Hours of work

37 hours per week, normally worked Monday to Friday. Flexible working will be considered.

Contract type

Fixed term contract

Fixed Term Period

12 months

Salary

Full time starting salary is normally £35,559 per annum (Research Fellow) or £32,810 per annum (Research Assistant)

We are seeking a highly motivated systems thinker, with a passion for environmental or food systems and policy analysis, to contribute to research supporting the UK Government’s policies and decision-making around the environment. 

About the Role

We are seeking a highly motivated postdoctoral Research Fellow to join the Decision Science Group, within Cranfield Environment Centre, to work on number of exciting projects, which are supporting the UK Government’s policies and decision-making around the environment.  These include framework agreements with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), and the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) Futures Framework Agreement.

About You

As Research Fellow in Environmental/Food Systems and Policy, you will have broad understanding of environmental or food systems, evidence-based policy development and analysis.  You will have a keen interest in environmental/food systems and an understanding of the policy landscape (e.g. net zero, environmental land management, natural capital, sustainability, scenario development). 

The role will involve working on a wide range of projects and you will be experienced in, and comfortable with, applying both quantitative and qualitative techniques to provide evidence to support policy development and analysis.  This may include experience of environmental/food systems modelling and analysis, life cycle assessment, environmental valuation, stakeholder analysis and risk and futures techniques.

You will have to liaise and work closely with academics at Cranfield as well as project partners at Defra, BEIS and other Government departments, and other project collaborators.  As a result, the role will require excellent interpersonal and teamworking skills.  You will also have excellent written and verbal communication skills, as well as an ability to produce high quality deliverables to tight, and often changing, deadlines.

About Us

As a specialist postgraduate university, Cranfield’s world-class expertise, large-scale facilities and unrivalled industry partnerships are creating leaders in technology and management globally. Learn more about Cranfield and our unique impact here .

The role is within the Cranfield Environment Centre’s Decision Science Group , led by Dr Simon Jude.

Cranfield's Decision Science Group undertakes applied research to support evidence-based decision-making in uncertain and complex situations, taking a transdisciplinary approach to research, integrating expertise and methods from across different disciplines. Our strength is bringing different concepts and techniques together to support improved evidence-based decision making. The research conducted by the Decision Science Group is critical for supporting decision-makers tasked with addressing emerging and increasingly complex forms of environmental challenges, particularly those associated with global change and complex socio-technical systems.

Our Values and Commitments

Our shared, stated values help to define who we are and underpin everything we do: Ambition; Impact; Respect; and Community. Find out more here .

We aim to create and maintain a culture in which everyone can work and study together and realise their full potential. We are a Disability Confident Employer and proud members of the Stonewall Diversity Champions Programme.We are committed to actively exploring flexible working options for each role and have been ranked in the Top 30 family friendly employers in the UK by the charity Working Families . Find out more about our key commitments to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion and Flexible Working here .

Working Arrangements

Collaborating and connecting are integral to so much of what we do. Our Working Arrangements Framework provides many staff with the opportunity to flexibly combine on-site and remote working, where job roles allow, balancing the needs of our community of staff, students, clients and partners.

How to apply                                    

For an informal discussion about this opportunity, please contact Dr Simon Jude, Senior Lecturer in Environmental Decision Making, on (T): 01234 754295 or (E): [email protected]

Please do not hesitate to contact us for further details on E: [email protected] . Please quote reference number 4285.

Closing date for receipt of applications:   21 November 2022

Interviews to be held: w/c 5 December 2022