PhD Scholarship in Blockchain and Sustainability Informatics in the Pacific

Job No.: 649207

Location: Caulfield campus

Employment Type: Full-time 

Duration: 3.5-year fixed-term appointment 

Remuneration: The successful applicant will receive a Research Living Allowance, at current value of $33,000AUD per annum 2023 full-time rate (tax-free stipend), indexed plus allowances as per RTP stipend scholarship conditions at: www.monash.edu/graduate-research/future-students/scholarships/scholarship-policy-and-procedures . Successful International applicants will be awarded tuition fee scholarships, health insurance and up to $1,500 in relocation costs.

The Opportunity

This is an exciting opportunity for two outstanding PhD candidates to join the Emerging Technologies Research Lab (ETLab) and the Alogrand Centre of Excellence for Sustainability Informatics in the Pacific (ACE SIP), which focuses on the design and development of applications of blockchain in the Pacific region, for social, environmental and governmental sustainability.

The successful candidates will be supervised by Professor Sarah Pink and ETLab colleagues. They will undertake original doctoral research within and contribute to the programme of research in the social stream of work in the ACE SIP. Research activities will include: in depth studies of the social, experiential and ethical questions related to new blockchain enabled technologies and systems, and their possibilities for improving real lives and local circumstance in communities and society; collaborating to guide, inform and engage in ongoing dialogue with and feedback to technical, design and translational teams in the ACE SIP; collaborative interdisciplinary studies with technology tests and trials; studies of successes and failures; and generating understanding how governmental regulatory frameworks participate in the implementation of blockchain-based solutions in different countries and the implications of this for communities.

The research will have a particular focus on Australia and Fiji and the region (including Vanuatu, Singapore and Hong Kong).

Candidate Requirements

Applicants will be considered provided that they fulfil the criteria for PhD admission at Monash University, meeting the entry requirements for the Faculty of Information Technology, where they will be enrolled, and demonstrate excellent research capability. Details of the relevant requirements are available at www.monash.edu/graduate-research/future-students/apply . For this position the successful candidate will have an Honours or Master’s degree in social anthropology, design anthropology, sociology or a cognate field. They must have demonstrated experience of and expertise in ethnographic research and an interest in innovative and visual methods and will preferably have a record of publishing their research in mainstream academic journals or other relevant publications for their area

Applicants must show excellent communication and interpersonal skills, and the ability to conduct self-motivated research within a high-performing and target-driven group of researchers. Shortlisted candidates will be interviewed, over Zoom if necessary. The interviews will be conducted in English.

Scholarship holders must be enrolled full-time and on campus. 

The successful applicant will be expected to enrol by August 2023. 

Submit an Expression of Interest (EOI) which shall comprise:

• A cover letter that includes a brief statement of the applicant's suitability
• A curriculum vitae, including a list of published works
• A full statement of academic record, supported by scanned copies of relevant certified documentation
• Contact details of two academic referees
• Evidence of English-language proficiency (if you have)
• A two-page outline of your interest in the work of the Alogrand Centre of Excellence for Sustainability Informatics in the Pacific and what you would contribute. Note that at this stage we do not expect you to present a research proposal, but rather to demonstrate your ability and willingness to develop your project in collaboration with the research team
• Please submit this EOI to Professor Sarah Pink at [email protected] , preferably in a single PDF attachment.

Enquiries

Professor Sarah Pink, Director, Emerging Technologies Research Lab, [email protected]

Closing Date 

Friday 14 April 2023, 11:55pm AEST 

Supporting a diverse workforce