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Senior Research Associate
Lancaster Environment Centre
Location: Bailrigg, Lancaster, UK
Salary:
£38,205 to £44,263
(Full time, indefinite with end date contract)
Closing Date:
Friday 24 May 2024
Interview Date:
Friday 07 June 2024
Reference: 0467-24
Reimagining research practices: towards a sustainable, ethical and inclusive future.
Lancaster University is recruiting an interdisciplinary team of researchers to work on our exciting new Wellcome Trust funded project on changing research cultures. The two-year, £1M project will explore how we can build a sustainable, ethical and inclusive research culture. We will focus on three overlapping questions:
• The sustainability of our evolving research practices, working to achieve net zero
• Ethical risks arising from reshaping research practices in the digital era
• The inclusion of underrepresented groups in our research community and practices
To that end we are recruiting a team of 4 Senior Post-Doctoral Research Associates (PDRA), 2 Post-Doctoral Education Fellows (PEF), and 2 Software Engineers and a Project Manager. The posts will be housed in:
- Lancaster Environment Centre (LEC)
- Psychology
- Lancaster Institute for Contemporary Arts (LICA)
- Research and Enterprise Services
- Lancaster University Library.
The project will investigate each of the above questions to disrupt current research practices through engagement and activities with our research community and external partners. Following this we will then design and deliver training workshops and innovative digital resources to be used across the sector; produce new institutional strategies, policies and support structures in these areas; evaluate the culture change brought about by the project; and share project successes and learning outcomes as widely as possible.
Successful candidates for the PDRA and PEF posts will have (or will be about to receive) a PhD in any of the disciplines relevant to the project. The posts include the day-to-day running of the project; collaboration with members of the interdisciplinary research team; working with research partners and a steering group; working with stakeholders and research participants; conducting qualitative and/or quantitative research (depending on the particular job description); liaising with the wider Wellcome Trust network on changing research cultures; dissemination of research findings; writing papers for publication.
PDRA Work Package 1 – Investigations into sustainable research practices (18 months, Grade 7)
The researcher will help drive WP 1 that aims to explore best practice in embedding sustainable practices into research. They will draw together information from across the sector around research travel, conferences, laboratory practices, energy use and fieldwork. A ‘decision tree’ approach will be produced that sets out informed options with realistic carbon costs based on the options taken. The researcher will help deliver a series of workshops aimed at different staff cohorts. As well as delivering against the aims of the sustainability in research work package, the researcher will investigate the intersection of sustainability with inclusion and ethical considerations in conjunction with other work packages. The successful applicant must have a PhD in a relevant area of sustainability and a broad interdisciplinary skill set with excellent communication skills. Experience of leading workshops and engaging various stakeholder groups essential. Familiarity with using carbon accounting tools and sustainability practice an advantage.
Equality, diversity and inclusion is a key considering in designing the project and therefore is important in the recruitment of our team. We aim to build a diverse team working as flexibly as possible to suit the needs of the best individuals for the roles. If you have any specific requirements you wish to discuss prior to application, please contact us using the details below. We are proactive in engagement with our staff to help us understand the lived experiences of our university community and to understand how we are doing in creating a fairer and more inclusive University.
For further information about this post please contact Prof Phil Barker in Lancaster Environment Centre, p.barker@lancaster.ac.uk.
Further details:
Please note: unless specified otherwise in the advert, all advertised roles are UK based.
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