Postdoctoral Research Associate in Human Geography at Durham University

Durham, England, United Kingdom -

Full Time

Start Date

Immediate

Expiry Date

24 May, 26

Salary

0.0

Posted On

23 Feb, 26

Experience

0 year(s) or above

Remote Job

Yes

Telecommute

Yes

Sponsor Visa

Skills

Archival Research, Document Analysis, Participant Observation, Qualitative Interviews, Sensory Exhibition Co-design, Research Dissemination, Conceptual Development, Fieldwork, Academic Writing, Presentation Delivery, Research Planning, Teamwork, Independent Work, Interpersonal Communication, Political Ecology, Environmental Humanities

Industry

Higher Education

Description

Working at Durham University A globally outstanding centre of teaching and research excellence, a warm and friendly place to work, a unique and historic setting – Durham is a university like no other. As one of the UK’s leading universities, Durham is an incredible place to define your career. The University is located within a beautiful historic city, home to a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and surrounded by stunning countryside. Our talented scholars and researchers from around the world are tackling global issues and making a difference to people's lives. We believe that inspiring our people to do outstanding things at Durham enables Durham people to do outstanding things in the world. Being a part of Durham is about more than just the success of the University, it’s also about contributing to the success of the city, county and community. Our University Strategy is built on three pillars of research, education and wider student experience, but also on our keen sense of community and of inspiring others to achieve their potential. Our Purpose and Values We want our University to be a place where people can be free to be themselves, no matter what their identity or background. Together, we celebrate difference, value one another and are each responsible for creating an inclusive community that is respectful and fair for all. Find out more about the benefits of working at the University and what it is like to live and work in the Durham area on our Why Join Us? - Information Page The Role and Department The Department of Geography at Durham comprises 65 academic staff (approximately equally divided between Human and Physical geography), a graduate school of around 100 research students, around 40 taught postgraduate students and 850 undergraduates. The Department is well supported with technical staff, including a cartography unit, and administrative staff. We are ranked 11th in the QS World University Rankings by Subject (2025). We are recurrently ranked in the top handful of programmes in the UK by various league tables, including 1st for Geography in The Times/Sunday Times Good University Guide 2026 & 2nd for Geography in the Complete University Guide 2026. The most recent Research Excellence Framework (REF) in 2021 placed us joint 1st in the UK for iGPA (average score scaled by proportion of staff submitted), with a 100%25 4* score for our research environment. Our aim is to sustain and support hubs of leadership in geographical scholarship – broadly conceived. We will maintain our reputation for theoretical and conceptual innovation so that we are shaping and leading debates globally. We will continue to engage concepts and materials from across disciplinary boundaries to renew geographical scholarship and bring geographical perspectives to bear in other domains. We work across every continent and most major oceans and embrace the full diversity of methods and data available to the discipline. We are further developing our core undergraduate programmes and will be recruiting world-leading staff accordingly to ensure these programmes continue to offer the highest quality of education that develop students with skills to advance scholarly and public debates to which geography is central. The quality of our undergraduate students, and the degree programmes which ensue, combine with our large graduate school to provide a teaching experience for staff that is truly excellent. The Role We are seeking to appoint a 30-month Postdoctoral Research Associate in Human Geography to work within the Leverhulme Trust funded project “Plants out of place: entanglements with ‘invasive weeds’ in the Anthropocene”. Plants out of place focuses on challenging conventional thinking about ‘invasive weeds’ through a transdisciplinary approach incorporating environmental humanities, vegetal cultural geographies, and political ecology. The project aims to advance new ways of thinking about and with weeds through three innovative interventions: a migrant ecology that questions ‘invasion’ narratives by tracing the histories of how weeds arrive in particular places; a decolonial ecology that challenges Western narratives and explores alternative ways of thinking and living with weeds by learning from traditional knowledges in their places of origin; a multispecies geography that documents entanglements of weeds with other species (e.g. as food, medicine, matter) in the context of accelerating climate change. The project focuses on three invasive non-native plants in the UK and uses archival research, document analysis, participant observation, and semi-structured and go-along interviews in the UK and places of origin. A sensory exhibition of materials assembled during research will function as a creative community engagement to experiment and collaborate with ‘invasive weeds’. The successful applicant will work on the project alongside Prof. Cheryl McEwan (Principal Investigator, Department of Geography, Durham University). The primary duties will be to contribute to the development of the project’s conceptual approach and to the preparation and planning of the research, undertake fieldwork and archival research in the UK and one of the three overseas locations, co-design and plan the sensory exhibition, and contribute to the writing up and dissemination of the research to multiple academic and non-academic audiences. Applications from those with experience of plant humanities, Critical Plant Studies, political ecology, and vegetal geographies are encouraged. Key responsibilities: To prepare and deliver presentations on research outputs/activities to audiences which may include: research sponsors, academic and non-academic audiences. To publish high quality outputs, including papers for submission to peer reviewed journals and papers for presentation at conferences and workshops under the direction of the Principal Investigator or Grant-holder. To assist with the development of research objectives and proposals. To conduct individual and collaborative research projects under the direction of the Principal Investigator or Grant-holder. To work with the Principal Investigator or Grant-holder and other colleagues in the research group, as appropriate, to identify areas for research, develop new research methods and extend the research portfolio. To deal with problems that may affect the achievement of research objectives and deadlines by discussing with the Principal Investigator or Grant-holder and offering creative or innovative solutions. To liaise with research colleagues and make internal and external contacts to develop knowledge and understanding to form relationships for future research collaboration. To plan and manage own research activity, research resources in collaboration with others and contribute to the planning of research projects. To co-design and plan the sensory exhibition alongside the Principal Investigator. To contribute to fostering a collegial and respectful working environment which is inclusive and welcoming and where everyone is treated fairly with dignity and respect. To engage in wider citizenship to support the department and wider discipline. To engage in continuing professional development by participation in the undergraduate or postgraduate teaching programmes or by membership of departmental committees, etc. and by attending relevant training and development courses. This post is fixed term for thirty months (2.5 years). The funding for the project will end on 31st July 2029, therefore the post is not extendable beyond this date. The post-holder is employed to work on research/a research project which will be led by another colleague. Whilst this means that the post-holder will not be carrying out independent research in his/her own right, the expectation is that they will contribute to the advancement of the project, through the development of their own research ideas/adaptation and development of research protocols. Successful applicants will, ideally, be in post by September 2026 Working at Durham A competitive salary is only one part of the many fantastic benefits you will receive if you join the University: You’ll receive 30 days annual leave per year in addition to 8 public holidays and 4 customary days per year – a total of 42 days per year. The University closes between Christmas and New Year. We offer a generous pension scheme, and as a new member of staff you will be automatically enrolled into the University Superannuation Scheme (USS). No matter how you travel to work, we have you covered. We have ample parking across campus, a cycle to work scheme which helps you to buy a bike and discount with local bus and train companies. You can also take advantage of our cost-effective and environmentally friendly Tusker Car Benefit Scheme, allowing you to lease a brand-new electric or hybrid vehicle with savings on tax and National Insurance. We have a genuine commitment to developing our colleagues professionally and personally. There is a comprehensive range of development courses, apprenticeships and access to qualifications and routes to develop your career in the University. All staff have dedicated annual time to concentrate on their personal development opportunities. We provide wide-ranging health and wellbeing support including discounted membership for our state-of-the-art sport and gym facilities and access to a 24-7 Employee Assistance Programme. Our on-site nursery is rated Outstanding by Ofsted, and you can access holiday camps for children aged 5-16. Our family-friendly policies, including maternity and adoption leave, are among the most generous in the higher education sector (and likely above and beyond many employers). We offer all staff the opportunity to take part in volunteering activities to make a difference in the local community. You can access exclusive discounts via our benefits portal including money off at supermarkets, high street retailers, IT products such as Apple, eating out and days out at various attractions. Various salary sacrifice schemes are also available to help you take advantage of tax savings on benefits. If you are moving to Durham, you may be eligible for help with removal costs, and we have a dedicated team who can help you with the practicalities such as house hunting and schools. If you need a visa, we cover most visa costs and offer an interest-free loan scheme to pay for dependant visas. Discover more about our total rewards and benefits package here. Durham University is committed to equality, diversity and inclusion Equality, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) are a key component of the University’s Strategy and a central part of everything we do. We also live by our Purpose and Values and our Staff Code of Conduct. At Durham we actively work towards providing an environment where our staff and students can study, work and live in a community which is supportive and inclusive. We welcome and encourage applications from those who are currently under-represented in our work force, including people with disabilities and from racially minoritised ethnic groups. If you have taken a career break or periods of leave that may have impacted on the volume and recency of your research outputs and other activities, such as maternity, adoption or parental leave, you may wish to disclose this in your application. The selection committee will take this into account when evaluating your application. The University has been awarded the Disability Confident Leader status. If you are a candidate with a disability, we are committed to ensuring fair treatment throughout the recruitment process. We will make adjustments to support the interview process wherever it is reasonable to do so and, where successful, reasonable adjustments will be made to support people within their role. Contact Information Department contact for academic-related enquiries Please contact Prof. Cheryl McEwan – cheryl.mcewan@durham.ac.uk - with any questions about the post Contact information for technical difficulties when submitting your application If you encounter technical difficulties when using the online application form, we prefer you send enquiries by email. Please send your name along with a brief description of the problem you’re experiencing to e.recruitment@durham.ac.uk Alternatively, you may call 0191 334 6801 from the UK, or +44 191 334 6801 from outside the UK. This number operates during the hours of 09.00 and 17.00 Monday to Friday, UK time. We will normally respond within one working day (Monday to Friday, excluding UK public holidays). University contact for general queries about the recruitment process How to Apply To progress to the assessment stage, candidates must evidence each of the essential criteria required for the role in the person specification below. It will be at the discretion of the recruiting panel as to whether they will also consider any desirable criteria, but we would urge candidates to provide evidence for all criteria. While some criteria will be considered at the shortlisting stage, other criteria may be considered later in the assessment process, such as questions at interview. Submitting your application We prefer to receive applications online. We will update you about your application at various points throughout the selection process, via automated emails from our e-recruitment system. Please check your spam/junk folder periodically to make sure you have not missed any of our updates. What to Submit All applicants are asked to submit: a CV and cover letter (maximum 2 pages) which details your experience, skills, and achievements in meeting (or the potential to meet) the criteria set out below. A sample of writing, specifically a published, in-press, submitted, or draft output (journal article or book chapter). Next Steps Short-listed candidates will be invited to the University, either virtually or in-person and will have the opportunity to meet key members of the Department. The assessment for the post will include an interview and we anticipate that the assessments and interviews will take place over one day in the week commencing 27th April 2026. In the event that you are unable to attend in person on the date offered, it may not be possible to offer you an interview on an alternative date. Please note that in submitting your application Durham University will be processing your data. We would ask you to consider the relevant University Privacy Statement Job Applicants/Potential Job Applicants - Durham University which provides information on the collation, storing and use of data. When appointing to this role the University must ensure that it meets any applicable immigration requirements, including salary thresholds which are applicable to some visas. Person Specification Essential Criteria: Qualifications 1. A good first degree in human geography or a related social science or humanities subject. 2. A PhD (or be close to submission) in a topic relevant to environmental change in the Anthropocene. Experience 1. Experience in conducting high quality academic research focused on geographies, environmental humanities, or political ecologies of environmental change. 2. Demonstrable ability to write material of a quality commensurate with publication in highly-ranked journals. 3. Demonstrable ability to present research papers at national conferences and communicate complex information to specialists and within the wider academic community. 4. Experience in designing, developing, and conducting innovative qualitative methods Skills 1. Demonstrable ability to work cooperatively as part of a team, including participating in research meetings. 2. Ability to work independently on own initiative and to strict deadlines. 3. Excellent interpersonal and communication skills. 4. Knowledge of and expertise in social science and humanities research on environmental crises and change. 5. Knowledge of and expertise in theoretical debates concerning environmental crises and change. Desirable Criteria Experience 1. Strong publication record in peer-reviewed journals, commensurate with stage of career. 2. Ability or potential to conduct fieldwork and archival research. 3. Ability or potential to conduct overseas fieldwork. 4. A track record of presenting research at conferences, symposia, or meetings, commensurate with stage of career. 5. Experience of helping to organise and host public engagement events (e.g. symposia, workshops or exhibitions), commensurate with career stage. 6. Experience of engaging with ecology- and/or biodiversity-focused organisations. Skills 1. Knowledge of literatures in the social sciences and humanities on decolonial and/or multispecies ecologies. 2. Knowledge of literatures in the social sciences or humanities on invasive species. 3. Knowledge of trends in environmental change-related public engagement. 4. Demonstrable ability to plan and manage independent research. 5. Ability to analyse research materials generated through innovative qualitative methods, including archival research and fieldwork.

Responsibilities

The Postdoctoral Research Associate will contribute to the project's conceptual development, undertake fieldwork and archival research in the UK and overseas, co-design a sensory exhibition, and disseminate research findings to various audiences. Primary duties involve collaborative research under the Principal Investigator's direction to advance the project's objectives.