2024 Killam Memorial Postdoctoral Fellowship at the University of Alberta application 

Deadline to submit application is December 10, 2023.

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Izaak Walton Killam Memorial Postdoctoral Fellowship, tenable for two years, any time after May 1, 2024. This is a research position, but some additionally remunerated teaching is possible, if desired.

AOS: open.

Citizenship: open.

Eligibility: Applicants must have completed a doctoral degree within three years from FGSR's nomination submission deadline date of January 15, 2024 (i.e. on or after January 15, 2021). The doctoral degree obtained must be from a university other than the University of Alberta. [The window of eligibility can be extended by a cumulative maximum of two years if the applicant had their career interrupted – see the website for details]

Value: $50,000 per annum plus benefits and a one-time $4000 research/travel grant.

In case of a conflict, the instructions and deadlines provided in this ad override the guidelines on the application form and on the University of Alberta webpage.

Applications: To receive full consideration, applications (including the letters of recommendation, research proposal, research experience statement, and community engagement statement) should be tailored to the Killam postdoctoral fellowship, address the applicant’s fit with the department and be written in a style accessible to non-experts. Applicants should choose a University of Alberta supervisor (having consulted with the faculty member) for their project prior to submitting an application.

 

Applications should include:

1. a completed application form (supervisor signature is not required at this point);

[The following required attachments should also be provided. Detailed guidelines about each attachment are provided on the application form.]

1. a research proposal (maximum two pages double-spaced) describing the applicant’s proposed postdoctoral research project;

2. a research experience statement (maximum four pages double-spaced) describing how the applicant’s academic background has prepared them to carry out the proposed research project;

3. a statement of community engagement (maximum one page double-spaced) describing how the applicant engages with the community at large, both in terms of their research focus/methodology and personal involvement;

4. a CV (including a list of academic honors, awards, and publications);

Supervisor’s letter of support and biosketch are not required at this time. If PhD degree is not yet in hand, proof that the PhD has been awarded will be required prior to taking up the fellowship.

 

Please also include:

1. graduate transcripts;

2. three letters of recommendation, sent directly to the Department of Philosophy by your recommenders.

Applications and letters should be sent electronically to Thurayya Said, Executive Assistant, Department of Philosophy: philea@ualberta.ca (subject line: Killam Search).

Deadline for receipt of applications: December 10, 2023. (Note: This internal deadline set by the Department of Philosophy overrides the official university-wide deadline of January 15 mentioned in the application guidelines.)

Fellowships are awarded in a university-wide competition. The University of Alberta is committed to the principle of equity in employment. We welcome diversity and encourage applications from all qualified candidates, including women, members of visible minority groups, First Nations, Métis and Inuit persons, persons with disabilities, and persons of any sexual orientation or gender identity and expression. Indigenous and Black scholars are especially encouraged to apply.

 

General inquiries may be addressed to Professor K. Bimbo (bimbo@ualberta.ca).

 

Click here for more information on eligibility and for the link to application procedures and the application form.

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Position for a Post-doctoral Researcher in Ethics at Trinity College, Dublin

Application deadline  December 11,  2023

Climate change presents humankind with one of its greatest challenges. The earth is experiencing
global warming and its consequences will be dramatic. There is a strong scientific consensus about
what should be done to mitigate climate change – reduction in the emission of Green House Gasses
(GHG), particularly those associated with burning fossil fuels for electricity generation and transport.
To reduce GHG emissions people will need to modify their behaviours and lifestyles, particularly
people living in countries where the per-capita emissions are highest. However, they are not doing
so, or at least not sufficiently to ensure global warming is kept at safe levels for future generations.
The reasons for this are complex and involve geopolitical and social factors, but key among the
reasons is that environmental ethics has not become embedded in the discourse of how people
consider climate change and its effects.
Among the ethical issues are that arise are that a single individual’s actions make little overall
difference leading them to ask: “Why should I bear inconvenience and have a lower quality-of-life if
my impact is so small overall?” The same question is also asked at a national level: why should a
country reduce its emissions and jeapordize its economic growth when others do not; this would
give ‘free-riders’ an economic advantage, at least in the short-to-medium term. A further ethical
issue is the effect of climate change on the non-human world: for example, what value if any does
humankind put on biodiversity and to what extent ought human beings curtail their activities to
allow other animals and plants to live natural lives. Finally recent work has emphasised that, besides
climate change and biodiversity loss there are other thresholds that are exceeded or threatened by
human activities.
In this project we try to further understand the ethical challenges for human behaviour in the
Anthropocene and to develop responses based on ethical principles. We begin by recognising that
human behaviour is a function of the economic and social models. Intrinsic to this is the
identification of the individual as a consumer of goods and services. Economic growth (GDP growth)
is the dominant objective of many societies, at least as articulated by governments. Growth requires
increasing production carried out by corporations seeking investment returns for investors,
alongside increased consumption of goods and services by individuals promoted by marketing,
advertising and media industries. Integrated into the consumer society, and in some ways running
counter to it, are ideas of sustainability, circular economy [including ideas of recycling, right-of-
repair], and ethical consumption.
 

In particular we are interested in how to establish right living in a world where the economic models
of continued growth and consumerism are accepted, or how to construct a countervailing narrative
based on ethical thinking. We would like to apply that understanding in the Irish context (i.e., small
open European economy; prosperity achieved relatively recently; significant indigenous industry in
beef and dairy; major multinational industries in ICT and pharma) and a political system strongly
predicated on maintaining a high quality of life for a growing population.

This is a three-year position for a researcher with a PhD in ethics or a related discipline. The overall
area of work will be in environmental ethics. The project will focus on developing ideas in ethical
consumerism and how it relates to climate change. A good outcome of the work would be a stronger
articulation of the consumption dilemmas faced by individuals and groups who seek to live ethically
in the Anthropocene, and the development of new models/frameworks for ethical consumption.
Candidates will be given considerable freedom to pursue their research and publications within the
general theme described above. The Postdoctoral researcher will be expected to organise a seminar
series, in collaboration with the Principal Investigators. During the project an ‘Environmental Ethics
Initiative’ will be established involving the PI and other faculty members who have an interest in
environmental ethics, and the Postdoctoral researcher will participate in this. Later it is intended to
have PhD student and the postdoc will be expected to contribute to the supervision team.
 

The salary will be as follows with an appointment made in accordance with experience since award
of the PhD.
Point 1 €41,208 , Point 2 €41,785 , Point 3 €43,699 , Point 4 €44,921 , Point 5 €46,180 , Point 6
€47,477. Appointees will avail of the Irish public sector pension scheme with an additional 20% of
salary paid into the scheme by the project. A travel and publication budget is available for the
project. The project will be carried out in the School of Religion, Theology and Peace Studies with
Professor Linda Hogan as the Principal Investigator.
 

Applications should be in the form of a covering letter, a current CV, and the names of two referees.
It should be received by 11 th December 2023 to:
 

Professor Linda Hogan FTCD, MRIA
Chair of Ecumenics
School of Religion, Theology and Peace Studies
Trinity College Dublin
Dublin 2
Lhogan2@tcd.ie

Informal enquiries are encouraged and may be made to Professor Linda Hogan at lhogan2@tcd.ie

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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