The School of Law, located in the historical city centre of Utrecht, is offering an exciting postdoctoral position to carry out research in an international and interdisciplinary team within the framework of the RE-WIRING Horizon Europe project, that has been granted under the call “HORIZON-CL2-2022-TRANSFORMATIONS-01-5 Gender and Social, Economic and Cultural Empowerment”.  This project is aimed at building a European network of academic and non-academic institutions and stakeholders to contribute to a more resilient, equal and inclusive EU.

The project will trace current limitations of girls’ and women’s access to political, economic, social and cultural power (of definition) and is geared towards developing new theoretical and methodological approaches as well as to creating/producing/kickstarting/facilitating institutional and societal change, focusing on the mainstreaming of a transformative equality approach in the EU and beyond. The project will thus reveal and analyse the existence of difficult-topenetrate strongholds of power in different fields, occupied by gender-privileged groups. It will on the one hand investigate the main institutional, empirical and symbolical obstacles hampering access to power, while on the other hand identifying, crafting and testing/implementing possible solutions to it that are capable of achieving long-term transformations. The project envisions working with an intersectional, multi- and interdisciplinary research agenda based on a based in three-dimensional theoretical and methodological approach of the interconnectedness between the symbolical, the institutional and the empirical levels in order to bring about (durable societal change. It also takes a crisis and cross-cultural perspective (see for a brief description also https://www.uu.nl/en/news/horizon-europe-funding-for-transformative-research-project-re-wiring).

There will be six Research Fellows employed as postdocs at the various involved universities (besides Utrecht, located in Leuven, Gdansk, Bilbao, Portsmouth and Cape Town). They will not only work on the specific WP for which they have been selected, but they will also be contributing significantly to the overarching Workpackages (on synthesis, impact, engagement, coordination and dissemination). The workpackages encompass a methods and theory innovation lab (WP1), policies and laws (WP2), debiasing education (WP3), employment (WP4), representation (WP5) and crises (WP6). The research is embedded in an international and interdisciplinary setting, in close collaboration with the other post-docs in the project and the senior researchers from the various partner institutions. The project also involves the Centre for Inclusive Leadership (CFIL) as a consortium partner and close collaboration with external stakeholders, in particular the OECD (Organisation of Economic Cooperation), ETUI (European Trade Union Institute) and CEC European Managers (Confédération Européenne des Cadres –European Confederation of Managers).

For workpackage 2 Laws, policies and decision-making we are looking for a postdoctoral researcher.

We expect the candidate to:

• contribute to data gathering and review of relevant concepts and best practices in relation to transformative equality processes, including in the specific field of leadership positions;
• contribute to data gathering on and analysis of root causes of national gendered law- and policymaking processes and their effective tackling;
• contribute to the development of a policy evaluation checklist and practitioners’ toolkit to identify and tackle gendered law and policymaking processes;
• work towards the development of an online training module for policymakers for these purposes.

Requirements:

• PhD in politico-legal field; law or political science, with a focus on gender equality, gendered power hierarchies in organizational/institutional context and change;
• experience with comparative research and different research methodologies;
• experience and affinity with dissemination of scientific evidence to policymakers, and also to other societal stakeholders and lay audiences;
• knowledge of developing practical training tools for policymakers would be an asset;
• experience in working on large-scale research projects as part of a diverse and interdisciplinary team would be an asset.

This is an appointment of 0.6 FTE for the duration of one year. The gross salary is €3,974 (scale 11, step 0 of the Collective Labour Agreement of Dutch Universities) per month, at a full-time employment.

Besides that, you will receive a holiday allowance of 8 % and a year-end bonus of 8.3 %. Utrecht University also has an appealing package of terms of employment, including the choice for a good balance between work and private (a good arrangement for leave, among other things), possibilities for development and an excellent pension scheme. For more information, please visit working at Utrecht University.

A better future for everyone. This ambition motivates our scientists in executing their leading research and inspiring teaching. At Utrecht University, the various disciplines collaborate intensively towards major strategic themes. Our focus is on Dynamics of Youth, Institutions for Open Societies, Life Sciences and Sustainability.

The Faculty of Law, Economics and Governance is a faculty at the heart of society, with a strong focus on social issues. Our subjects of Law, Economics and Governance give us a strong mix of academic disciplines that complement and enhance each other. This is a unique combination and a mark of our faculty's strength.

The School of Law is part of the Faculty of Law, Economics and Governance. ‘Law in Utrecht’ stands for multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary research in and of the primary fields of law, and for an intensive and eclectic legal education in a small-scale academic community. The school’s education and research primarily focus on the core law fields and the relationships between them. The school aims to play an active and unique role through innovative legal research into socially and academically relevant issues, with a challenging education that trains students to become legal scholars who can lead social change. We work with a diverse group of employees and students. We highly value a work environment where everyone is acknowledged and appreciated, dares to speak out, and is treated with respect. We ask all of our employees to contribute to an open and inspiring work- and learning environment for students and staff members from every background. Together we ensure that everyone feels welcome and has the opportunity to develop their full potential. Therefore, the School of Law strives for diversity among its employees and students and is committed to creating a safe and inclusive environment for everyone, as can be read in Utrecht University's Equality, Diversity and Inclusion policy.