Professor and Chair of the Philosophy Group

An inspiring professor to lead the Chair Group Philosophy. The Philosophy Group focuses on social-political, ethical, epistemic, and ontological issues involved in the relationship of humans with nature, animals, food, and agriculture. The Group aims to understand processes of societal and ethical debates around science and technology in different societal and cultural settings, by engaging in normative analysis and reflection on presuppositions.

The chair group has strong expertise in environmental philosophy, environmental ethics, and philosophy and ethics of technology. Moving forward, it wants to, additionally, strengthen its expertise in areas including:

• social and political philosophy,
• philosophy of science,
• moral philosophy,
• any other specialisation in philosophy relevant to the domains of Wageningen University & Research.

The new chair holder will foster a vibrant academic climate, provide a supportive working environment for academics, and help maintain the Group’s good track record in publications, acquisitions, education, and societal impact. The chair holder will enable the Group's research ambitions by further strengthening its position in national and international networks, strategically develop collaborations within and outside Wageningen University & Research and strengthen the established research lines as well as pursuing novel ideas. Strengthening the acquisition of external funding for research and interacting with societal partners are key elements of the chair holder’s responsibilities.

The successful applicant will play an active role in the Group’s education programme, develop educational strategies for all study programmes of Wageningen University and initiate courses in philosophy and ethics with experts from life and social sciences.

More info about our ground-breaking research projects, education and publications can be found at the Group’s website. And a virtual tour on WUR’s green and sustainable campus can be taken here!

You will be working for an international oriented organization with research projects all over the world. We offer a challenging position as full professor and chair of the Philosophy Group. In addition to a competitive salary, we offer several additional benefits, such as an end-of- year- extra month’s salary, a holiday allowance, and a pension plan with the Dutch pension fund for government and education. International candidates moving to the Netherlands may benefit from a special tax relief, by which 30% of their salary is exempt from tax. Have a look on https://www.wur.nl/en/Jobs/Moving-to-the-Netherlands.htm.

The position as chair is also open for candidates who prefer to work 0,8 fte in stead of fulltime.

Coming from abroad
We are a globally leading university in the life sciences. The themes we deal with are relevant to everyone around the world and Wageningen, therefore, has a large international community and a lot to offer to international employees.

The university’s highly qualified team of advisors on Dutch immigration procedures will help you with the visa application procedures for yourself and, if applicable, for your family. Furthermore, WUR offers a dual career programme for groups of partners and a specialised organization will further assist your partner in finding a job or starting a business in the Netherlands. Furthermore, we assist you in finding schools for your children and advise you on finding housing in the region or elsewhere in the Netherlands. The Wageningen University & Research's (WUR) International Community page contains practical information about what we do to support international employees and students coming to Wageningen.

Wageningen University & Research
The mission of Wageningen University & Research is “To explore the potential of nature to improve the quality of life.” Under the banner Wageningen University & Research, Wageningen University and the specialised research institutes of the Wageningen Research Foundation have joined forces in contributing to finding solutions to important questions in the domain of healthy food and living environment. With its roughly 30 branches, 7,200 employees (6,400 fte) and 13,200 students and over 150.000 participants to WUR’s Lifelong Learning, Wageningen University & Research is one of the leading organisations in its domain. The unique Wageningen approach lies in its integrated approach to issues and the collaboration between different disciplines.

Read the 5 reasons why your future colleagues enjoy working at WUR and watch this video to get an idea of our green campus!

The Philosophy Group is currently composed of 5 tenured and non-tenured scientific staff, 4 lecturers, 10 postdoctoral researchers, 7 PhD candidates and support staff. The Group also hosts 2 endowed professors in Christian and Humanistic philosophy. The Group is part of the Department of Social Sciences within Wageningen University. The Department provides social sciences research and academic education in the domains of Wageningen University: food, environment, health. The Philosophy Group is well positioned to collaborate with other social sciences and life sciences experts. The Group is embedded in the SPICE section together Strategic Communication Group, the Knowledge, Technology & Innovation Group, and the Education and Learning Sciences Group. The Philosophy Group collaborates with the other technical universities in the 4TU Centre of Ethics of Technology.