PhD Position on NLP for Supporting Climate Dialogues
PhD Position on NLP for Supporting Climate Dialogues
Job description
Climate changes, such as sea level rise, soil subsidence, extreme rainfall, and drought, induce new challenges and risks for real estate and infrastructures, especially in low lying urbanized deltas, as in the Netherlands. While people’s homes, communities, and livelihoods are at stake, real estate climate risks also stand to destabilize markets and society at large.
In this position, you will co-design and co-develop an Integrative Forum (IF) that aims to facilitate two-way transdisciplinary exchange and dialogue on climate risk management. The IF, on the one hand, provides a ‘soft space’ for debate and reflection between research teams, societal partners, and citizens at large. On the other hand, the dialogue in the IF provides an opportunity for innovative research on institutionalized logics, tactics, and procedures that hinder or enable effective cross-disciplinary collaboration.
An innovative aspect of this position is the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) for supporting the development of the IF. AI, specifically, natural language processing (NLP), techniques can support the IF by, e.g., recognizing the stakeholders’ values and norms, identifying arguments and perspectives, identifying disagreements, finding novel viewpoints, and modelling opinion dynamics.
The data for AI techniques comes from the recordings and transcripts (obtained with appropriate permissions) of the meetings in the forum, which will be organized regularly during the project. Further, where available, we can employ discursive data outside the forum, e.g., on social and news media.
You will address the following preliminary research objectives, which will be refined by you in cooperation with your supervision team.
RO1: Generate cross-disciplinary research insights and build collective governance capacity through dialogue, reflection, and mutual learning facilitated within the Integrative Forum.
RO2: Leverage AI to draw out stakeholders’ institutionalized logics, tactics and procedures to facilitate cross-consortium reflection and learning to build collective governance capacity.
RO3: Create generalizable institutional and strategic insights about how to enable productive two-way transdisciplinary and cross-actor exchanges which build capacity for integrated climate risk management in the built environment.
This position is part of Work Package 5 (WP5) of the Real Estate Development & Building in Low Urban Environments (RED&BLUE) research initiative, a major new program funded by the Dutch Research Council. More information can be found at: www.redblueclimate.nl. In addition to you, WP5 involves a PostDoc, with whom you will closely collaborate.
As a member of the RED&BLUE team, you will do high-impact research on a pressing societal topic relevant within the Netherlands and beyond. Your research will enable you to actively collaborate with other researchers and societal partners, providing you with exceptional mentorship, personal development, and networking opportunities. You will also build upon the work of other researchers and real-world urban use cases.
Specifications
- Delft View on Google Maps
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Delft University of Technology (TU Delft)
Requirements
The candidate must have:
- Completed an MSc degree in Artificial Intelligence, Computer Science, or another field relevant to the PhD topic, e.g., Spatial Planning, with completed AI, Computer Science, or related courses.
- Demonstrated competence or strong interest in a relevant artificial intelligence topic such as natural language processing, social computing, or multiagent systems.
- Strong programming skills.
- If your native language is not English and you do not hold a degree from an institution in which English is the language of instruction, you must submit proof of English proficiency from either TOEFL (minimum total score of 100) or IELTS (minimum total score of 7.0).
- Have a good command of the English language, required for scientific publishing.
- Excellent communication skills and the ability to switch between operational and managerial levels within the various disciplines that are part of this research. · Team spirit and an open personality.
- A good command of the Dutch language is a positive point, considering the consortium members and case studies of this research as well as the societal dissemination of your results to Dutch audiences. If the candidate does not speak Dutch, they should be willing to learn Dutch as a priority, and we expect the candidate to reach the Dutch B1/B2 language level within one year.
Doing a PhD at TU Delft requires English proficiency at a certain level to ensure that the candidate is able to communicate and interact well, participate in English-taught Doctoral Education courses, and write scientific articles and a final thesis. For more details please check the Graduate Schools Admission Requirements.
Conditions of employment
Doctoral candidates will be offered a 4-year period of employment in principle, but in the form of 2 employment contracts. An initial 1,5 year contract with an official go/no go progress assessment within 15 months. Followed by an additional contract for the remaining 2,5 years assuming everything goes well and performance requirements are met.
Salary and benefits are in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities, increasing from € 2541 per month in the first year to € 3247 in the fourth year. As a PhD candidate you will be enrolled in the TU Delft Graduate School. The TU Delft Graduate School provides an inspiring research environment with an excellent team of supervisors, academic staff and a mentor. The Doctoral Education Programme is aimed at developing your transferable, discipline-related and research skills.
The TU Delft offers a customisable compensation package, discounts on health insurance and sport memberships, and a monthly work costs contribution. Flexible work schedules can be arranged. For international applicants we offer the Coming to Delft Service and Partner Career Advice to assist you with your relocation.
Employer
Delft University of Technology
Delft University of Technology is built on strong foundations. As creators of the world-famous Dutch waterworks and pioneers in biotech, TU Delft is a top international university combining science, engineering and design. It delivers world class results in education, research and innovation to address challenges in the areas of energy, climate, mobility, health and digital society. For generations, our engineers have proven to be entrepreneurial problem-solvers, both in business and in a social context. At TU Delft we embrace diversity and aim to be as inclusive as possible (see our Code of Conduct). Together, we imagine, invent and create solutions using technology to have a positive impact on a global scale.
Challenge. Change. Impact!
Department
Faculty Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science
The Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science (EEMCS) brings together three disciplines - electrical engineering, mathematics and computer science. Combined, they reinforce each other and are the driving force behind the technology we use in our daily lives. Technology such as the electricity grid, which our faculty is helping to make future-proof. We are also working on a world in which humans and computers reinforce each other. We are mapping out disease processes using single cell data, and using mathematics to simulate gigantic ash plumes after a volcanic eruption. There is plenty of room here for ground-breaking research. We educate innovative engineers and have excellent labs and facilities that underline our strong international position. In total, more than 1,100 employees and 4,000 students work and study in this innovative environment.
Click hereto go to the website of the Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science.
Additional information
For more information about this vacancy, please contact Pradeep K. Murukannaiah, Assistant Professor, tel: +31 15 27 82291.
Specifications
- PhD
- Engineering
- University graduate
- TUD02415
Employer
Location
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Application procedure
Are you interested in this vacancy? Please apply before June 18, 2023, via the application button and submit as a single pdf file the following documents (in English):
- Motivation letter (max 2 pages)
- Curriculum vitae (max 2 pages)
- Names and contact information of two referees.
- Writing sample (e.g., a paper or part of your thesis)
Please note:
- A pre-employment screening can be part of the selection procedure.
- You can apply online. We will not process applications sent by email and/or post.
- Acquisition in response to this vacancy is not appreciated.
Application procedure
Application procedure
Are you interested in this vacancy? Please apply before June 18, 2023, via the application button and submit as a single pdf file the following documents (in English):
- Motivation letter (max 2 pages)
- Curriculum vitae (max 2 pages)
- Names and contact information of two referees.
- Writing sample (e.g., a paper or part of your thesis)
Please note:
- A pre-employment screening can be part of the selection procedure.
- You can apply online. We will not process applications sent by email and/or post.
- Acquisition in response to this vacancy is not appreciated.
Make sure to apply no later than 18 Jul 2023 23:59 (Europe/Amsterdam).