The Erasmus School of History, Culture, and Communication (ESHCC) at Erasmus University Rotterdam is excited to offer a challenging and innovative PhD position in bridging generations by sharing knowledge: Fostering sustainability through knowledge and skills transfer.
In the face of the current climate crisis, there is a growing need for societies to transition towards more sustainable practices and lifestyles. Central to this transition is the preservation, revival and dissemination of traditional skills and knowledge, particularly those related to crafts, maintaining, reusing, and recycling. This project will investigate the transfer and enhancement of such invaluable expert knowledge through inter-generational interactions. In an era marked by rapid technological innovation and globalization, many of the traditional skills are at risk of being lost as younger generations become increasingly disconnected from them. By exploring the dynamics of intergenerational knowledge exchange, the project will shed light on effective strategies and mechanisms for a) preserving and revitalizing traditional practices, and b) creating connections between generations based on valuing knowledge and skills in support of urgent societal sustainability transitions.
The project will adopt a qualitative case-study methodology including participant observations, interviews and potentially a participatory action research approach, extracting important learnings from a variety of cases such as bike repair, food, and fashion and textile, bridging generations and cultures. The dissertation will consist of three case-studies and will include a reflection on theoretical and societal relevance.
Job description The successful candidate will be based at the Department of Arts and Culture Studies of the ESHCC and will carry out the following tasks:
Research (0.85 fte) - Conducting PhD research.
- Publishing and presenting research results in the form of articles in international peer reviewed journals and papers at international conferences.
- Writing a dissertation within the appointment duration of four years.
- Taking part in seminars, workshops etc. that are organized by the Erasmus Research Institute for Media, Culture, History and Society (ERMeCHS) as well as the Department of Arts and Culture Studies.
Teaching (0.15 fte) Performing junior teaching tasks in the BA degree programmes in the field Arts and Culture provided by ESHCC, primarily through tutorial group teaching in the International Bachelor of Arts and Culture Studies (IBACS).
Service Contributing to small management tasks of the department.