Assistant Professor Environmental History (1.0 FTE)

We are looking for a candidate whose teaching and research will focus on environmental history in the early modern or modern period (any geographical area). The assistant professor will be embedded in the Cultural History section. Therefore we invite scholars whose work engages with, for example, the cultural reception of environmental change, attitudes towards nature, the cultural foundations of sustainability and environmentalism, entanglements of humans and the ecosystem, and the production of knowledge of the environment and nature. We welcome scholars whose research complements the existing strengths of the Cultural History group (see our website for more detail) and of the newly founded Utrecht Centre for Environmental Humanities, which studies the meanings, values, and ethics defining society’s engagement with the environment. Other themes of the Utrecht Centre for Environmental Humanities include (climate, racial and gender) justice, environmental politics, the politics of knowledge production in the environmental domain, and the role of the environment in public memory, representation, and heritage.

 

If appointed, we would expect you to teach topics linked to your research area in our Master's programme in Cultural History, and to contribute to our undergraduate curriculum. This is a teaching-intensive position (70% teaching - 30% research).

The successful candidate will have:

• a PhD degree in History or a related discipline;
• teaching experience at undergraduate and graduate level, including teaching outside your area of expertise;
• a clear teaching philosophy, briefly outlined in a teaching philosophy statement in which you reflect on your teaching beliefs and practices, and what skills and knowledge you bring to an education team. Include this statement in your letter of motivation;
• an innovative research theme and strategy, outlined in a research statement included in your letter of motivation;
• an interest to engage with stakeholders and wider audiences to co-create knowledge and to assist in developing the impact of research beyond the university sector;
• the ability to play a role in departmental management and to contribute fully to the academic life of the department;
• a supportive attitude towards colleagues, with an open mind towards creative forms of exchange and cooperation, contributing to the academic life of the department.

Utrecht University has a teaching qualification system for university lecturers, and candidates are required to obtain the Basic Teaching Qualification (BKO) within two years if they are not already in possession of one. Candidates are expected to be proficient in both Dutch and English within 2 years.

The department is committed to diversity and inclusion in the workplace. We welcome all employees who contribute to the diversity of our faculty through their unique background and perspective.

We offer a position, from 1 August 2022 at the latest (1.0 FTE) for a period of one year. After a positive evaluation, the appointment will be turned into a permanent one. The gross salary - depending on previous qualifications and experience  - ranges between €3.821 and €5.230 (scale 11according to the Collective Labour Agreement Dutch Universities) per month for a full-time employment. Salaries are supplemented with a holiday bonus of 8% and a year-end bonus of 8.3% per year. In addition, Utrecht University offers excellent secondary conditions, including an attractive retirement scheme, (partly paid) parental leave and flexible employment conditions (multiple choice model). For more information: 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 societal themes. Our focus is on Dynamics of Youth, Institutions for Open Societies, Life Sciences and Sustainability.

The Faculty of Humanities has around 6,000 students and 900 staff members. It comprises four knowledge domains: Philosophy and Religious Studies, History and Art History, Media and Culture Studies, and Languages, Literature and Communication. With its research and education in these fields, the faculty aims to contribute to a better understanding of the Netherlands and Europe in a rapidly changing social and cultural context. The enthusiastic and committed colleagues and the excellent amenities in the historical city center of Utrecht, where the faculty is housed, contribute to an inspiring working environment.
The Cultural History section within the Department of History and Art History at Utrecht University is looking for an assistant professor in Environmental History. Cultural History is one of the most interdisciplinary groups in the Department: we are trained as historians, but also as archaeologists, philologists, journalists and philosophers. Together we study the ways in which people produce culture (through institutions, bodies and networks), circulate it (through education, books, newspapers, images and digital media), and reproduce it (through memory practices and heritage politics). Our group is clustered in three groups: Uses of the Past (studying the production of heritage and memory in contemporary and past societies), Knowledge Practices (exploring the cultural dimensions and networks defining knowledge production and expertise) and Transcultural Connections (analyzing and reflecting on the circulation of culture across the globe and societal impact of (post)colonialism). The group plays a central role in three Master’s programmes and the Bachelor programme of the department. We also collaborate with other groups across Utrecht University (e.g. the Descartes Centre and Graduate School of Teaching).