PhD position Nature-based solutions for planetary health

Erasmus School of Health Policy & Management (ESHPM) is making substantial investments into research & teaching in the area of Planetary Health, including this exciting PhD opportunity. Planetary Health has both mitigation and adaptation aspects, and this PhD position focuses on adaptation research, specifically on the impact of nature-based (community-driven) solutions and how to measure and evaluate their efficacy vis-à-vis current traditional approaches, treatments and care pathways. A second PhD opportunity at ESHPM is related to mitigation aspect of planetary health.

Job description
In the face of the triple planetary crisis, healthcare systems with its health professionals, as well as society at large, need to show resilience to cope with a new reality of impacts, related to multiple factors such as heat stress, new vector-borne and infectious diseases, trends and changes in non-communicable diseases, and climate-related mental health, which should be approached in a holistic way. In this context, at the beginning of 2023 the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW) identified the main knowledge gaps in their study of the effect of global environmental changes on human health and how this impact can be abated and drew up a comprehensive research agenda, completely focused on Planetary Health.

This PhD project is focused on the adaptation aspect of planetary health. Specifically, the project focuses on analysing the impact of nature-based community-driven solutions (which consider also culture as a basis for value systems) for planetary health and how to measure and evaluate their efficacy vis-à-vis current traditional approaches, treatments and care pathways, mainly based on pharmacological therapies. The application of these solutions to NCDs, preferably mental health conditions, will be required.

In order to respond in the best possible way to the new challenges due to the climate change consequences and other planetary crises, it is necessary to modify existing treatments and care pathways, making them suitable for different groups of population and at the same time fitting with our organizations’ capacity and needs without compromising their integrity. A system thinking and transdisciplinary viewpoint is thus necessary for preparedness and better understanding of this picture and what indicators of health systems resilience are already available and can be measured and which new ones are needed.

Nature-based Solutions (NbS), an approach that protects natural resources while improving the state and quality of ecosystems and people’s health and wellbeing, contribute to multiple dimensions of resilience. Implementing NbS, especially if community-driven, can be an impactful strategy to confront health, biodiversity and climate crises, while promoting sustainable development and generating health, social, financial, and investment returns. Despite this, NbS face multiple difficulties in implementation, because complete and thorough analyses of their impact are lacking. This can be of uttermost importance if we consider NbS application to mental health conditions, such as climate emotional distress (ecoanxiety, etc.), and include innovative aspects such as cultural ones to be integrated with those nature-based.

The PhD candidate will be based at the section SocioMedical Sciences (SMS) at Erasmus School of Health Policy & Management (ESHPM), a faculty of Erasmus University Rotterdam (EUR). Strategically, ESHPM is investing in three main themes: Planetary Health, Sustainable Workforce, and Global Health. Through these initiatives, ESHPM is at the forefront of shaping healthcare policy and management, innovating for a sustainable future in healthcare.

As part of the Planetary Health theme, you will develop your skills and competencies related to systems thinking, qualitative interviewing, tools and indicators for climate adaptation and health.

As a PhD candidate in this role, your research will not only contribute to academic knowledge but also have practical implications, influencing policy decisions and healthcare practices. You will be working in an exciting, dynamic academic environment, under the guidance of leading experts in the field. Your work will involve systematic literature reviews, data collection, mixed methods research, and analyses. You will play a crucial role in collecting information and providing recommendations, filling the current knowledge gaps A115, A233, B322, C133, D222 identified by KNAW in its 2023 Planetary Health report.

We are looking for someone who is not only academically talented but also able to apply principles of planetary health, to harmonize the health management principles with the environmental sustainability challenges. If you are ready to take on this task and contribute to a project with far-reaching impact, we encourage you to apply.

The research will be concluded with a PhD thesis. The project is supervised by Dr. Chiara Cadeddu, Prof. dr. ir. Erik M. van Raaij and Prof. Anna Petra Nieboer, with further members of the supervisory team to be decided later.
The tasks include:

• Further developing and implementing the PhD trajectory;
• Publishing scientific articles and a dissertation on the research;
• Developing tools (e.g., a toolkit, e-learning, podcast) to disseminate the knowledge from the project;
• Initiating and participating in knowledge transfer to external parties;
• Following additional training in research methods and theories;
• Providing education within ESHPM for approximately 15% of the appointment.
  
  Requirements
• You hold a master’s degree in public health, health sciences, social sciences, or another related Master’s programme.
• You have evidence-based experience in Planetary Health.
• You have a strong affinity with interdisciplinary research and working with academics as well as key stakeholders in the field, preferably in the healthcare and the societal sector.
• You have good analytical skills and demonstrated research competences for performing qualitative, quantitative and mixed-methods research.
• You have knowledge, and preferably experience, in system thinking and transdisciplinary research.
• You have the ability to work in a multidisciplinary team, and navigating and managing complex, multi-stakeholder settings.
• You have excellent social, communication and organization skills.
• You have excellent verbal and writing skills in English.
• You are a team player who wants to contribute to the research agenda of ESHPM.

The anticipated start date is November 2024, at the latest.

We offer you an internationally oriented and varied job in an enthusiastic team, with excellent working conditions in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities (CAO-NU).

The start date of this position is 01-NOV-2024 and you will be based at Campus Woudestein in Erasmus School of Health Policy & Management (ESHPM). This position is for 0.8 fte - 1 fte. The salary ranges from a minimum of € 2.770 to a maximum of € 3.539 gross per month Scale PhD on a fulltime basis (38 hours), in accordance with the CAO-NU. The contract is entered into for the duration of 18 months with the intention of extending to a total of four years

Everything else we offer you, you can find below!

• Everything you need for a good work-life balance: the option to work from home in consultation with your manager, 41 days of paid leave with a 40 hour contract, 8% holiday pay and an 8.3% end-of-year bonus, and a significant discount on a subscription for our on-campus sports centre!
• Sustainable, inclusive and diverse work environment with an open culture, where you can be yourself and we pay attention to each other and to the world around us. Make the most of our bicycle budget, or join networks such as Young@EUR, FAME or QuEUR.
• Time and space for your development in the broadest sense: development days and a personal career budget and free access to our university library.
• Good pension with ABP that EUR contributes 2/3rds towards, discounts on various collective insurances with Zilveren Kruis Achmea, Loyalis, and Allianz, and compensation for travel, working from home and home internet use.
• Are you currently combining your job with parenthood, or do you want to do so in the future? EUR offers partially paid parental leave and fully paid additional birth leave for partners, and our campus features a daycare (daycare not paid for by EUR).
• Moving to the Netherlands for your job with EUR? Then you may be eligible for the 30%-ruling if you meet the requirements of the Belastingdienst (Dutch tax agency), and with our Dual Career Programme we will also help your partner find the right job for them.

Erasmus University Rotterdam (EUR) is an internationally oriented university with a strong social orientation in its education and research, as expressed in our mission ‘Creating positive societal impact’. EUR is home to 4.100 academics and professionals and almost 33.000 students from more than 140 countries. Everything we do, we do under the credo The Erasmian Way – Making Minds Matter. We’re global citizens, connecting, entrepreneurial, open-minded, and socially involved. These Erasmian Values function as our internal compass and create EUR’s distinctive and recognizable profile. From these values, with a broad perspective and with an eye for diversity, different backgrounds and opinions, our employees work closely together to solve societal challenges from the dynamic and cosmopolitan city of Rotterdam. Thanks to the high quality and positive societal impact of our research and education, EUR can compete with the top European universities. www.eur.nl.

Faculty / Institute / Central service
The Erasmus School of Health Policy & Management (ESHPM) is a leading institute in the Netherlands, specialising in healthcare policy and management across disciplines like economics, law, socio-medical sciences, organisation science, and public administration. Located in the Bayle Building at Erasmus University Rotterdam and closely associated with Erasmus Medical Centre, ESHPM educates about 1,600 students and employs around 200 faculty members, focusing on internationalisation and multidisciplinary research.

ESHPM has launched in 2023 its investment agenda to reflect in response on global challenges that we are facing, composed by four themes: Planetary Health, Global Health, Workforce Challenges and Data Access and Infrastructure. The Planetary Health Theme is aimed at looking for adequate responses, both in relation to reducing the ecological burden of healthcare and by improving the resilience of communities and the healthcare system.

Strategically, ESHPM addresses three main areas in planetary health: reducing the negative contribution from healthcare to the planet ecosystems (mitigation), aiming for sustainability in healthcare; mediating on health consequences caused by the triple planetary crisis – climate change, biodiversity loss and global pollution - (adaptation), through individual, community and health systems resilience; decrease the impact of health issues on healthcare systems, by improving prevention and preparedness (healthcare resilience). Through these objectives, ESHPM is at the forefront of shaping healthcare policy and management, innovating for a holistic and sustainable future in healthcare.

see department

Department
The SocioMedical Sciences (SMS) department consists of strong ethnically diverse people who are all personally driven to make a positive impact on the many societal challenges we are facing by providing high quality research and education in close collaboration with partners in the field.

The Socio-Medical Sciences research group explores issues of quality and effectiveness of care for various vulnerable groups in society throughout the life course. We are facing rising numbers of chronically ill patients, people with functional limitations and mental health issues, which trend is associated with increasingly larger socioeconomic and ethnic health disparities among younger as well as older populations. These groups have multi-faceted and complex needs, which require a person-centered approach taking diversity issues into account. Insights from the areas of public health, epidemiology, medical sociology and health psychology are valuable in this respect.