Postdoc position: Tracing the politics of technification in Baltic Sea Region energy infrastructure

A temporary 2-year postdoc position is available at the Danish Institute for International Studies (DIIS) starting on 1 January 2021. The postdoc is to work on the research project “SECURITECH: Energy infrastructure and the displacement of security authority in the Baltic Sea region”.

About DIIS and the position

One of DIIS’ absolute hallmarks is our long-standing tradition of contributing to the development of academic research and providing research-based input to policymakers and public debate. You will become part of an inspiring, vivid knowledge environment at an institution which aims to be at the forefront of multidisciplinary research, policy analysis and dissemination on global affairs. It is essential that you are ready to engage in cross-disciplinary cooperation and value input to and from colleagues with different approaches, as mixing different disciplinary backgrounds and theoretical approaches is a large part of DIIS’ DNA.

The unit Global Security and Worldviews is characterized by a focus on global and transnational security trends and the significance of threats/power transitions/worldviews that supersede the sole significance of the state perspective. As a postdoc, you will contribute to the thematic and theoretical development of both the unit’s research and of DIIS’ research in general. You will have plenty of time to focus on your research, as you do not have teaching obligations. In return, you are expected to both publish academically and communicate your research on relevant media-platforms, at public seminars or through lectures, thereby giving DIIS a strong and competent voice within the field of Baltic Sea energy infrastructure. Securing external funding is a joint task for the whole institute, and you are therefore expected to spend time on income-generating assignments.

The SECURITECH-project explores the technification of security authority in the Baltic Sea Region. By zooming in on three different cases of energy infrastructure in the region, the project seeks to trace a new form of politics at play. The postdoc position is dedicated to negotiations concerning the Lithuanian LNG terminal “Independence” opened in 2014. You will conduct interviews, archival studies, and field work in Lithuania to assist in pinpointing the mechanisms of technification at play in the Baltic Sea Region at large. Apart from you, the research team consists of a senior researcher, another postdoc, and a scientific assistant.

We expect you to:

• have completed a PhD degree in political science, international relations, or a related relevant discipline, e.g. sociology or anthropology, within the last three years (due to the eligibility requirements of DIIS)
• have a keen interest in security studies and energy politics in the Baltic Sea Region, and familiarity with critical research methods in security studies
• have proven research experience and peer-reviewed publications in one or more of the following fields: critical security studies, science and technology studies or energy studies
• be able to conduct independent research, critical and creative thinking and carry out research in a structured manner
• have experience with policy work and communicating your research results to external target groups
• preferably have experience with fieldwork and qualitative interviewing and/or prior research stays abroad
• preferably show documented results of successful external funding activities
• be a skilled communicator in both written and oral English
• be able to read primary sources and conduct interviews in Lithuanian DIIS as a workplace

We offer an attractive and inclusive workplace where our employees can develop. We consider knowledge sharing and feedback essential to creating a dynamic workplace. We expect you to participate proactively in the common efforts of the institute. We prioritize a high degree of presence but want our employees to have a good work-life balance. Therefore, we offer flexible working hours and some possibility of working from home. As DIIS is a bilingual Danish-English workplace, you are expected to learn Danish within the first 3 years of employment with support from the institute. We are located in Copenhagen’s new waterfront city district, Nordhavn, approx. 3 km from the city centre with excellent public transportation options.

DIIS is a diverse workplace and we encourage all qualified candidates to apply for this position regardless of age, gender, disabilities, sexual orientation, religion, ethnicity, or political beliefs.

Contract and renumeration

The position as postdoc is a 2-year full-time position, in which you may expect some travel activity. We would like you to start on 1 January 2021.

Renumeration and other job conditions follow the general agreement between the Danish Confederation of Professional Associations (AC) and the Danish Ministry of Finance as well as local collective agreements at DIIS. As such, the normal starting salary for a postdoc at DIIS is 459,766 DKK excl. pensions. In addition, the local salary agreement has a possibility for a personal supplement depending on the researcher’s relevant qualifications. A pension contribution of 17.1 % is added to the above-mentioned salary.

Candidates living abroad may under certain conditions be eligible for a special researcher tax scheme. The scheme offers a gross tax rate at 27 % plus labour market contributions, totalling 32.84 %, for a period of seven years. Read more about the tax scheme at https://skat.dk/skat.aspx?oid=2244911.

Do you want to know more?

Visit www.diis.dk/jobs to learn more about DIIS as a workplace. Questions regarding employment and renumeration can be sent to hr@diis.dk. If you have inquiries regarding the professional focus of the position, you can contact Senior Researcher Trine Villumsen Berling at trvb@diis.dk.

The application

The deadline for applying is 31 August 2020 at 23:59 CET.

Please note that we only accept applications through DIIS’ electronic recruitment system (HR Manager). Your application must include all the following documents:

1. A short motivational letter
2. Curriculum Vitae (CV/résumé)
3. Master’s and PhD diplomas
4. Documentation of academic qualifications, including a complete list of publications
5. Documentation of policy work and scientific dissemination (media participation etc.)
6. Up to three scholarly works* of which only one may be a monograph or compilation thesis – only works in English will be assessed.
7. A two-page reflection on how the framework of securitization can be applied to the decision-making process leading up to the completion of the LNG terminal ‘Independence’ in Lithuania. The reflection can include methodological and empirical as well as technocratic energy governance aspects specific to the case.

Applications go through a shortlisting process before being sent for external assessment. The assessment process may take up to several months depending on the number of applications.

*) The scholarly works must be uploaded electronically. If an electronic version is not available, books may be sent by post in three copies each. When posting books, please note that you must also upload a list of the books sent by post as part of the electronic application. The parcel must be marked “Securitech” and addressed to Danish Institute for International Studies (DIIS), att. HR, Østbanegade 117, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark. Please note that DIIS will only return the books if the return address is clearly noted on the parcel as well as in the electronic application.