2020 Postdoctoral fellowship : Japan-ASEAN Platform for Transdisciplinary Studies

CALL FOR APPLICATIONS DEADLINE: October 15, 2019

Application closed.

The Center for Southeast Asian Studies (CSEAS) at Kyoto University, Japan, invites applications for a two-year CSEAS Postdoctoral Fellowship under its program “Japan-ASEAN Platform for Transdisciplinary Studies.”

Southeast Asia, through its regional inter-governmental institution of ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations), has emerged as a hub for Asian community-building. The highly diverse societies in this region have undergone rapid social, economic, political and environmental changes.

Under this six-year program funded by the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT), we aim to establish several sub-projects that are solution-oriented. By developing a “transdisciplinary platform”, we seek to generate a practical dialogue between academic and non-academic stakeholders for transformative research on the ASEAN region.

We attend to a variety of issues, such as:

1)　environmental degradation
2)　natural resource governance
3)　economic growth and distribution
4)　democratization
5)　aging, health, and welfare
6)　urbanization and depopulation
7)　emerging infectious diseases
8)　natural disasters

The root causes of these pressing issues must be understood and solutions must be sought beyond the confinement of nationalism, academic disciplinarity, and barriers separating academic and non-academic stakeholders.

This transdisciplinary program seeks to promote sustainable development in Southeast Asia by analyzing the complex interactions between ecological and socio-political environments; by developing strategies and techniques for managing social, political, economic, cultural and environmental challenges; and by creating a platform for dialogue among scholars from across disciplines (including the natural sciences) and with practitioners in non-academic institutions, government, non-government, and international organizations (for further information, visit https://www-archive.cseas.kyoto-u.ac.jp/japan-asean/en/). One postdoctoral fellowship will be offered. The postdoctoral fellowship will be for two years, with a starting date of April 1, 2020. The fellowship is intended to provide an up-and-coming researcher with the time, space, and financial as well as institutional support necessary to produce outstanding scholarship that will promote the study of sustainable societies in Southeast Asia.

We seek applicants from a diversity of backgrounds who are academically inclined and interested, including government, civil society, grassroots organizations, and business. We are particularly interested in candidates who work across these boundaries and are motivated to fulfill the aims and purposes of the Center’s research program. Such candidates should be in a position to help CSEAS expand and strengthen its research and professional networks throughout Northeast and Southeast Asia.

Qualifications

We encourage applications from researchers with a Ph.D. or proof of a solid research and publication track record in area studies, sociocultural anthropology, geography, sociology, economics, politics, political economy, political ecology, forestry, biology, medicine, ecology, hydrology, climate science, fisheries science, environmental science, disaster science, natural resources, governance or related disciplines. We seek up-and-coming researchers who are at the early stage of their career development. The applicant must not be the recipient of a JSPS Postdoctoral Fellowship or similar programs, nor must be in any other regular employment at the time of our fellowship. While the application is open to candidates from all regions of the world, preference will be given to applicants from Southeast Asia or who have Southeast Asian heritage.

The applicant must submit the following documents online:
Online Application form:

Attachments:

• 1)　Curriculum Vitae (must include information on language skills, both oral and written; list of presentations at international academic conferences and seminars; fieldwork experiences; list of grants and awards; and complete list of publications, indicating which ones are refereed)
• 2)　Two recommendation letters
• 3)　Samples of major publications (two samples with abstracts; electronic copies or photocopies are acceptable)
• 4)　Summary of scholarly activities and achievements (up to 1200 words)
• 5)　Statement of your research, writing, and publication goals for this fellowship, and your contribution to our program (up to 1200 words)

Shortlisted candidates may be interviewed over Google Hangouts, and will therefore be requested to open a Google account or provide the CSEAS with information regarding existing Google addresses.

For information on eligibility and application procedures, see here.

For further inquiries, please contact us at postdoc@cseas.kyoto-u.ac.jp (please use “CSEAS fellowships” as subject heading).

CSEAS is an equal employment opportunity employer and we strongly encourage members from historically underrepresented communities, especially women, to apply.