Research fellowship: ‘Citizen science, democratic participation and deliberative public spheres’ (Venice)
David Teira
Research fellowship
‘Citizen science, democratic participation and deliberative public spheres’
Università Ca' Foscari Venezia
Description
The Department of Philosophy and Cultural Heritage at the University Ca' Foscari of Venice invites applications for a postdoc fellowship in ‘Citizen science, democratic participation and deliberative public spheres’ sponsored by the Horizon 2020 project ISEED “‘Inclusive Science and European Democracies’” (H2020-SC6-GOVERNANCE-2020), GA n. 960366 – CUP H79C20000570004.
Duration of contract: 12 months renewable for further 16 months
Starting date: 15 April 2021
Stipend: Euro 22.318,00 gross per annum
Deadline for submission of applications: 16/03/2021, 12 noon CET.
The project
The objective of ISEED is to identify, through an analysis of a variety of types of, and experiments in, public engagement on science-related questions and activities, generalizable characteristics and conditions that cultivate active and productive citizen participation in public deliberation.The aim is to construct a novel concept of ‘deliberative participation’ designed to enhance both the quality and the legitimacy of political decision-making, by focusing on the importance of knowledge-based deliberation.
ISEED will build on and extend existing experience in the field of citizen science to explore the conditions under which participative and deliberative practices can be successfully implemented for the purpose of building forms of knowledge-based democratic governance complementary to political representation in democratic societies. ISEED combines theoretical analysis, empirical research, and small-scale experiments. It will reassess the role of the public sphere to include a novel notion of deliberative participation in a plurality of publics and counter publics. It will empirically explore how current practices of citizen participation in science can offer innovative methods to confront and overcome a number of current obstacles faced by democratic participation and decision making. It will develop a new tool to describe styles of argumentation in traditional and digital media and analyze the role of emotion and reason in polarised debates on contemporary scientific issues. The ISEED consortium, committed to multi and inter-disciplinary research, aims to deliver scalable results to foster deliberative democratic processes in Europe and other knowledge societies.
The post
The ideal candidate should be in possession of a PhD in Political Theory/Political Science, Philosophy of Social Science, Philosophy and Policy, Political Sociology, and an academic-professional curriculum appropriate for the research activity planned within the project.
He/She will be required to conduct research at the interface between conceptual analysis and empirical outputs and demonstrate an ability to integrate project results originating from different disciplinary fields (e.g. models of political participation and scientific practice, policy decision making and different sources of expertise, social preferences and forms of public engagement, citizen science and democratic deliberation, science communication and digital technologies prospects).
The fellow will contribute to the timely delivery of the outputs and milestones set out by the research project, and to the dissemination of the project results in compliance with the research framework envisaged by the project.
The fellowship is intended to provide the successful candidate with the opportunity to pursue his/her own research in the context of a large International and interdisciplinary team of experts.
The research will be carried out in English.
Who can apply
Prospective candidates are expected to hold a doctoral degree in one of the following areas: Political Theory/Political Science, Philosophy of Social Science, Philosophy and Policy, Political Sociology. Preferred fields of specialization: citizen science, deliberative democracy, policy analysis, public understanding of science.
Researchers having successfully completed Marie Skłodowska Curie Actions - Individual Fellowships/ERC Starting Grants/FIRB (Italian Fund for basic research investments)/SIR (Scientific Young Independence Research) or with an experience in H2020 - FP7/FP6 et sim. are encouraged to apply.
How to apply:
https://www.unive.it/data/29530/ (in English)
https://www.unive.it/data/18788/ (in Italian)
For further information please contact the Research Office in the Department of Philosophy and Cultural Heritage: ricer...@unive.it ; or the project coordinator Eleonora Montuschi: eleonora....@unive.it