Partially Funded Interdisciplinary MA at NYU on the Politics of Discard Infrastructure in Africa
Rosalind C Fredericks
The Gallatin School of Individualized Study at New York University is pleased to announce a partially funded interdisciplinary Masters program assistantship on the subject of the politics of discard infrastructure in Africa. The student will serve as a Graduate Research Assistant (GRA) on Professor Rosalind Fredericks’ National Science Foundation research project on waste infrastructure in West Africa. The student will receive two semesters of salary and tuition remission and an additional semester of guaranteed scholarship assistance, as well as one summer of project salary funding and conference support. The student assistant will be expected to contribute to Prof. Fredericks’ research project on the waste dump in Dakar, Senegal, while conducting his/her own independent research on a related topic as the subject of their interdisciplinary thesis.
About the Gallatin MA Program
Gallatin’s Master of Arts program offers the opportunity to design an interdisciplinary program, with courses available throughout NYU’s graduate and professional schools. Each student works closely with a faculty adviser (in this case, Dr. Fredericks), to bring together his/her academic interests, passions, and experiences to create an individualized program of study that culminates in a master’s thesis.
Seehttps://gallatin.nyu.edu/academics/graduate.html for more information.
About the Research Project
Infrastructural upgrades in globalizing cities are often the source of deep political and cultural contestation. Urban planners confront competing interests of different citizen groups in their efforts to balance the need to modernize infrastructures and stimulate economic development with fostering of employment for the urban poor. Waste infrastructures are often especially contested because of the connections between waste and value and the key role they play in furnishing work for the city’s disenfranchised. Conversions and upgrades of garbage dumps to modern sanitary landfills may reduce hazards to public health at the same time as they threaten the livelihoods of thousands of people who rely on waste picking and recycling for survival. The contestations that take place over the “right to the dump” cut to the heart of urban citizenship and the poor's rights to the city and public space. This project focuses on the planned upgrade of the city dump that has spawned an organized protest movement by waste pickers in Dakar, Senegal. It investigates how various groups differently understand and value waste infrastructures, evaluates the labor implications of attempts to formalize waste picking, and examines contested epistemologies of public and environmental health mobilized in the upgrade process. Through ethnographic research with key interlocutors, including government planners and waste pickers, the research examines the planning process as a window into material struggles around urban citizenship and the rights of the city's poorest.
Criteria
The ideal candidate will have:
- A rigorous undergraduate or MA degree in a related area of study (e.g. Geography, Anthropology, Sociology, Environmental Studies, Development Studies, Urban Studies, African Studies)
- Strong interest in the research topic and a well-developed concentration proposal
- Solid experience conducting independent qualitative social science research, especially in Africa
- Excellent writing skills and strong interpersonal skills for working collaboratively
- Although not required, ability to communicate in French and/or Wolof is strongly desired
Application Requirements
Applications for fall 2018 will be considered starting April 1, 2018 and include:
- A statement of application for this assistantship detailing your interest in the research topic, relevant qualifications and experience (including languages), and describing how your thesis might connect to the research.
- A statement of purpose describing your proposed interdisciplinary Masters concentration, your qualifications for the degree, and your proposed courses.
- An updated CV
- One academic writing sample
- Copies of academic transcripts
- Two references (preferably academic)
Be sure to check the box indicating that you are applying for this specific opportunity.
For more information, please contact Professor Rosalind Fredericks, rc...@nyu.edu.
Rosalind Fredericks
Associate Professor
Gallatin School of Individualized Study, New York University
1 Washington Place, Room 608
New York, NY 10003
rc...@nyu.edu
For students wishing to schedule an office visit: http://goo.gl/5i46R