Friday, June 13, 2014

“Urban reconfigurations in post-Soviet space” - PhD Fellowships

The Leibniz Institute for Regional Geography (IfL) in Leipzig kindly invites applications from highly qualified and motivated individuals for 2 PhD fellowships to commence as soon as possible. The IfL is a non-university research institute and member of the Leibniz association with currently around 70 employees. It is institutionally financed by the Free State of Saxony and the Federal Republic of Germany in the context of a common research funding agreement.

The fellowships include
· a monthly stipend of 1400 Euro granted for six months
· access to the academic service infrastructure of the IfL (e.g. the Central Geographical Library, the Geography archives, cartographic and IT services, scientific seminars)
· individual support in terms of exchange and discussions within the international research network of ira.urba
· flexible working arrangements in Leipzig

The fellowships will be financed within the framework of the international comparative research project “Urban reconfigurations in post-Soviet space” (ira.urban). The project aims at analysing and explaining continuities and discontinuities in the reconfiguration of urban spaces in the light of traditional, reproduced Soviet and newly formed post-Soviet conditions, as well as of changing global economic and social orders. On the basis of transnational comparative case study research, the project focuses on the question to what extent urban development has become part of a socially negotiated adjustment processes, and a mirror of a comprehensive modernisation process of urban societies in the republics of the former Soviet Union.

The fellowships relate to the ira.urban subproject on urban economy. We expect the research projects to focus on mono-industrial cities, which offer particular insights into post-Soviet urban dynamics and the trajectories of urban systems. In spite of a shared institutional legacy, after 20 years of transition these cities are following very diverse development paths. Against this backdrop, we are looking into processes, preconditions and factors within and beyond these cities, which have promoted their success or downfall. The research projects should particularly focus on:

(1) Institutional practices as key preconditions for development trajectories of post-Soviet mono-industrial cities, focusing on comparative analyses of institutional actor networks, urban governance and the legal environment;

(2) Household strategies of survival and adaptation to market conditions in post-Soviet mono-industrial cities, with a focus on local and actor-centred research projects.

The awardee addresses in his PhD thesis the aforementioned topic, and deploys it empirically and theoretically for a local or comparative case study in the post-Soviet space. In the context of the ira.urban project, he/she contributes to the comparative analysis of survival strategies and institutional mechanisms in different post-Soviet countries and their repercussions on reconfigurations of post-Soviet urban space.

The successful candidate will be in an advanced stage of his/her PhD project, have gained relevant skills in social research methods, as well as experiences in comparative urban research in post-Soviet space, and/or have elaborated concepts for researching the aforementioned topic.

Furthermore, we expect of both candidates geographic flexibility, fluency in English and in at least one language of the post-Soviet space, as well as working knowledge in Office software. The positions require hard-working individuals with analytical strength, communication skills, self-initiative and a strong team spirit.

Please submit your complete application package in English as one pdf file by e-mail to personal@ifl-leipzig.de. The deadline for applications is July 13th 2014.

Please enclose the following documents:

· CV
· letter of motivation/statement of purpose, including a short display of the links between your project/idea and ira.urban (2 pages max.)
· exposé of your PhD project, including your work schedule and work progress (5 pages max, excluding sources)
· list of your publications and presentations
· certificates, references …

Should you have any further queries, please do not hesitate to contact Dr. Isolde Brade (I_Brade@ifl-leipzig.de) or Dr. Irina Slepukhina (I_Slepukhina@ifl-leipzig.de). We are looking forward to your application!

Wednesday, June 11, 2014

Call for Proposals: Cities Methodologies October 201

Call closes: 20 June 2014, 5pm
Exhibition dates: 28 - 31 October 2014

Cities Methodologies, organised by UCL Urban Laboratory, is an initiative to showcase innovative methods in urban research, drawing together work from undergraduate programmes, through to PhD studies, staff, and the wider research community.

We invite proposals for exhibits and events for the main Cities Methodologies 2014, which will be held in the Slade Research Centre between 28 – 31 October. Applications are invited from external researchers using innovative methods to understand cities, in addition to proposals from UCL staff, students and alumni.

Visitors to Cities Methodologies encounter diverse methods of urban research in juxtaposition‚ from archival studies to statistical analyses, practice-led art and design work to oral history, writing, walking, film-making and photography. Proposals for exhibits and events that engage with the city are invited from any discipline, right across the built environment, the arts and humanities, social and historical sciences, engineering, laws, life sciences, biomedical sciences, and maths and physical sciences. Cities Methodologies aims to promote cross- and inter-disciplinary work, and to showcase recent research on a wide range of cities.

To submit a proposal please visit our website, complete the form and follow the submission instructions, returning it to urbanlaboratory@ucl.ac.uk by 5pm on 20 June 2014.

Joint and group applications are particularly welcomed. Queries to urbanlaboratory@ucl.ac.uk.

Timeline
5pm, 20 June: deadline for Cities Methodologies proposals
20 June – 4 July: proposals reviewed
7 July: successful proposals announced
27 – 28 October, exhibition installed
28 October (pm), exhibition opens
31 October (pm) exhibition closes

Sunday, June 8, 2014

FYI: Job

Position available in the international research project 'Intra- and Inter-Societal Sources of Instability in the Caucasus and EU Opportunities to Respond' at Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik
(Berlin)

We are currently recruiting a researcher (part-time 50%) for the international research project oeIntra- and Inter-Societal Sources of Instability in the Caucasus and EU Opportunities to Respond (ISSICEU) . The fixed-term position starts on August 1, 2014 and lasts until December 31, 2016. Financed by the EU, ISSICEU is an interdisciplinary consortium project which comprises seven research institutions based in Western and Eastern Europe. It aims at both academic and policy-oriented output (for more information, visit www.issiceu.eu). Within the framework of ISSICEU, SWPTMs sub-project explores the role of Turkey in the Caucasus and in particular Turkish influences on the Georgian-Abkhaz conflict. While empirically the sub-project focuses on civil society, security and military policy as well as economic relations, on the theoretical level it aims at contributing to the interface between Political Sociology and International Relations.

Beginning on August 1, 2014 and limited until December 31, 2016 we are hiring a team member (part-time 50%) for this particular sub-project. S/he will cover for maternity leave until March 31, 2015 and continue to contribute to the projectTMs successful implementation until its completion.

Qualifications: * Excellent knowledge of the Caucasus, preferably through field research carried out in the region * Above-average academic degree (MA) in the social sciences, preferably in political science, sociology, political geography or anthropology * Distinct interest in empirical and theory-oriented research * Experience of working with qualitative-interpretive methods * Fluency in Russian and English required, Turkish and/or German language skills are a plus The position may be used for working toward further academic credentials (PhD or post-doc).

Remuneration will be in accordance with the public sector collective wage agreement (TVöD), remuneration group E 13. SWP promotes gender equality and particularly encourages women to apply.

The application deadline is June 17, 2014.

Please send your application to:
SWP Personalreferat Ludwigkirchplatz 3-4
10719 Berlin
Germany
or as an electronic version to:
bewerbungen(at)swp-berlin.org

Tuesday, June 3, 2014

Lifting the Curtain ... in Venice


Lifting The Curtain. Central European Architectural Networks – a Collateral Event of the 14th International Architecture Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia will be presented in partnership with the Adam Mickiewicz Institute

The exhibition investigates the role of Central European cross-national architectural networks and circles at different turning points of the 20th century. The contribution of Central Europe to the formation and dissemination of modernity is largely unknown or seen as a marginal episode in post-war historiographies of global modern architecture, due in part to its long term isolation from Western discourse. This situation also reinforced the currently dominant national narratives of modernism in post-socialist countries.
It presents illustrative cases of Architectural culture, co-relations and production of Central European cross-national networks. These representations of different actors are labeled with categories: Knowledge Networks, Exiles, Institutes/Agencies, Events, Publicity, Shared Vocabulary, but many individuals and figures appear at the same time in different cases.
The exhibition organized and produced by Polish Modern Art Foundation will be held in Venice, June 7 – November 23, 2014. Simone De Iacobis, Monika Konrad and Małgorzata Kuciewicz will be responsible for the exhibition design.

Exhibition duration: June 7 – November 23, 2014Venue: Officina delle Zattere, Dorsoduro 919, 30123 Venezia Partners: Adam Mickiewicz Institute (Instytut Adama Mickiewicza), Warsaw and Fine Art Museum (Szépművészeti Múzeum), Budapest, Hungary.

http://www.t-r-a-c-e.net/Lifting-the-Curtain-exhibition