The School of Humanities and Social Sciences at LBU seeks to appoint a postdoctoral research fellow to a 1-year fixed term maternity cover appointment to work on the Volkswagen Foundation-funded project ‘Waste/Land/Futures: Intergenerational Relations in Places of Abandonment and Regeneration in Europe.’ The project studies communities in places of abandonment, loss and renewal in western and eastern Europe to develop intergenerational, utopian re-stories that allow those who are usually excluded from speculation about the future to have a stake in it.
The project includes 5 partner universities across Europe. The successful applicant will work with Professor Susan Watkins in the School of Humanities and Social Sciences at LBU, with other participating academic members of the project team internationally and with other external partners to support management and delivery of the project activities on time and within budget. You will support delivery of the project’s third work package on Co-Creating Utopian Narratives and Visions of the Future (led by Professor Watkins) and continue with organisation and delivery of other elements of the research project, including for example creative practice sessions, on-site observations, family interviews, management of data collection and data analysis. You will have the opportunity to contribute to high-quality publications, conference papers and other outputs resulting from the project. You may also be expected to plan ahead for the delivery of Work Package 6: Science Communication and will be expected to manage the project website https://wastelandfutures.com
This post is appropriate for an early-career scholar with a PhD qualification in a cognate humanities or social science discipline, specialist knowledge and experience of science communication and experience of using qualitative methods of data collection and organising creative practice workshops. All candidates should possess high-order academic research, communication and presentation skills, the ability to work as part of a team and a commitment to personal professional development.
Closing date: Friday 21st August 2026 (23.59)
Interview date: Wednesday 2nd September (this may be subject to change)
To arrange an informal discussion about this post, please contact Professor Susan Watkins at
[email protected]Working here means you’ll also have access to a wide range of benefits including our generous pension schemes, excellent holiday entitlements, flexible working, reduced study fees, subsidised fitness facilities and a lot more.
We welcome applications from all individuals and particularly from black and minority ethnic candidates as members of these groups are currently under-represented at this level of post. All appointments will be based on merit.
Leeds Beckett University is a Disability Confident Employer. Disabled candidates who demonstrate all essential criteria within the Person Specification will be invited to an interview.
