Candidate Brief - Chad Republic - READVERTISED 2.pdf

1. Overview

Are you an ambitious researcher looking for your next challenge? Do you have experience in stakeholder engagement and interdisciplinary conflict, climate, peace and sustainable development research? Do you want to be part of a project that aims to build transformative pathways towards sustainable peace and equitable prosperity across the Lake Chad basin region? A new research position is available to a self-motivated and curious researcher interested in joining a new Lake Chad Region Prosperity and Peace Pathways Project to generate ground-breaking new evidence to deepen public understanding of prosperity-peace nexus, dimensions and pathways in their many forms.

The project aims to advance new transformative pathways towards sustainable peace and equitable prosperity in the transnational territories of the Lake Chad basin – areas that crosscut communities facing interrelated risks of violent conflict, livelihood underperformance and climate shocks. The project will use innovative tools that are inclusive, participatory and deliberative, such as Young Citizens Panels, Consensus Conferences, Local Citizens Labs and a Conflict and Environment Observatory. New local Citizens Labs in Chad, Niger and Nigeria will serve as a hub for experiential and experimental learning and knowledge innovation, and a one-stop-shop for operationalising the Sustainable Development Goals related to peace and prosperity at a local scale. The project is looking to generate ground-breaking new evidence to deepen understanding of prosperity-peace nexus, dimensions and pathways in their many forms, and help address all forms of conflict drivers in the Lake Chad region.

The successful candidate will have a background in and understanding of conflict, peace, climate change and sustainable development, as well as a vision and desire to create value and generate impact for the long term. He/she will be a highly motivated self-starter, with strong organisational skills, who takes individual accountability seriously and willing to be flexible and to take risks. He/she will be highly ambitious and able to drive in-country project activities forward; and a hard worker, who is eager to learn and be trained, seeking out and considering the opinions of local citizens, with good judgement about when to use initiative and when to consult, and consistently performing at a high level. The researcher will be the focal point for research and stakeholder engagements in the Republic of Chad and will help establish and maintain contacts and liaise with partners and stakeholders in-country. S/he will carry out field research, publish journal articles and contribute to the delivery of several project work packages.

This is an excellent position for someone looking to advance a career in climate security, conflict prevention, human security, peacebuilding and sustainable development, and who desires to build his/her experience and understanding of transdisciplinary research techniques, project management and locally led development in fragile contexts.

The position will provide career development training, research collaborations and overseas networking opportunities for the post holder, supporting the development of research capacities and helping the researcher to transition into independence in research and professional leadership.

1. The role

As a researcher on this project, you will:

• Support the Project Director in setting up and managing a new local citizens lab in Chad. The Lab will provide a platform for open and creative dialogue, collaborative learning, and interdisciplinary research, and for merging indigenous and scientific knowledge to co-create locally valid, locally owned and locally sustained peace and prosperity pathways that will serve as a decision-support tool to foster climate-friendly and equitable development programming and actions in the Chadian territory of the Lake Chad basin.
• Understand the citizens lab research agenda and contribute to designing research materials (e.g., questionnaires and interview/discussion guides) and citizens engagement protocols.
• Take the lead in gathering and managing local survey and interview data and any other Lake Chad regional datasets identified as relevant, while also implementing quality control on collected data.
• Facilitate stakeholder workshops, young citizens panels and consensus conferences, and carry out fieldwork in Chad.
• Analyse all data generated from Chad using suitable methodologies, and work with the project director to co-author high quality journal articles based on the results.
• Take part in the day-to-day review of literature materials related to the project themes, as well as review of policy reports covering the Lake Chad region security, stabilisation and development issues.
• Liaise with the project team (in Nigeria, Niger Republic and the UK) to build upon ideas in published papers (and from citizens engagements) to foster knowledge transfer and impact through production of podcasts, policy briefs, opinion pieces, videos and pieces of artistic expression.
• Support the project director in establishing and maintaining new contacts and networks relevant to the project’s areas of interest.
• Maintain your own continuing career/professional development.
• Keep abreast of key political, ecological, security, social and economic development issues in the Lake Chad basin countries and beyond.

While these responsibilities will form the main basis of your work initially, there may be some changes from time to time in the emphasis to the duties or tasks without altering their general character or the level of responsibility. This means that the post holder might undertake other tasks within the scope of the post as may be reasonably requested by the project director.