Postdoctoral position: Understanding multi-actor perspectives of livestock-wildlife conflicts -

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INRAE presentation

The French National Research Institute for Agriculture, Food, and Environment (INRAE) is a major player in research and innovation. It is a community of 12,000 people with 272 research, experimental research, and support units located in 18 regional centres throughout France. Internationally, INRAE is among the top research organisations in the agricultural and food sciences, plant and animal sciences, as well as in ecology and environmental science. It is the world’s leading research organisation specialising in agriculture, food and the environment. INRAE’s goal is to be a key player in the transitions necessary to address major global challenges. Faced with a growing world population, climate change, resource scarcity, and declining biodiversity, the Institute has a major role to play in building solutions and supporting the necessary acceleration of agricultural, food and environmental transitions.

Work environment, missions and activities

- You will be hosted in the INRAE Agroecology multidisciplinary research unit in Dijon (https://www6.dijon.inra.fr/umragroecologie).

- You will be working on the exciting new EU-funded (H2020) CoCo project “Co-creating coexistence: Advancing policies, practices, and stakeholder engagement for integrating wildlife and livestock into sustainable multi-functional landscapes in Europe”, which started in November 2024. The aim of the 3-year project coordinated by John Linnell at the Inland Norway University of Applied Sciences (INN) is to co-create, integrate, and consolidate a diversity of knowledge forms (from different scientific disciplines, traditional practices, and experience) concerning pastoralism-wildlife interactions as a basis for developing policy recommendations and tools for practitioners to promote a sustainable coexistence in shared multi-functional landscapes.

INRAE is involved in all parts of the project, and as a Work Package lead, is responsible for collecting quantitative and qualitative data from pastoralists, hunters, and landowners (farmers, foresters) concerning their perceptions of the interactions between wildlife and livestock, the way these interactions are managed, and their needs or desires for changes to the system. Specifically, the WP aims to understand the contrasting perspectives of multiple-stakeholders on the state and management of the livestock-wildlife interface and associated conflicts; and identify potential pathways for success, and failure, of different governance structures within different contexts to produce a best-practice road map for contextualised and innovative governance.

- Your purpose will be to:

• Assess stakeholder perspectives and needs through a) face-to-face quantitative interviews with 50-100 pastoralists, b) online questionnaires with landowners and hunters (aiming together for 1000 responses), c) qualitative interviews with 15-20 high-level policy-makers and d) interviews and focus groups with environmentalists
• Support the ethics, gender and diversity issues of the project, including ensuring that all ethical permissions for INRAE are sought to carry out the above research.

- You will be in charge of a range of activities for these tasks (which can be further refined), including:

• Developing and carrying out social science research protocols (i.e. semi-structured interviews, large-scale online questionnaire, focus groups) to identify and gather information from key stakeholders at the EU and local levels on livestock-wildlife interactions.
• Using qualitative and quantitative methods to analyse the resulting datasets
• Writing up and disseminating the research results, in formats adapted to scientists and other actors (e.g. scientific papers and presentations, policy or practitioner summaries, knowledge synthesis, factsheets or briefs).
• Closely working with the INRAE WP leader and other project leaders/staff to ensure links and information flow to other parts of the CoCo project.

Training and skills

- Recommended training: PhD or Masters (if proven relevant experience) in a relevant social science discipline (e.g. geography, political science, sociology, psychology, development studies etc)

- Knowledge required:

Qualitative and quantitative research methods and analysis (semi-structured interviews, online questionnaire and focus groups, literature review and/or meta-analysis)

Coordinating and carrying out data collection campaigns

Strong stakeholder focus

Proficient in English (B2-C2)

Proficient in French (B2-C2)

Record of delivering, presenting and publishing research

- Appreciated experience:

Experience of working in interdisciplinary projects

Experience of working in EU projects

Facilitation of workshops and focus groups

- Skills sought:

Excellent communication skills

Confidence to work with both high-level and local stakeholders

Flexibility

Organization & time management skills

Autonomy

Teamwork

Critical Thinking

Creativity

INRAE's life quality

By joining our teams, you benefit from (depending on the type of contract and its duration):
- up to 30 days of annual leave + 15 days "Reduction of Working Time" (for a full time);
- skills development systems: training, career advise;
- social support: advice and listening, social assistance and loans;
- parenting support: CESU childcare, leisure services;
- holiday and leisure services: holiday vouchers, accommodation at preferential rates;
- sports and cultural activities;
- collective catering with a picnic area 
- partial reimbursement by the employer of home-to-work travel expenses
- authorised teleworking under the conditions defined by the NS in force
- reimbursement of part of supplementary social security contributions
- SNCF annual leave tickets
- easy access to the INRAE Dijon Centre by tram, bus + bicycle and car parking, etc. 
- access to the Dijon FMR² association (Freshly and Temporarily Recruited into Research)

How to apply

Send a motivation letter and a CV (both in English), together with two letters of recommendation (with contact details) to:

Dr Juliette Young