Postdoctoral position in environmental politics and the equity considerations of carbon removal

The Department of Business Development and Technology (BTECH) at Aarhus BSS, Aarhus University invites applications for a postdoctoral position in environmental politics and carbon removal. The position is a fixed-term full-time employment for a seven-month period from 1 November 2026 until 30 April 2027.

Job description

The position is related to the ERC Synergy Grant project GENIE with specific responsibilities, including:
 

1. Mapping policy architectures and debates.
   The project will document the existing policy architecture (policies, laws, regulations, statutes, codes, standards) for GGR and SRM within Europe.  It will look at three different levels of policy: local (sub-national), national, and regional (mostly the European Commission). It will conduct an exhaustive content analysis to categorize and map GGR and SRM policies for all countries located within geographic Europe, from Iceland and the United Kingdom in the West to Russia in the East.
2. Policy options and policy feasibility.
   Qualitative interviews will be conducted with policymakers to determine which options and scenarios have the greatest political feasibility. The project will undertake further qualitative expert interviews with policymakers from around the world to better determine which SRM and GGR pathways have the most political legitimacy and feasibility. 
3. Assist with surveys to determine public attitudes.
   We anticipate a new survey to be run in 2024 of at least 10,000 respondents involving members of the public from at least 10 European countries as well as 10 other countries, including China, Brazil, India, Russia, and South Africa as well as the United States.
4. Project publishing in high-quality scientific journals:
   Through project development and research, collect and organise data systematically for publication of research articles and reports in appropriate journals as well as at conferences and exhibitions.
5. Travel and field research:
   Occasional travel is required (at least once per month, possibly more during field research).

Background information about the GENIE project

GENIE:  GeoEngineering and NegatIve Emissions pathways in Europe
Geoengineering technologies, such as solar radiation management (SRM), and negative emissions technologies, such as greenhouse gas removal (GGR), are emerging options to reduce climate change. GGR and SRM are still at nascent stages of development, will have uncertain impacts, involve complicated systems of risk management, and remain poorly understood, even within the physical and engineering sciences communities. 

This project will investigate the environmental, technical, social, legal, and policy dimensions of GGR and SRM to provide an urgently needed interdisciplinary perspective on their development. Our meta-analytical framework integrates insights from these disciplines to provide a comprehensive view of GGR and SRM in the transition to climate neutrality in Europe. The project will conduct world-class research and generate robust, scientific resources for evidence-based policy advice and global environmental assessments.

Our research framework consists of three pillars--techno-economic systems, socio-technical systems, and systems of political action--within which we place eight work packages (WPs): (1) Understanding the state and potential of GGR and SRM technologies and their technical, economic, social and political feasibility
(2) Analyzing bottlenecks in transitions to climate neutrality and their implications for GGR and SRM deployment.
(3) Identifying social acceptance and legitimacy,
(4) Learning, diffusion and adoption in GGR and SRM technologies,
(5) Implications for Sustainable Development Goals of archetypical mitigation pathways with their differential deployments of GGR and SRM, and 6) Policy options and governance.

Qualification requirements

Applicants for a postdoctoral position hold a PhD degree in science and technology studies, innovation studies, sustainability transitions, science policy, public policy, geography, or political science; however, experience with managing deliberative workshops and focus groups, or leading synthetic and comprehensive reviews, can alleviate the need for a specific field. Moreover, knowledge of econometric or quantitative approaches to research are a plus, as is topical knowledge about NETs, CDR, GGR, geo-engineering, climate engineering, or SRM.

Applicants are encouraged to describe how their work is linked to themes such as deep decarbonization, climate change mitigation, climate change adaptation, low-carbon transitions and/or net-zero energy systems.

Further information

For further information about the position and the department please contact professor Benjamin Sovacool, email: benjaminso@btech.au.dk 

If you need help uploading your application or have any questions about the recruitment process, please contact HR Supporter, Charlotte Thomsen, tel.: +45 8716 5362. email: charlotte@au.dk. 

Place of work

Birk Centerpark 15, DK-7400 Herning

Application deadline

29 April 2026

International applicant?

Aarhus University offers a broad variety of services for international researchers and accompanying families, including relocation service and career counselling to expat partners. Please find more information here:
https://internationalstaff.au.dk/relocationservice/

Please find more information about research opportunities at Aarhus University here: http://international.au.dk/research/

Aarhus University also offers a Junior Researcher Development Programme targeted at career development for postdocs at AU. You can read more about it here:
http://talent.au.dk/junior-researcher-development-programme/

Terms of employment

The appointment is made in accordance with the Memorandum on Job Structure for Academic Staff at Danish Universities as well as the circular on the Collective Agreement for Academics Employed by the State (in Danish).
The job content and qualification requirements are described in further detail in the Ministerial Order on the Appointment of Academic Staff at Universities.

Application procedure

When you apply for this position it is mandatory to attach the following:

• Application
• Curriculum Vitae. You are encouraged to declare any periods of leave without research activity, including, for example, maternity leave, since your research activities are assessed in relation to your actual research time
• Education (diploma for master's, PhD and possibly higher doctoral degree)
• List of publications (the enclosed publications must be clearly marked on the list of publications)
• Publications. Up to three publications can be included in the application. In the event of several authors the publications must be accompanied by a co-author statement concerning the applicant's share of the collaborative work with the consent of the co-authors. This template may be used for the purpose
• Teaching portfolio. The specific requirements regarding the documentation can be found here

Materials which cannot be uploaded together with the application may be submitted in three copies to Aarhus BSS HR & PhD, Aarhus University, Bartholins Allé 16, DK-8000 Aarhus C.

Read more about how to apply for an academic post at Aarhus BSS here

The evaluation process

After the application deadline, an assessment committee is appointed. Please note that the assessment of applicants is based solely on the material received prior to the application deadline. For further information, see Guidelines for Assessment Committee, Aarhus BSS.

Aarhus University’s ambition is to be an attractive and inspiring workplace for all and to foster a culture in which each individual has opportunities to thrive, achieve and develop. We view equality and diversity as assets, and we welcome all applicants.
The application must be submitted via Aarhus University’s recruitment system, which can be accessed under the job advertisement on Aarhus University's website.