Job Announcement: Student Assistant for "Hazardous Travels" Research Project

The DFG Emmy Noether Research Group Hazardous Travels: Ghost Acres and the Global Waste Economy will investigate the structures and dynamics that have characterized the international trade in hazardous waste since the 1970s. The team, consisting of three PhD students and one head researcher, will work with an asymmetrical comparison of “ghost acres” case studies from North America, Germany, Ecuador, and India. The project seeks to understand how this system could be built simultaneously on structures of “voluntary exchange” of toxic materiality, and of “garbage imperialism.” Commencing in September 2016, Hazardous Travels will run for five years.

This Emmy Noether project is based at the Rachel Carson Center for Environment and Society (RCC), an international, interdisciplinary research institute located in central Munich. The RCC was founded in 2009 as a joint initiative of LMU Munich (Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität) and the Deutsches Museum. At any given time, the RCC is home to around 20 visiting scholars from across the globe, as well as an international staff. The working language of both the RCC and the Hazardous Travels project is English.

Dr. Simone M. Müller, head researcher of Hazardous Travels, is looking for a student in any humanities subject (preferably in history) to assist the work of the research group on a part-time basis. The student assistant will work 11–13 hours per week. Duties include library service, assisting at conferences and workshops, and various other tasks related to the day-to-day work of the research group. The research assistant will be an integral part of the RCC community and will have the opportunity to attend events and make use of the center’s academic resources.

Successful candidates must have an excellent command of the English language as well as a good knowledge of German. Applicants must be currently enrolled in a degree program at a Bavarian university; those who have completed a master’s degree (or equivalent) are not eligible for this position. Applicants should enjoy working as part of a team, be well organized and able to work independently, and be interested in working with colleagues of diverse cultural backgrounds. Computer literacy and a good knowledge of the Munich library systems (BSB and UB) are required; knowledge of other foreign languages and/or an interest in environmental issues would be advantageous.

Working hours are flexible. Research assistants are paid in line with the standard salary scale for studentische Hilfskräfte. Contracts will be awarded for six months with the possibility of extension.

To apply, please send your CV, a cover letter, and the contact information of two referees in a single PDF file to jobs@rcc.lmu.de by 30 June 2016.

Interviews will be conducted on 8 July with the position starting on 1 September 2016.