진학프로석·박사 채용 접수 플랫폼

The Chair in Citizen Participation, Mediation and Transition at La Rochelle University is recruiting a postdoctoral researcher or research engineer on a one-year contract as part of the Terres de transitions project

Working environment

The Chair in Participation, Mediation and Citizen Transition, which emerged from the La Rochelle Zero Carbon Territory (LRTZC) project, brings together researchers and local stakeholders to address issues of governance, consultation and citizenship in cities undergoing transition. 

It aims to build a research and action ecosystem that fosters exchanges between disciplines and between the academic world and the field. Its activities focus on the co-production of knowledge in line with partners’ needs, training for relevant audiences, and the dissemination of the knowledge produced.

Visit the Chair’s website: https://chaire-participations.univ-lr.fr/

Project description

The postdoctoral position forms part of an initiative under the Terres de Transitions (T2T) project, a regional demonstration scheme running from 2026 to 2030. This project, led by the La Rochelle Urban Community in partnership with the Aunis Sud, Aunis Atlantique and Île de Ré communities of municipalities, the La Rochelle Fishing Port, the Charente-Maritime Chamber of Agriculture and the Groupement d’Agriculture Biologique 17, was selected following the call for expressions of interest ‘Regional food transition demonstrators’, launched in 2022 by the Banque des Territoires as part of the 4th Future Investment Programme (PIA4), with the aim of identifying and supporting innovative regional projects addressing issues of agricultural and food resilience. 

Born out of the convergence between the initiatives of La Rochelle Zero Carbon Territory and the La Rochelle-Aunis-Ré Territorial Food Project (PAT) La Rochelle-Aunis-Ré, the project aims to bring together agricultural and food strategies, “from farm to fork”, by devising an innovative and replicable model, both in terms of its governance and the regional responses to the challenges of agricultural and food transitions. The demonstration project is based on four main areas: carbon storage in agricultural soils, the development of local supply chains and short supply chains within the framework of the PAT, the circular economy of organic matter, and the reuse of treated water from treatment plants.

Job description

The postdoctoral researcher or research engineer will conduct a qualitative study focusing on the relationship between professionals in the agricultural sector—farmers, and stakeholders in distribution and processing networks—and the challenges of the agri-food transition within the La Rochelle-Aunis-Ré PAT area. The study will aim to understand how agricultural stakeholders perceive the imperatives of the transition, what they consider to be fair, sustainable or unacceptable efforts, and what forms of gradualism or recognition influence their commitment. 

In a context marked by significant conflict over several issues (anaerobic digestion, water use, exposure to plant protection products), the successful candidate will be tasked with opening up and leading a field of research that has yet to be fully explored locally. This component, central to the work carried out within the Terres de Transitions project, aims to document the territorial conditions for a desirable and acceptable agri-food transition. The results of this research will inform the deliberations of the T2T project’s governance collective and help define new ways of bringing stakeholders together and facilitating dialogue, with a view to fostering reconciliation.

To fulfil the role’s objectives, the candidate will be required to:

• • Develop, in collaboration with members of the Chair, a research protocol to explore, among stakeholders in the agricultural sector, the various perceptions, reservations, constraints and expectations regarding the region’s general objectives for agricultural and food transition. 
• • Conduct research with the identified stakeholders (interviews, participation in events, etc.).
• • Contribute to the drafting of summary reports for stakeholders, which will outline several possible scenarios for agri-food transition pathways for the region.
• • Contribute to the academic dissemination of the data and analyses produced.

Type of recruitment 

Category: A 

Post: LIENSs UMR 7266

Type: Fixed-term contract for 12 months starting1 October 2026

If the candidate has obtained their PhD within the last three years, a postdoctoral contract may be offered. Beyond three years, the contract will be equivalent to that of a research engineer

Working hours: full-time

Salary: €2,569.69 gross per month, in accordance with La Rochelle University’s contract staff management policy. 

Recruitment open to anyone holding an RQTH status

Contact for information on the vacancy

• • Alice Mazeaud: Senior Lecturer in Political Science ([email protected])
• • Gabriel Montrieux: Senior Lecturer in Political Science ([email protected])