Global Center Postdoctoral Research Fellow

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How to Apply

Applicants should submit one PDF (500kb size limit) containing the following:

• Curriculum Vitae
• Statement of Interest (2 page maximum at minimum 11pt font and 1-inch margins), outlining qualifications for the fellowship appointment, academic experience, research domain(s) of interest, any professional experience, and near-term goals
• Link to a sample publication done professionally or academically (20 pages maximum, including figures and references)
• Names of 3 references, their affiliations, and contact information

Applicants selected for an interview will be contacted via email. The interview process will consist of an initial 30-45 minute screening interview and one or two additional interviews for selected candidates. Additionally, samples of relevant work may be requested.

Job Summary

The Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning and the Global Center for Climate Change and Transboundary Waters (Global Center) is looking for a postdoctoral research fellow to join their team. Reporting to Richard Norton, professor of urban and regional planning and Global Center co-principal investigator, you will work with researchers at the University of Michigan and allied universities through the Global Center, working primarily with the Climate Ready Communities and Transboundary Governance research cluster while collaborating across the Center's other two research clusters-Hydro-Climate and Ecosystem and Water Quality Monitoring. You will be expected to conduct research on coastal community resilience within the Great Lakes Basin and other selected transboundary waters.

The Global Center is administered by the School for Environment and Sustainability at UM with funding from the National Science Foundation. Its mission is to lead innovative research to understand and generate resilience to water-related challenges in transboundary regions, emphasizing interdisciplinary research and especially the integration of Traditional Ecological Knowledge with classical western science through the cultivation of mutually beneficial relationships with Indigenous communities.

The primary focus of the fellowship will revolve around comparative analysis of the planning, policy, legal, and other institutional arrangements that shape local coastal and riverine community resilience efforts across state, national, and tribal settings, with specific research topics and study sites to be determined collaboratively by the postdoctoral fellow and Global Center researchers.

This job will be situated onsite at Taubman College on the University of Michigan's North Campus in Ann Arbor, and in-person work is expected five days a week. The anticipated schedule for this position will be daytime hours Monday through Friday (exact schedule to be determined with the supervisor). This is a full-time, one-year, term-limited position with an anticipated start date of late spring or early summer of 2027, but no later than the early fall of 2027. There is a possibility of extension for a second year, subject to organizational needs, secured funding, and performance.

Applications will be reviewed beginning on November 1, 2026 until the position is filled.

Responsibilities*

The research fellow will be expected to conduct a variety of efforts, such as the following:

• Conduct literature reviews on relevant topics related to institutional arrangements, community resilience, and collaborative interdisciplinary research generally and on transboundary waters specifically;
• Develop research questions, research designs, and appropriate methods for conducting empirical investigations related to community resilience and transboundary waters;
• Develop, administer, and analyze results from surveys and interviews of public officials;
• Develop, administer, and analyze results from content assessments of relevant public documents;
• Conduct spatial analyses of landscape development patterns and their relationships to public plans and policies;
• Coordinate and collaborate regularly with Global Center researchers; and
• Prepare research reports and peer-reviewed academic publications presenting research findings.

Required Qualifications*

• A Ph.D. in urban and regional planning or a related field of study, with demonstrated expertise in some aspect of community policy and planning for coastal and/or riverine community resilience, awarded within the past three years or no later than the start of the appointment date;
• Demonstrated expertise in empirical social science field investigation (e.g., survey, interview, and/or focus group data collection and community-focused research), as well as familiarity with standard U.S. Census and related data sets and data analysis methods;
• Demonstrated working knowledge of geophysical and/or ecological processes related to climate change, water, coastal/riverine dynamics, and associated hazards;
• Demonstrated strong writing and oral communication skills for both practitioner and academic peer-reviewed publications and audiences;
• Demonstrated ability to lead the development of manuscripts for publication, including ideally refereed journal publications and policy reports;
• Demonstrated ability to work effectively both independently and as part of a collaborative, multi-disciplinary research team; and
• Demonstrated desire to participate in national and international scholarly and practitioner partnerships and conferences.

Modes of Work

The work requires, or the supervisor approves a fully onsite presence. Onsite is defined as a designated U-M owned or leased work location within or outside of the State of Michigan.

Additional Information

The salary range for this position is $60,000 - $68,000. Factors used to determine salary include professional and/or academic experience, along with relevant knowledge and skills for the position.

In addition to a career filled with purpose and opportunity, U-M offers a comprehensive benefits package to help you stay well, protect yourself and your family, and plan for a secure future. Benefits include generous time off; retirement plan with two-for-one matching contributions after the first year; many choices for comprehensive health insurance; life insurance; long-term disability coverage; and flexible spending accounts for healthcare and dependent care expenses. Learn more about U-M benefits.

Please note:

• Relocation assistance will not be provided for this position.
• Existing authorization to work in the U.S. during the entire two-year period of this postdoctoral fellowship is a precondition of employment. Applicants will not be sponsored financially or otherwise for work visas.

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The University of Michigan is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We are committed to providing an environment of mutual respect where equal employment opportunities are available to all applicants, including protected veterans and individuals with disabilities.