Assistant Professor - Global Black Geographies - Department of Geography

The Department of Geography at the University of California, Berkeley, invites applications for a tenure-track position in Global Black Geographies at the rank of Assistant Professor, to begin July 1, 2026. This position will engage with the spatial dimensions of life in African and/or Black diasporic communities in the Global South, examining how these communities have historically been shaped by and responded to changing social, political, and environmental conditions. Some relevant areas of scholarship might include, but are not restricted to, Black studies, race and empire, political economy and postcolonial geographies, racial capitalism, the Black diaspora, urban or agrarian studies, political ecology, and global science and technology studies.

This position contributes to the department's long-standing strengths in the geographies of Africa and its diaspora as well as their political economy and political ecology, and our commitment to the material study of Black life and thought.

The department is committed to addressing the family needs of faculty, including dual career couples and single parents. We are also interested in candidates who have had non-traditional career paths or who have taken time off for family reasons, or who have achieved excellence in careers outside academia.

Qualifications

Basic qualifications (required at time of application): A J.D., Ph.D., M.D., (or equivalent international degree), or enrolled in a J.D., Ph.D., M.D., or equivalent international degree‐granting program at the time of application.

Preferred qualifications: Candidates are expected to demonstrate methodological innovation and theoretical rigor, with work that explores processes such as urbanization, democratization, displacement, land transformation, and economic and/or environmental change through grounded, place-based inquiry. Successful applicants will support undergraduate and graduate teaching and mentoring, contribute to the department's collaborative academic environment, and advance research agendas that deepen scholarly understanding of uneven development and transformative spatial practices.

Application Requirements

Document requirements: Curriculum Vitae, Cover Letter, Research Statement, Teaching and Mentoring Statement, Service Statement, Publication/Writing Sample #1, Publication/Writing Sample #2, Publication/Writing Sample #3, Authorization to Release Information Form.

Reference requirements: 3 required (contact information only).

Apply link: https://aprecruit.berkeley.edu/JPF05026