Job Information
- Organisation/Company: IPNA-CSIC
- Department: Social Sciences, Heritage and Food
- Research Field: Cultural studies; History » History of agriculture; Sociology » Rural sociology; History » Contemporary history
Offer Description
This fully funded 4-year doctoral position is embedded in the ERC Consolidator project FRONTCAT (Frontier Cats: Reimagining Multispecies Governance and Care Ethics beyond Post-politics), starting after mid-2027 hosted at IPNA-CSIC within the Social Sciences, Heritage and Food department. FRONTCAT examines cat-related controversies as a multispecies governance problem in which animal welfare, biodiversity expertise, rural livelihoods, public health, and everyday care practices become publicly disputed and institutionally negotiated.
PhD focus: environmental and rural history, with optional interest in human–animal relations and socioecological conflict. The PhD will develop an original, archive-based historical study of how cats have been problematised, governed, and lived-with in rural and environmentally sensitive contexts (Spain as the primary frame; insular contexts, including the Canary Islands are particularly relevant). The dissertation should be grounded in environmental and/or rural history, and must engage human–animal relations, multispecies history, and the historical formation of socioecological conflicts (e.g., hunting, conservation, agriculture, public hygiene, veterinary governance, invasive-species framings, and moral economies of care).
Indicative research questions (to be refined with the supervisor and doctoral committee):
- How have rural communities, administrations, and experts historically framed cats as pest, companion, useful predator, public-health concern, or biodiversity threat?
- What historical events, ecological knowledge regimes, and institutional tools (ordinances, campaigns, registries, veterinary protocols, hunting regulations, conservation programmes) shaped these framings over time?
- How did rural–urban relations, class, and political cultures influence conflict and legitimacy in cat-related governance?
- How do long-run histories illuminate current polarisation between welfare and biodiversity-led approaches to free-roaming cats?
Core responsibilities and tasks
Task H1 – Archival mapping and corpus construction
- Identify and access relevant archives and repositories (municipal/provincial archives, institutional archives, BOE/official bulletins, veterinary/agricultural publications, conservation and hunting materials, local press and ephemera).
- Build a curated documentary corpus suitable for a doctoral dissertation and subsequent publications.
Task H2 – Historical analysis and writing
- Produce a historically rigorous account linking governance instruments, expert debates, and rural environmental change to shifting human–cat relations.
Task H3 – Project integration and dissemination
- Participate in FRONTCAT internal seminars, comparative discussions with other subprojects, and public dissemination where appropriate.
- Prepare peer-reviewed outputs aligned with the doctoral plan (typically 3 journal articles, depending on thesis format and disciplinary norms).
Where to apply
E-mail: pablo.alonso.gonzalez@ipna.csic.es
Requirements
Research Field: History
Education Level: Master Degree or equivalent
Skills/Qualifications
- Master’s degree (or equivalent) in History or a closely related discipline (e.g., Environmental Humanities, Historical Geography, History of Science/Medicine, Rural Studies), completed by the start date.
- Demonstrated experience in archival research and source criticism (e.g., MA thesis based on archives, documented archival training, research assistant experience, or comparable evidence).
- Spanish: excellent reading competence (the majority of archival materials will be in Spanish).
- English: strong working proficiency for academic writing, collaboration, and dissemination (or a credible plan to reach this level early in the PhD).
Desirable qualifications
- Background in environmental history, rural history, agrarian history, or island/environmental governance histories.
- Interest in human–animal relations, multispecies history, or the historical formation of conservation and welfare controversies.
- Experience handling heterogeneous sources (ordinances, administrative files, expert reports, press archives, association records) and building a documented research database.
Languages: SPANISH
Level: Excellent
Additional Information
Benefits
- A full-time 4-year employment contract to develop a PhD within an ERC-funded research programme.
- Fieldwork/archival travel budget support (repository visits, document reproduction, and dissemination travel), subject to ERC and institutional rules.
- An interdisciplinary research environment at IPNA-CSIC, with close interaction across anthropology, sociology, human geography, political ecology, STS, and related fields.
- Office space and research infrastructure at IPNA-CSIC (Tenerife), with archival research travel as required by the doctoral design.
Selection process
Applications by email to: pablo.alonso.gonzalez@ipna.csic.es
Suggested subject line: "FRONTCAT PhD – History"
Application materials
- CV (max 3–4 pages), including education, archival experience, and any publications/presentations.
- Motivation letter (max 1 page) explaining fit to the topic, archival competences.
Selection process
Shortlisted candidates will be invited to an online interview. Evaluation will prioritise (i) strength and feasibility of the archival research plan, (ii) demonstrated historical method and writing quality, (iii) fit with FRONTCAT’s research agenda, and (iv) language competences relevant to the source base. Decisions will be made by mid-2027 or when finding an adequate candidate.
Additional comments
- Primary host institution: IPNA-CSIC, Avda. Astrofísico Francisco Sánchez, 3, 38206 San Cristóbal de La Laguna, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain.
- Mobility: Archival research will require travel across Spain (and potentially additional repositories, if justified).
Work Location(s)
Number of offers available: 1
Company/Institute: IPNA-CSIC
Country: Spain
State/Province: Canary Islands
City: La Laguna
Contact
State/Province: Santa Cruz de Tenerife
City: San Cristóbal de La Laguna
Website: https://www.ipna.csic.es/en/research-lines/social-sciences-heritage-and-food
Street: Avda. Astrofísico Francisco Sánchez, 3
Postal Code: 38206
E-Mail: pablo.alonso.gonzalez@ipna.csic.es
This is a Preview Listing…
You must sign in to see the full job description, and to apply.
Manage / Upgrade this job to a Full Job Listing.
Find Your Best Opportunity
Tell them AcademicJobs.com sent you!