Project description

The PhD is part of the CULTIGEN project, which takes its outset in current controversies around overtourism in cities across Europe. CULTIGEN will pioneer a data-driven and community-focused tourism governance fed by local communities and tourists, to better understand their grievances and better inform decision-making. As the backbone of the solution, the project will develop a participatory‘Urban listening toolkit’ to engage, collect and analyse users’ data on their urban experience. The tool will merge quantitative and qualitative data to provide new empirical understandings of urban tourism impacts, as well as shed light on alternative tourism experiences in the city.

The PhD is expected to contribute to this development through an interest in new forms of digital tourism analytics and by theoretically linking tourism studies, digital methods and urban planning. The PhD will form part of the CULTIGEN research team at Aalborg University and is expected to lead the data collection and empirical analysis when the urban listening toolkit is fully developed and launched. The project will be firmly grounded in collaborations with external stakeholders to develop new tools to support the tourism industry in measuring, developing and governing urban tourism, so the ideal candidate is equipped with a theoretical mindset and the ability to translate empirical findings into actionable and applied industry takeaways. The research questions, methodology, and project plan for the PhD will be developed through joint supervision by academic PI and Professor Anders Koed Madsen and Associate professor Martin Trandberg Jensen. The full project team will also comprise a postdoc, a research assistant and a programmer assisting with the tool development.

In the application, candidates are encouraged to state their interests within the fields of tourism studies, digital methods and urban planning(see below). The purpose is to demonstrate the candidate’s ability to pose industry-relevant, original, and theoretically engaged questions within a specific focus area.

Themes for the proposal may include, but are not limited to, the following avenues:

• The use of digital data toolkits for both theoretical and practical advancements in the context of urban tourism and sustainable governance approaches
• The role of tourists, locals, and other relevant stakeholders, in dealing with the impacts of urban over-tourism
• New tourism indicators to address and deal with urban tourism responsibly
• Reflections on how to measure urban tourism impacts in new and‘smarter’ ways

The position

The PhD fellow will be integrated in the award-winning research environment Techno-anthropology Lab(TANTlab) located on Aalborg University’s Copenhagen campus. TANTlab offers a creative and vibrant group of international scholars working with fieldwork methods, design interventions, and digital/computational methods to engage users, publics, and partners in exploring dilemmas, controversies, and paths to sustainable and desirable futures. The PhD fellow will also be associated with the RECAST research group, an international and transdisciplinary research group working with the sociocultural aspects of sustainability and green transitions. We strive towards creating best possible conditions for PhD fellows, i.e., flexible work hours and opportunities for personal and professional development.

Qualification requirements

• A strong understanding of current debates within tourism and familiarity with key issues such as sustainability, over-tourism, and tourism governance frameworks
• Applicants should demonstrate an interest in, and/or experience with, digital methods, tourism studies and urban planning issues
• Applicants must demonstrate the ability to collaborate between public-private stakeholders and bring an‘outward-facing’ academic work attitude(outreach and engagement with users will be central)
• The position requires interest in scientific work and publishing.

PhD stipends are for a period of 3 years. PhD stipends are allocated to individuals who hold a Master’s degree, or expect to have obtained the Master’s degree before the employment date(Statement from thesis supervisor, verified transcripts, thesis contract and documentation of the date of the exam must be enclosed). According to the PhD Order, the PhD study comprises among other requirements: Participation in active research environments, including stays at other, mainly foreign, research institutions, private research enterprises etc.
 
General information
It is a prerequisite for allocation of the stipend that the candidate will be enrolled as a PhD student at The Doctoral School of Social Sciences and Humanities, in accordance with the regulations of Ministerial Order No. 1039 of 27 August 2013(PhD Order).

Application
Please visit thewebsite of the doctoral school for further information on the PhD programme, application procedure, and admission requirements.

The application must be written in English language and include the following documents:

• A cover letter, inclusive motivation to apply for the position(max. 2 pages)
• A project proposal, inclusive research question, approach, possible relevant literature and timeline(max. 2 pages)
• Copy of diplomas/transcripts
• Curriculum vitae(CV)
• List of written work(optional)
• Sample of written work, e.g. Master's thesis(optional)
• For applicants planning to complete their thesis in English and who do not have English as a first language or have completed an English language-based Master's programme(or an equivalent educational achievement in English), please see the following language requirements:https://www.phd.aau.dk/ssh/become-a-phd-student#admission-requirements

Shortlisting will be applied. This means that after the deadline for application, the head of the department supported by the chair of the assessment committee will select candidates for assessment. All applicants will be informed whether they will be assessed or not.

The application can only be submitted by using the link on AAU’s job portal https://www.stillinger.aau.dk/(not other online job portals that may have reposted the position). Please note that zipped files are not supported by the recruitment system, please upload only Word or PDF files.

Contact
For further information on the doctoral research programme, please visitwww.kultur.aau.dk

For inquiries concerning the position and CULTIGEN project, please contact academic PI, Anders Koed Madsen:akma@ikl.aau.dk or Associate Professor, Martin Trandberg Jensen:trandberg@ikl.aau.dk

For general information about the application process etc., please contact LeneMøller/ e-mail:lml@adm.aau.dk, phone:+45 9940 9658

Wages and employment

Ref number

2024-224-06025

Deadline

22.09.2024