Postdoctoral Researcher in Contested Waterfront Developments; ConWa-project

Aalto University is where science and art meet technology and business. We shape a sustainable future by making research breakthroughs in and across our disciplines, sparking the game changers of tomorrow and creating novel solutions to major global challenges. Our community is made up of 16 000 students and 5 200 employees, including 446 professors. Our campus is in Espoo, Greater Helsinki, Finland.

Diversity is part of who we are, and we actively work to ensure our community’s diversity and inclusiveness. This is why we warmly encourage qualified candidates from all backgrounds to join our community.

The Department of Architecture at Aalto University is an internationally renowned education and research unit (within app. top 2% in the world of architecture). With Finland’s esteemed architectural heritage, we search for new solutions to the challenges of sustainable development. To us, architecture is an art form that requires practical skills and individual artistic development, as well as knowledge on sustainability relevant to design and planning.

We educate critical thinkers who accept their responsibility to research and design a socially, culturally, and ecologically sustainable built environment. The Department of Architecture offers degree programs in architecture, landscape architecture, and interior architecture. For more information, please see (Use the "Apply for this Job" box below)..

We are now looking for a Postdoctoral Researcher to join the Research Council of Finland funded Contested Waterfront Developments (Con Wa)-project at Aalto University’s Department of Architecture, led by Senior Scientist Johanna Lilius. In this position, you will investigate how social inclusion is negotiated and transformed in European waterfront developments amid the financialization of land and real estate.

• Design and conduct research on housing and land policy across Con Wa case studies (Finland, Sweden, Denmark, Belgium)
• Lead and co-author peer-reviewed articles and policy-relevant outputs
• Analyze negotiations among policymakers, developers, and other growth coalition actors regarding social inclusion targets
• Support project dissemination (briefs, presentations, blog posts) and good research data management

• Your supervisor will be Senior Scientist Johanna Lilius and through the Con Wa-project, you will collaborate with scholars in planning, geography and social sciences and interact with city officials and developers

• PhD in a relevant field (e.g., planning, urban studies, economics)
• Demonstrated expertise in housing policy and/or land policy
• Strong academic writing skills and a clear track record or potential to publish in leading journals
• Experience with qualitative research (policy analysis, interviews, comparative case studies); quantitative/spatial skills are an advantage
• Ability to work independently and collaboratively in an international, interdisciplinary team
• Language requirements:
• EN:
  Excellent skills in English

• Meaningful, agenda-setting research. You will publish on timely questions at the intersection of housing/land policy, financialization, and social inclusion and contribute to evidence that can shape real planning and policy decisions in Nordic and European cities.
• Tangible impact and visibility. Beyond academic outlets, You'll contribute to policy briefs, and multimedia outputs (blog, videos), increasing the societal relevance and reach of your work.
• Interdisciplinary consortium and advisory strength. Collaborate closely with scholars in planning, geography, and social policy, and benefit from guidance by internationally recognized experts in housing…