Environmental​/Forest Governance focusing Innovation and Experiments; GovInEx

Environmental/Forest Governance Focusing on Innovation and Experiments (Gov Inex)

The Excellence Cluster Future Forests at the University of Freiburg invites applications for a postdoctoral position in environmental/forest governance focusing on innovation and experiments (Gov In Ex ).

The aim of the project (Gov In Ex ) is to identify, develop, and scale governance innovations for successful management to adapt forests to global change that is going beyond incremental changes. The project will develop a conceptual framework for governance experiments based on existing literature. In conducting these experiments, the focus will be on local cooperative governance and on political decision making in the state of Baden-Württemberg and Germany.

In addition, the successful candidate will contribute to the interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary consolidation of results from across the Cluster of Excellence's research areas.

Your tasks include conceptual work: development of a research framework for governance innovations and collaborative governance in various forest and environmental arenas; planning and conducting governance experiments for political decision making; collaboration in interdisciplinary and international research; supervision/support of early-career researchers; participation in project coordination and organization; proposal development for third-party funding; publishing scientific publications, single authored and co-authored; presentations at national and international conferences;

supporting and writing progress reports; active involvement in and contributions to cluster activities, workshops, and outreach events.

Your profile includes a PhD (or equivalent) in environmental governance, political science, human geography, economics or related fields; knowledge and experience in the field of social science experiments for (political) decision making (Choice experiments, game theoretic experiments, survey experiments, or similar); knowledge and experience in the field of governance innovation research and collaborative governance; demonstrated experience in coordination and project management;

ability to work independently and collaborate in interdisciplinary teams and with non-academic stakeholders; very good spoken German and very good spoken and written English skills; high-quality publications in the field of governance research.

We offer an exciting interdisciplinary environment within an internationally renowned researchers at a newly established Excellence Cluster; structured support and supervision for your scientific and career development; a diverse, collaborative, and inclusive research community, including initial University and cluster-specific onboarding support; opportunities for further training, attendance at conferences, and professional networking; flexible working hours and support with work-life balance; salary according to TV-L 13;

an individual financial budget for project-specific expenses as well as for career development activities.

The University of Freiburg is dedicated to the principles of equal opportunity and diversity and welcomes applications from all qualified candidates regardless of gender, nationality, ethnic and social background, religion/belief, disability, age, or sexual orientation.

Application including cover letter, CV, relevant certificates/transcripts, and, if applicable, publication list by 2. August 2026 to the application portal of the University of Freiburg.

For questions, please contact:
Prof. Dr. Daniela Kleinschmit, Professur für Forst- und Umweltpolitik daniela.kle

The position is limited to 30. June 2029. The salary will be determined in accordance with E13 TV-L.