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 13 000 students, 400 professors and close to 4 500 other faculty and staff working on our dynamic campus 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.
Academic Coordinator in Water and Environmental Engineering / DIWA Flagship
Do you want to combine research and societal impact? Are you interested in stakeholder engagement, coordination as well as multidisciplinary collaboration in water field? Then join our unique teams at Aalto University and in DIWA Flagship!
Aalto University invites applications for the position of an experienced Academic Coordinator within the Water and Environmental Engineering Research Group WAT (
https://www.aalto.fi/en/department-of-built-environment/water-and-environmental-engineering). The position will be a key part of our WAT team in the new Digital Waters (DIWA) Flagship (
www.digitalwaters.fi), with responsibility to coordinate our flagship-related activities and to plan and implement successful stakeholder interaction and societal impact together with our teams at WAT and DIWA. The position thus allows you to join two active research communities: our multidisciplinary Water and Environmental Engineering Research Group at Aalto University as well as the DIWA Flagship community, including six DIWA organisations and a wide array of partner organisations from different societal sectors. The position will at this stage be filled until the end of year 2027.
DIWA Flagship
DIWA Flagship is a unique research and innovation ecosystem in the water sector, carrying out cutting-edge research and supporting management and decision-making through innovations and active stakeholder engagement. DIWA’s goal is to secure water for people and ecosystems through integrated and sustainable practices and novel digital solutions. DIWA is implemented by a multidisciplinary consortium of three universities (University of Oulu, University of Turku, Aalto University) and three research institutes (Finnish Environment Institute, Finnish Geospatial Research Institute, Finnish Meteorological Institute) in close collaboration with partners from public and private sector, academia and civil society. DIWA also links closely to new DIWA doctoral education pilot (
https://digitalwaters.fi/phd-pilot) that will engage altogether 60 doctoral researchers in five different universities (Oulu, Turku, Aalto, Åbo Akademi and the University of Eastern Finland) to carry out multi- and interdisciplinary research related to water and its management.
DIWA works through five key Research Themes: RT1 Hydrosphere processes; RT2 New observational systems; RT3 Integrated analysis and modelling; RT4 Digital services, platforms, and business applications; and RT5 Transformative water management. The Academic Coordinator has a possibility to work across all these Research Themes, but the emphasis of the work would be on RT5 Transformative water management and the related stakeholder engagement and societal impact activities. RT5 is co-lead by Aalto University and Finnish Environment Institute Syke, and its aim is to study critically current water resources management practices as well as to consider suitable ways forward together with our key stakeholders. The work builds on the importance that water has for addressing the key sustainability challenges related climate change, biodiversity, and pollution as well as the high hopes that so-called Twin Transition (green and digital transition) has in the water sector. Yet, given that water brings together a variety of actors with differing interests, needs and knowledges, the work also requires consideration of the thorny issues related to participation and decision-making power. It also means that transformative water management can be understood simultaneously in two different ways: through water’s key role in the on-going sustainability transformation and as a need to re-think and even transform current water management and governance practices.
The role of the Academic Coordinator
The three key themes that the Academic Coordinator will be working are: 1) development and coordination of Aalto’s DIWA-related activities; 2) stakeholder engagement and societal impact related to DIWA and its Research Theme 5; and 3) multidisciplinary, solution-oriented research and related cooperation.
The exact role and duties of the Academic Coordinator will be agreed together with the successful applicant, but the Coordinator’s main duties are planned to include the following:
- to develop and coordinate Aalto’s engagement in DIWA flagship, in close collaboration and with support from WAT team, including DIWA’s Aalto PI Eliisa Lotsari and Vice-PI Marko Keskinen
- to plan and implement stakeholder engagement and societal impact work related to the DIWA flagship, in collaboration with the relevant personnel from the DIWA organisations
- to collaborate with and support DIWA researchers at Aalto University, including planning joint activities and research cooperation as well as applying for additional funding
- to carry out research related to relevant DIWA research themes, in collaboration with researchers from Aalto University, Finnish Environment Institute Syke and other DIWA organisations and partners
Requirements
We expect you to have experience from both research work and project coordination and management. Experience from stakeholder engagement, science-policy-stakeholder interaction, and societal impact work is a strong merit. The position requires a doctoral degree from the relevant field, such as (but not limited to) water resources management, natural resources management, water engineering, environmental science, sustainability science, business studies or governance studies. While you should have independent and self-motivated approach to work, you must also enjoy working as a central part of multi- and interdisciplinary research team and have the necessary skills for coordination and leadership.
Fluent communication skills in English are essential, while competence in Finnish language is a strong merit.
What we offer
The successful applicant will join a young and dynamic team of world-class researchers at Aalto University’s Water and Environmental Engineering Research Group, while also being an active and important member of the multidisciplinary DIWA Flagship community.
- We offer you an interesting job in an inspiring and multidisciplinary work environment. We will familiarize you with your work tasks, and you will be part of a competent team that will provide you with support for your tasks.
- You will also become an important part of a wide and unique network of doctoral researchers, early career and senior researchers within the DIWA Flagship
- We encourage and offer opportunities for continuous development of your own expertise
- The contract includes Aalto University’s extensive occupational health care
- We work in a hybrid way with flexible office hours, and the primary workplace is at our active university campus in Otaniemi, Espoo.
Funding for the Academic Coordinator is available until the end of 2027, with a possibility for continuation if the flagship is granted funding for the second stage. The expected starting date is as soon as possible.
Aalto University follows the salary system of Finnish universities. The starting salary of the Academic Coordinator will depend on the experience and competence of the successful candidate but is expected to be approximately 4700 €/month (gross).
The annual total workload of research and teaching staff at Aalto University is 1612 hours.
Join us!
Please submit your application through our eRecruitment system (click the “Apply now!” link at the end of this page)
by Sunday 12th of May.
Please include the following documents
in English as a single pdf-file (‘lastname_firstname_application.pdf’):
- Letter of Motivation (1-2 pages), where you introduce yourself and describe your motivation for the position. Also clearly indicate your competence in the key themes of the position (research; project management and coordination; stakeholder interaction and societal impact).
- Curriculum Vitae (2-3 pages), including your language competence (at least English and Finnish) as well as contact details of two relevant referees. You are also encouraged to include links to your possible LinkedIn page or other similar website.
- List of Publications, including a link to your Doctoral Thesis (if available)
Kindly note that we will start to go through the applications and may also invite suitable candidates for interview during the application period. The position will be filled as soon as suitable candidate is identified: this can happen already before the application period closes. You are thus encouraged to submit your application as soon as possible.
Aalto University reserves the right to leave the positions open, extend the application period, re-open the application process, and to consider candidates who have not submitted applications during the application period.
Our workplace values equality and diversity, and we therefore encourage qualified applicants from all backgrounds to apply for our open positions.
Further information
Further information about working at Aalto University can be found from these websites:
https://www.aalto.fi/en/careers-at-aalto
https://www.aalto.fi/aalto-university/international-staff-information-package
More information about the position can be asked from Associate Professor Marko Keskinen (
marko.keskinen@aalto.fi). For questions about recruitment, please contact HR Partner Sanni Mero (
sanni.mero@aalto.fi).
Want to know more about Aalto University and our community?
You can watch these videos:
Aalto University - Towards a better world
Aalto People
Shaping a Sustainable Future
About Finland
Finland is a great place for living with or without family - it is a safe, politically stable and well-organized Nordic society. Finland is consistently ranked high in quality of life and was just listed again as the happiest country in the world:
https://worldhappiness.report/news/its-a-three-peat-finland-keeps-top-spot-as-happiest-country-in-world/.
For more information about living in Finland:
https://www.aalto.fi/en/careers-at-aalto/for-international-staff
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