Emory University

The Institute for Comparative and International Studies

Call for ICIS Visiting Scholar Applications

Theme Program, 2008-11
STATES AT REGIONAL RISK

Emory University’s Institute for Comparative and International Studies invites applications for a three-year visiting scholar position to begin fall, 2008.  This position emphasizes critical interdisciplinary scholarship and will interface with the theme “States at Regional Risk” (SARR). ICIS has received a major grant from the Carnegie Corporation of New York to develop a program around this theme; project details are in the attached summary. Targeted at recent PhDs, the position will be held at the rank of post-doctoral fellow or visiting assistant professor, depending on the background and credentials of the successful applicant. The field of specialization is open across the social sciences and related fields, including anthropology, history, political science, sociology, economics, development studies, women's studies, and the liberal arts.  Interdisciplinary background and critical theory interests are welcome. (CLICK HERE FOR ATTACHED SUMMARY DOCUMENT).

The ICIS theme program "States at Regional Risk" was undertaken to substantively increase understanding and awareness about practical ways of reducing state risk and increasing public governance and services in four key world regions: West Africa, Central-East Africa, South Asia, and the Americas. In each region, different dynamics shape the types and degrees of state fragility, the relation between weaker and stronger states, the impact of regional and international influence, and prospects for security and peace. The project foregrounds place-based knowledge in relation to regional and comparative dynamics, including how international interventions ameliorate or reinforce state fragility.

Along the lines of the attached SARR Executive Summary, the research of the SARR visiting scholar should address both analytic and practical issues of social fragility and regional risk within or across at least one of the following areas:

• West Africa, including one or more of the coastal countries from Senegal to Cameroon
• Central-East Africa, including the Great Lake Counties (the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, Burundi, Uganda, Tanzania, and Kenya)
• South Asia, including India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, or Sri Lanka
• Northern Andes, including Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, or Venezuela

A significant goal of SARR is to cultivate and expand networks of practical influence in states at regional risk. To this end, the SARR program will organize seminars, workshops, and conferences that bring together policy makers, practitioners, and relevant scholars for discussions that emphasize pragmatic outcomes. These events will be held in major cities within the regions of program concentration as well as at Emory University.  One of SARR’s aims is to involve policy makers who can learn and benefit from the insights of experienced practitioners and the knowledge of academic experts. 

Additional outcomes of SARR include mentorship and career development of graduate students as well as scholarly papers, edited collections, articles, and web pages that integrate scholarship, practical experience, and policy-making initiatives.

Applicants should have strong grounding in place-based knowledge within or across at least one of the above-mentioned countries or world areas as well as analytic or theoretical interest in broader comparison.  Candidates should be knowledgeable about and have interest in practical implications of research in addition to having superior academic credentials and accomplishments.  Practical experience with policy or development studies or as a consultant is a plus though not strictly necessary.  Superior teaching qualifications will be considered along with excellence in research.

The applicant's PhD must have been successfully defended by the date of application and must have been awarded no earlier than 2002 (or no earlier than 2000 for scholars outside the U.S., Canada, Western Europe, or Australia). 

The visiting SARR scholar will teach one course per semester or equivalent and will participate actively in SARR seminars and as an integral member of the SARR Steering Committee.  He or she may also be instrumental in helping organize or orchestrate a relevant conference or workshop that takes place in her or his world area of expertise.  

The Visiting Scholar will receive salary appropriate to her or his relevant background and qualifications plus Emory University benefits, research funds allocated in relation to the applicant's project, and an allocation of $2,500 for equipment.

Applicants should submit:

• application letter that describes the candidate's research background and interests, including the title of the applicant's proposed SARR research project
• CV
• abstract and annotated table of contents of the applicant's doctoral thesis
• 1-2 paragraph statement of teaching interests
• writing sample/s
• supplementary statements or contextual information as desired (please submit these as appendices)
• three letters of recommendation

Application materials should be e-mailed as files in standard MS-Word format attached to a single message with the subject line “ICIS Visiting Scholar Application.”

References should be sent as file attachments or as message text with the subject line “ICIS Visiting Scholar Reference.”
 
All materials should be e-mailed to Corina Domozick; Associate Director of Operations, ICIS @ cdomozi@emory.edu (phone, 404-712-9294).  Questions should be directed to Ms. Domozick at the contacts listed above.

Emory University is an EEO/AA employer.  Applications are encouraged from a wide range of scholars with diverse backgrounds.

The review of applications will begin on April 30, 2008 and will continue until the position is filled.

See further details about ICIS programs at http://www.icis.emory.edu