Postdoctoral Research Fellowships in Environmental History and History of Science (ENVIROSHIFT) Université Lumière Lyon 2 in France

Applications are open for three postdoctoral research fellowships in the ERC Starting Grant project ENVIROSHIFT – Shifting Perspectives on Environmental Change: A History of the Earth Sciences in Central Asia and the Caucasus, 1880–2000, hosted at Université Lumière Lyon 2 (LARHRA, France).

The project examines how Earth scientists shaped environmental knowledge and mountain environments in Central Asia and the Caucasus from the late Russian Empire to the end of the Soviet Union. It brings together environmental history, history of science, Russian and Soviet history, and the history of the Earth sciences, with attention to resource extraction, environmental governance, and changing understandings of nature.

The three fellowships are organized around specific case studies: Kyrgyzstan (uranium mining, geological expertise, environmental transformation), the Tajik Pamirs (geology and resource exploration), and the Caucasus (seismology, environmental risk, and state planning).

Successful candidates will join an international ERC-funded research team based at Université Lumière Lyon 2 and LARHRA. The project offers generous support for archival research, fieldwork, and conference travel.

Deadline: 21 September 2026.

Interested applicants should consult the full call for applications on the project page and follow the instructions provided there.