Liesbet Vranken

KU Leuven is offering a four-year PhD/research position in Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics within the Society–Environment Interactions Research Group. The project sits in an interdisciplinary and internationally connected research environment focused on food production and consumption, ecosystem services, behavioural change, and policy-relevant sustainability transitions in forestry and agri-food systems. The position is attached to HSFood4All – Healthy & Sustainable Food for All through Agri-food System Reconfiguration, Labelling, Literacy, and Inclusive Environments – an ambitious interdisciplinary project funded through the Research Foundation – Flanders (FWO) SBO programme. The project combines agricultural and environmental economics, nutrition, consumer behaviour, data science, sustainability assessment, governance, and participatory research to address a key challenge: despite growing awareness of sustainability and healthy diets, consumer behaviour changes slowly because information is fragmented, labels can be confusing, and food environments often make healthy and sustainable choices difficult. The successful candidate will work on advancing sustainability assessment methods and developing consumer-centred communication formats that help people make more sustainable food choices. Research tasks include building detailed consumer profiles, analysing existing food consumption and sustainability perception datasets, supporting integrated consumer- and product-level databases, studying how environmental sustainability information can be communicated effectively to different consumer groups, and working with industry stakeholders to identify sustainability indicators that are scientifically robust, operationally feasible, and relevant to consumers. You will also contribute to the design and evaluation of innovative multi-dimensional front-of-package communication formats and sustainability visuals, combine secondary datasets with targeted primary data from food producers, and conduct consumer choice experiments, behavioural studies, and focus groups to test communication tools. The role also includes publishing in international peer-reviewed journals, presenting at conferences, and engaging with stakeholders from industry, civil society, government, and consumer organisations. Eligibility highlights include an EU Master’s degree in Bioscience Engineering, Agricultural Economics, Environmental Economics, Natural Resources Economics, Food Economics, or another relevant field of Applied Economics or Bioscience Engineering, with excellent results. Applicants should have a strong interest in agrifood systems, environmental sustainability, and consumer behaviour; some experience with databases and quantitative analysis; strong scientific writing; excellent communication skills; and proficiency in English. Dutch is strongly preferred because the project involves extensive interaction with Dutch-speaking stakeholders, and a minimum C1 level is required if Dutch is not native. The position offers a one-year contract that can be extended to four years after positive evaluation, with the possibility to enroll in the Arenberg Doctoral School PhD programme. KU Leuven also highlights supervision by an internationally recognised team, access to advanced training and international conferences, and a supportive, diverse working environment with significant scientific and societal impact. Applications are accepted via the online tool on a rolling basis until the position is filled, and early applications are strongly encouraged. The expected start date is Autumn 2026 or as soon as possible thereafter.