PRR Project

Summary

CERENA hosts research related to sustainable and responsible exploration, extraction, processing, and utilization of mineral and energy resources, and their environmental impacts, and the development of new materials from primary and secondary raw materials in a circular economy context. To complement CERENA’s scientific background of excellence, and the multidisciplinary skill set of CERENA’s members, this position aims to recruit a full-time Ph.D. holder to drive research and innovation in the field of communication for science and engineering and lead the science and communication area, part of CERENA’s Research Support Office.Science, technology, and engineering related to mineral and energy resources are hard to be efficiently communicated to society and local communities. The impact of these activities in our daily lives (e.g., for the digital and energy transitions) is often hardly perceived by the communities. These communications difficulties often represent a roadblock in obtained social licenses to operate in new projects. Besides, the impact of new eco-innovative materials and the valorisation of by-products and waste (secondary raw materials), while highly relevant for the sustainable development goals, is often discarded by relevant public and private stakeholders and industry due to a lack of common language between academy and these institutions and the conservative approach of a large part of the industrial fabric. In CERENA, we work on innovative methods for science and engineering communication to overcome these limitations. Science communication, dissemination and exploitation is today a backbone of international projects funded by the CE.The recruited researcher is expected to lead the science and engineering communication office of CERENA, and develop innovative approaches for the centre’s internal and external communication strategies, engage stakeholder at a regular basis, address the complexities associated with conveying information about CERENA’s scientific areas and disseminate the research activities developed within the centre. Ultimately, effective communication allows for better recruiting of talented researchers and students. To address these goals, the researcher will be responsible to develop and maintain a communication and dissemination plan for CERENA. The strategy for this position encompasses the following areas: a) definition of communication strategies at various levels, such as public and private stakeholders, local communities, policy makers, regulatory bodies, environmental groups, and investors; b) adapt communication strategies to different cultural backgrounds and diverse international stakeholders; c) exploit digital communication tools and social media platforms for effectively engagement and communication in the context of CERENA; d) develop science outreach activities at different levels leveraging CERENA’s research outcomes and results; e) define a communication strategy with conventional social media actors to showcase CERENA’s outcomes; d) ensure that best practices and EU regulations about open science are followed in all CERENA’s activities; e) explore technology transfer opportunities of the research developed within CERENA with the existing network at the IST-ID ecosystem.The recruited researcher should have a robust scientific profile with a specialized focus on communication for science and engineering in the context of the three CERENA groups (energy, raw materials and environment) and their interactions, multidisciplinary and position within the IST-ID ecosystem. The researcher should demonstrate capability lead CERENA’s communication office and engage with the centre’s ecosystem aiming to drive advancements in the field and make significant contributions to the scientific community.Since 2017, CERENA has one Ph.D. researcher full time devoted to science management and communication activities since late.  This revealed to be a very successful strategy in terms of promoting the centre’s science communication in the media and engaging young students from schools, open science policy application and coordination of projects applications. The recruited researcher under FCT-Tenure aims to consolidate this position with a full-time permanent contract at CERENA.