PhD Project on SCAR archive
The
Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR) is the international
organization tasked with coordinating research in Antarctica and as part
of its 60yr Anniversary celebration, has decided to open its archives
for a comprehensive study. This is SCAR’s veritable legacy of sixty
years of research coordination at the bottom of the world. We are
looking for an enthusiastic and bright scholar to examine
the archival documents in order to better understand SCAR’s role in the
shaping of Antarctic science and geopolitics as well as to use the
historical evidence to cast new light on Antarctica’s present and
future. The SCAR archive consists of official documents
and correspondence from 1958 to the early 2000s stored in approximately
thirty boxes at the Scott Polar Research Institute (SPRI, Cambridge,
UK). The materials document meetings; projects in glaciology,
oceanography, solid earth science, and environmental
conservation; negotiations and related agreements in the context of the
Antarctic Treaty System.
The researcher will be working under the supervision of Simone Turchetti
as first academic supervisor and in coordination with Kieron Flanagan,
the second supervisor. He/She will also report regularly on the
project’s progress to Jenny Baeseman, the SCAR Executive
Director.
The researcher will be employed at the Centre for the History of
Science, Technology and Medicine (CHSTM), University of Manchester,
where she/he will receive further training on research methods as well
as working space. The PhD student will travel regularly
to Cambridge to visit the SCAR archive. SCAR will contribute the office
space and incidentals needed by the student to complete the project, as
well as some travel costs. SCAR will also provide in-kind assistance to
the student while in Cambridge. The investigator
may also have the opportunity to attend one of the Antarctic Treaty
Meetings to familiarize with the system of scientific governance
existing in Antarctica.
The student will familiarize with advanced techniques to carry out
archival research including ethical and legal aspects (confidentiality,
ethical issues). In defining the historical study, the appointed PhD
student will also extensively benefit significantly
from the diversity of research interests existing in the supervisory
team. She/He will thus draw on other disciplines, including
environmental and science studies, international relation studies, and
law studies. SCAR’s role will also expose the scholar to
a number of other studies in scientific disciplines such as glaciology,
oceanography and conservation studies.
Candidates must hold a minimum upper second class honours degree (or
equivalent) in areas such as: history of science/technology, general
history, historical geography, science and technology studies,
environmental history or environmental studies or another
subject closely relevant to the themes of the project. Candidates with a
Masters in a relevant subject area would have distinct advantage. In
some cases we may be able to consider relevant professional experience
in place of a Master’s qualification: please
contact the academic supervisor for guidance before applying. All
applicants should also have at least an Upper Second-class undergraduate
degree (or non-UK equivalent: see
http://www.gov.uk/government/
Interviews for the studentship are expected to be held in May 2017.
Funding Notes
This
project is funded by the Economic and Social Research Council. UK
applicants qualify for the full studentship. Students from EU countries
other
than the UK are eligible for a fees-only award. Only EU applicants who
have been resident in the UK for minimum of 3 years prior to commencing
the studentship, will qualify for the full award. Applicants whose
native language is not English must be able to
satisfy the English language entry requirements of the University of
Manchester: for further guidance see
www.manchester.ac.uk/study/