Canada Research Chair Tier II in Economics of Climate Change, Disasters, and Inequality - Assis[...]

Canada Research Chair Tier II in Economics of Climate Change, Disasters, and Inequality - Assistant Professor /Associate Professor - (02071.78)

Thompson Rivers University (TRU) invites applications for a Tier 2 Canada Research Chair (CRC), tenure-track or tenured position at the rank of assistant or associate professor, in the area of the Economics of Climate Change, Disasters, and Inequality.

Climate change resulting from the atmospheric accumulation of anthropogenic Greenhouse Gas emissions is a serious problem of our times. The social and economic impacts of climate change and climate change induced natural disasters are unevenly distributed regionally, nationally, internationally, and inter-generationally. The impacts of climate induced disasters, such as forest fires and floods, have been especially felt recently in the interior of British Columbia, the region that TRU and its partners in the Interior Universities Research Coalition (UNBC and UBCO) serve. The Department of Economics, Gaglardi, and TRU are committed to providing research on these impacts for the region, British Columbia, Canada, and the world. Research on the distributional impacts of climate change, disasters, and related public policies will help inform future policy-making to ensure a more equitable and just future.

The Government of Canada has established the CRC program as a means of enabling Canadian universities to sustain leading edge research excellence. The proposed CRC aligns with two of TRU’s institutional research priorities of understanding and responding to climate change and contributing to greater social cohesion and sense of belonging through a commitment to social justice and equity. The candidate’s research should address the unequal distributional impacts of climate change, policy, and disasters. Possible areas for the CRC’s research program focus are:

• The damages of climate change on the region, nation, and globe.
• The economic cost and distributional impacts of natural disasters.
• The impact of climate change on equity-deserving or economically disadvantaged groups.
• The impact of climate change on Indigenous communities.
• Preserving the well-being of communities disproportionately affected by climate change.
• Valuing the loss of the natural environment due to climate change.
• The economic and social justice implications of climate change.
• Distributional impacts of public policies related to climate change and/or disasters.
• Impacts of climate change and climate policies on labour market outcomes.

The Department of Economics and the Gaglardi School of Business and Economics have a long history of excellent teaching and research in environmental economics, public policy, environment, social and corporate governance (ESG), and sustainability. Gaglardi offers a wide array of undergraduate certificate, diploma, and degree programs in business and economics. At the graduate level, it offers a research-based MSc in Environmental Economics and Management degree, as well as a course-based Masters in Environmental Economics and Management degree. In addition, it offers an MBA degree which contains research-based options. The Department of Economics currently has a complement of 9 tenured research stream faculty, many with research focused on issues related to sustainability. Gaglardi funds a Sustainability Research Cluster with participation of faculty across the school, institution, and faculty at UNBC and UBCO.

The CRC in the Economics of Climate Change, Disasters, and Inequality will have significant opportunities for interdisciplinary collaborative research with other TRU faculties and research groups, such as the newly formed Institute for Wildfire Science, Adaptation, and Resiliency. There are opportunities to supervise research students in the MSc in Environmental Economics and Management, the MSc in Environmental Science, the MBA, and the MSc in Data Science.

The successful candidate will receive a conditional offer for the position at the rank of Assistant or Associate Professor, with rank and tenure status determined as part of the hiring process. TRU will nominate the candidate for Tier 2 CRC to the Tri-Agency Institutional Programs Secretariat. Upon approval of the nomination, the university will confirm the offer with an anticipated start date of July 1, 2025.

Qualifications

• A Ph.D. in Economics or an adjacent discipline awarded within the past ten years.
• A proven track record in research related to climate change, environmental economics or natural resource economics, particularly addressing issues of inequality.
• Experience with the development of a successful independent research program.
• Potential for excellence in teaching, training, and mentoring students.
• Potential to secure significant external funding.
• A commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion.
• The requisites to qualify for the Canada Research Chair program.

Application materials should include:

• A cover letter with an overview of the candidate's credentials, qualifications, and research strengths, including an explanation of how they satisfy the CRC nomination criteria.
• A three-page outline of the applicant's proposed five-year research program in the economics of climate change, disasters, and inequality.
• A one-page summary of the applicant's three most significant research contributions to date.
• A teaching statement that documents the applicant’s experience in and approach to training and mentoring diverse students and includes the applicant’s teaching philosophy.
• A one-page statement identifying strengths and experiences in promoting equity, diversity, and inclusion.
• Names and contact information for three referees.

TRU encourages applications from those who would contribute to the further diversification of our faculty and its scholarship including but not limited to women, visible minorities, Indigenous persons and persons with disabilities. All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however, Canadian citizens and permanent residents will be given priority.