Berlin
In the summer of 2026, the research group “Entangled Energies: Actors, Spaces and Practices in Eastern Europe” will commence its work at the Institute for Eastern European Studies at Freie Universität Berlin. This DFG-funded group brings together researchers from Freie Universität, Humboldt University, the Centre Marc Bloch and the Leibniz Centre for Literary and Cultural Research. The research centres on three questions: Firstly, we examine spatial arrangements: how do the extraction and circulation of energy and the (re)configuration of resource spaces interrelate? Secondly, the focus is on actors: within which formal and informal network structures do human and non-human actors shape energy environments? Thirdly, we are concerned with competing narratives: which notions, topoi and concepts shape energy discourses? To address these complex issues, the interdisciplinary group connects researchers from literary and cultural studies, political science, history, sociology and economics, working in close collaboration.
Job Description
As part of the DFG Research Group “Entangled Energies: Actors, Spaces and Practices in Eastern Europe”, in the sub-project in cultural studies “Biographical Footprints of Energy and Political Elites in Russia and Kazakhstan” (PI: Prof. Alexander Libman), a 65% part-time pre-doctoral position is to be filled from 1 July 2026, on a fixed-term contract for four years. Remuneration is in accordance with the TV-L FU pay scale, pay grade 13.
This sub-project focuses on investigating the political role of so-called “energy elites”—that is, elite groups with a biographical background in the energy sector (oil, gas, coal, and nuclear power plants). The research examines both central and regional elites in Russia and Kazakhstan. The project aims to explore both the differences in elite rhetoric (particularly using text-as-data tools) and the implications of biographical background in the energy sector for the outcomes of policy decisions implemented by elites. The core of the project lies in the field of quantitative political science; qualitative fieldwork (in Kazakhstan) is also planned (though this depends on political circumstances and risks).
In addition to writing a doctoral dissertation on the topic of the sub-project, the project collaborator will contribute to joint academic papers in cooperation with the PI and actively participate in the academic events of the sub-project and the research group.
Requirements
Desirable
Please submit a brief outline (1 page) along with your application materials (cover letter, CV,
certificates) describing how you intend to address the project's research topic within the framework of a doctoral project. For questions regarding the project topic, please contact the PI (Prof. Alexander Libman). Applications, including all relevant documents and quoting the reference number, should be submitted electronically as a single PDF file via email to Prof. Dr. Alexander Libman: [email protected].
As part of the selection process, applicants may be asked to complete a task in the field of quantitative social science research to assess their methodological skills.