Mass violence: collective and individual experiences, memory processes and transitional justice M/F

Organisation/Company CNRS Department Direction des ressources humaines Research Field History Researcher Profile First Stage Researcher (R1) Application Deadline 2 Sep 2026 - 17:00 (UTC) Country France Type of Contract Other Job Status Full-time Hours Per Week 35 Offer Starting Date 30 Aug 2026 Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme? Not funded by a EU programme Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure? No

Offer Description

The CNRS Sciences humaines & sociales' 2025 Stratégic Report highlighted how the theme of “war and peace” lacks an academic framework equivalent to War and Peace Studies developed in the Anglo-Saxon world. The purpose of this Chair is to address armed conflicts by moving beyond the binary opposition of war and peace. The Chair's research will advance understanding of national reconciliation processes, the collective memory of mass violence, and the ways in which transitional justice addresses human rights violations. The project will place acts of dehumanization and their narratives at the center of its inquiry, viewed through the lens of individual and collective experiences. Emphasis may be placed on the evolving forms of violence or the recurring mechanisms characteristic of mass violence. Approaches related to the political instrumentalization of memory, historical reconstructions and their social and territorial consequences, various forms of revisionism and impunity, and the gendered nature of violence may be considered. Research may address the place and role of international law, criminal law, and local dynamics in post-conflict contexts (legal mechanisms for classifying mass violence, challenges of transitional justice, and complexities of reparations).Particular attention may be given to artistic, literary, and media expressions. Given the desired collaboration with the IFPO, the project will draw on research areas within its scope of expertise (Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Palestinian Territories). In this regard, the project led by the chairholder will include a program of long-term field missions throughout the duration of the contract within this UMIFRE.

The Césor supports research that examines the interplay between religion and politics in the context of intense tensions and identity-based conflicts in the Christian and Muslim Near East. Research on the legal framework for addressing mass violence and on transitional justice would strengthen the UMR DICE. The IHTP conducts research on the history of 20th-century wars and their memories, while contributing to a new historiography of the contemporary era, focused on history whose witnesses are still alive. The IHTP is launching research projects on the recent history of post-decolonization conflicts in the 20th century, their collective memories, the uses and politics of the past, and law and justice. The LESC supports the development of a research axis titled “Gray Zones and Turbulence,” which analyses critical situations, conflicts, and associated difficult memories.

This CPJ focuses on contemporary mass violence, centering its analysis on post-conflict transitions (reconstruction processes, pacification, national reconciliation, transitional justice, reparations, and memory). It examines acts of dehumanization and the narratives surrounding them through the lens of individual and collective experiences. The focus may be on:

• The evolution of forms of violence or the recurring mechanisms characteristic of mass violence.
• Approaches related to the political instrumentalization of memory, historical reconstructions and their social and territorial consequences, various forms of revisionism and impunity, and the gendered nature of violence.
• The place and role of international law, criminal law, and local dynamics in post-conflict contexts.
• Artistic, literary, and media expressions.

The project has to be build on IFPO's existing research areas.

Teaching will be discussed according to the site which the successful candidate is assigned to. He/She will be involved in teaching on existing courses at each site.

The CNRS is developing a strong policy in favor of open science. Open science consists of making research results "as accessible as possible and closed as necessary". As such, the CNRS aims to make 100% of the texts of publications resulting from the work of its laboratories accessible , in particular through deposit in HAL. The data produced must also be made available and reusable, except for specific restrictions. In addition, the guiding principles of individual evaluation have been revised in accordance with the DORA declaration, to be more qualitative and to take into account all facets of the researcher's profession.

The dissemination of the results will be done through world-class scientific productions: publications, patents, software... In addition, the results will be communicated to various targets such as scientific communities, media, decision makers, general public, schools, etc., with an adapted calendar. Specific tools may be developed such as websites, newsletters, meetings, international symposia, summer schools and conferences.

The relationship between science and society is now recognized as a full dimension of scientific activity. The project will develop this dimension in synergy with all the partners. The resulting research work will contribute to informing public decision-making. Participatory science initiatives may be initiated with actors from the project's socio-economic and cultural eco-system.

holders of a doctorate or a PhD or equivalent degree or applicants who have gained scientific. There is no restriction on the age or nationality of applicants. All CNRS positions are accessible to people with disabilities, with special arrangements for tests made necessary by the nature of the disability.