Tenure Track Junior Professorship - Profile n°1: “Coexistence, Knowledge and Health in Tropical Island Environments – Indian Ocean”

Organisation/Company Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD) Department Direction des Ressources Humaines Research Field Other Researcher Profile Other Profession Positions Other Positions Application Deadline 31 Aug 2026 - 23:59 (Europe/Paris) Country France Type of Contract Temporary Job Status Full-time Offer Starting Date 1 Dec 2026 Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme? Other EU programme Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure? No

Offer Description

• Key words: medicinal plants, risk perception, memoirs, social inequalities, migration patterns, One health.
• Planned tenured position as IRD Research Director after 4-year contract
• Chair attached to the UMR Infectious processes in tropical island environments (University of Réunion, IRD, INSERM, CNRS)

Context and stakes for the Global South : This CPJ forms part of the multi-annual contract on objectives, resources and performance concluded between the IRD and the Réunion Region, focusing on two priority areas for the territory: health and food.The candidate sought, specialising in health-related humanities and social sciences, will strengthen the interdisciplinary approach of the Infectious Processes in Tropical Island Environments (PIMIT) unit, bridging the gap between field studies (interactions between humans, fauna, flora and the environment) and biomedical/molecular approaches. The post will help position PIMIT as a leading One Health centre in the Indian Ocean, rooted in regional challenges (including the socio-cultural and historical dimensions of settlement and coexistence dynamics), whilst engaging with national and international networks on emerging infectious diseases. The unit collaborates with Madagascar, Mauritius, the Comoros, the Seychelles, Mayotte, Mozambique and Australia through interregional projects (INTERREG, PIOM, PEPR-MIE) that promote scientific mobility and training.

Scientific objectives : The project analyses the interactions between health, society and biodiversity in tropical island environments, by studying human-wildlife coexistence and the use of medicinal plants, in relation to the ecological, social, cultural and historical dynamics of human settlement.An interdisciplinary approach (life sciences/social and human sciences) sheds light on past and present socio-ecological processes.The CPJ will analyse the impact of environments (natural and human-modified), social practices, lifestyles, perceptions of risk and social inequalities (in health and diet) on the spread of infectious agents and local responses to emerging diseases (exacerbated by metabolic diseases).The integration of ecology, genomics, sociology, anthropology, geography and public health aims to understand the vulnerability and resilience of communities and to promote biodiversity. This cross-cutting programme, based on the One Health approach, focuses on the Indian Ocean region, which is characterised by significant social inequalities in health.

Teaching objectives : The teaching programme forms part of the New Curriculum (NOF) for the Master’s in Biology and Health, specifically the Tropical Infectious Diseases and Zoonoses specialisation, which provides training in emerging diseases through an integrated approach linking ecology, pathophysiology, prevention and global health. The CPJ will help supervise cross-disciplinary tutorial sessions that combine these aspects through case studies on infectious disease outbreaks. She will also contribute to the Master’s programme’s international outreach through the ILIADE project and Erasmus+ mobility schemes.In the Bachelor’s degree in Health Sciences, which is currently being restructured according to a skills-based approach and the SAE framework, the CPJ will contribute to teaching in the humanities and social sciences applied to health, supporting the sole tenured senior lecturer currently delivering the modules on sociology and social inequalities in health. This educational component will strengthen the link between teaching and research around One Health and social sciences and health issues.

Funding available : The holder of the chair will be awarded (1) €200,000 in funding from the ANR (of which at least €120,000 is for staff costs – PhD students, postdocs, IT contract staff – with the remainder earmarked for project running costs), (2) funding from the IRD for a three-year doctoral contract and €30,000 for a long-term assignment (approximately 6 months), (3) funding from the Réunion Region for two post-doctoral mobility contracts, and up to three annual seminars.

Assessment criteria : Excellence of the candidate, motivation, scientific and pedagogical supervision capacity.Quality, originality, interdisciplinary of the research and teaching projects and their Global South component.Relevance of the proposed methods with regard to the identified problems.Relevance and structuring effect of the project within the laboratory and at the level of partnerships.Coherence with the IRD partnership priorities.Adequacy of the means to the proposed project and capacity to mobilise complementary means.

Additional Information

Eligibility criteria

Conditions for applicants :

Candidates must fulfil one of the following criteria:

• hold a doctorate as provided in article L.612-7 of the French Education Code;
• hold a PhD or doctoral level of education;
• hold a doctorate in engineering;
• hold a study and research diploma in computer science, GIS;
• hold a study and research diploma in remote sensing;
• hold an overseas university degree considered equivalent to the above-mentioned diplomas; in this case, applicants should submit an equivalence request.
• hold a study and research diploma in remote sensing;
• hold an overseas university degree considered equivalent to the above-mentioned diplomas; in this case, applicants should submit an equivalence request.

For the equivalence request - (refer to the file available on the platform « Démarches Addulact »).

Selection process

Applications, selection and interviews :

Applications will be assessed by a committee comprising IRD members and external experts. Candidates pre-selected by the committee will be invited for interview. Interviews will last for one hour, and will be conducted remotely by video-conference.

The recruitment date for the chair is set for December 1, 2026.