PhD researcher position for the project Aspirational Urbanism and the Recodification of Defiance

PhD researcher position for the project Aspirational Urbanism and the Recodification of Defiance

100%, 01.09.2025

The University of Basel, Switzerland, invites applications for aPhD researcher position (100% FTE) for the project Aspirational Urbanism and the Recodification of Defiance (ASPIRA).

The function of a blank sheet of A4 paper in a context of censorship reflects the need to recognize new forms of defiance. As speech is being monitored through differenttechnologies and in a range of arenas from the public square to social media and across university campuses, defiance takes new forms of symbolic critique. In the project "Aspirational Urbanism and the Recodification of Defiance (ASPIRA)", recognizing defiance contributes to the aim of conceptualizing aspirational urbanism as a way of understanding the function of alterity (alternative futures, speculative possibilities) in shaping cities. Rather than explaining urban change in Hong Kong and Taipei exclusively in terms of tiger economics or the developmentalist state, beyond techno-positivism and growth machine dogmas, ASPIRA recognizes defiance as the agency of urban residents in contesting perceived inevitabilies. The project builds on theoretical work on urban futures, understanding cities as sites for planning, imagining and representing futures. It also recognizes the unequal capacities and risks involved, highlighting the "cruel" ascriptions to optimism and the potentially devastating consequences of aspiration. ASPIRA’s approach identifying defiance by centering on visual analysis grounds aspirational urbanism, rescaling the object of urban theory towards everyday micro-practices.

Your position

• Work as a full-time PhD researcher for the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNF) Starting Grant project Aspirational Urbanism and the Recodification of Defiance (ASPIRA), consisting of Prof. Dr. Julie Ren (PI), and Dr. Haiyan Huang (postdoctoral researcher)
• Your doctoral research should fall within the scope of the project, with a focus on digital methods and spaces. You are expected to conduct research collaboratively within team and independently, but you are invited to develop your own research questions
• Present research at international conferences; co-organize project symposia and final exhibition
• Co-author and single author peer-reviewed publications within the framework of cumulative doctoral requirements

Your profile

• Master’s degree with an urban studies focus in urban or cultural geography/ anthropology/ sociology, media studies, gender studies or a related field
• Regional expertise conducting research in/about Hong Kong and/or Taipei
• Qualitative and digital methods experience and interest in multimodal discourse analysis
• Strong analytical skills
• Languages: Fluency in both spoken and written Mandarin and English (ideally also Cantonese)

We offer you

• 4-year 100% PhD position to begin in September 2025, hosted by the Urban Studies unit in the Department of Social Sciences at the University of Basel, Switzerland and a joint degree with the Urban Geographies Group, Department of Geography, Planning and International Development, University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands
• Research travel and conference budget
• Trainings in urban research, creative digital research methods, visual productions
• If desired, teaching experience
• Collaborative, supportive, small team committed to your career development with a healthy work-life balance
• Fully equipped workplace in the center of Basel near the university campus

• CV with your education background and research experience
• Max. 2-page cover letter detailing your experience related to the position and profile detailed above
• One exemplary piece of writing (e.g., your master thesis or a course assignment) that showcases your strengths
• An electronic copy of your master’s certificate