Call for applications - Trust Undone Data

Main responsibilities

This post-doc is part of the Trust Undone Data - Invisible Pollution project : revealing missing pollution measurements to restore public confidence and guide environmental health research, funded as part of the TERRAE research program
led by PSL. Faced with growing mistrust of expert agencies and public institutions, Trust Undone Data seeks to analyze how the absence, insufficiency, or inadequacy of data on environmental health risks available to citizens contributes to eroding their confidence in that same data. The project aims to highlight knowledge gaps (undone data) in two French regions affected by historical pollution (the Arve Valley in Haute-Savoie and the Bages-Sigean area in Aude). It combines an inventory of existing knowledge and data with an identification of citizens' information needs through participatory workshops. In close collaboration with the eco-citizen institutes involved in the project, the project aims to develop a methodology for comparing existing data by questioning its quality and completeness and the knowledge needs expressed by the citizens directly concerned. The ultimate goal of the project is to make scientific information more accessible (including its limitations) to citizens and to help map specific and long-standing gaps in knowledge on certain issues.

The postdoctoral contract will run from January 2026 to the end of June 2027. It will be based on a participatory approach combining an inventory of existing data, knowledge of local initiatives, exchanges with residents, and public and institutional reporting. From January to the end of April 2026, the work will take place in the Arve Valley, in partnership with the Institut Écocitoyen du Pays du Mont-Blanc. The aim will be to compile data on pollution from institutional, scientific, and historical sources, drawing on both the Institute's existing work and the active participation of local residents. Two participatory workshops will enable the integration of field knowledge, local archives, and historical data. From May to the end of August 2026, the same approach will be taken at the Bages-Sigean pond site, in collaboration with the Institut Écocitoyen de l'Aude. Three participatory workshops will be organized to gather citizens' knowledge and enrich the inventory of existing data. In the context of these two sites, the postdoctoral researcher will benefit from the support of employees and volunteers from the two Ecocitizen Institutes, particularly in conducting the participatory workshops.

The following are the typical actions that will be carried out during this first phase:

• Review and evaluation of available data on pollution in collaboration with local stakeholders: depending on local circumstances, interviews with representatives of local authorities or expert agencies, collection of documentary information, archival research, interviews with various local stakeholders, etc.
• Participation in participatory workshops organized by eco-citizen institutes, meetings with residents and citizens involved to obtain additional information and sources
• Inventory and mapping of major sources of pollution in the area based on previously collected sources.

Starting in September 2026, work will continue simultaneously in both territories with a series of workshops designed to analyze citizens' expectations and questions, but also to compare these requests with previously collected data. Five workshops will be organized (two in the Arve Valley and three in the Aude). This phase will provide an opportunity to experiment with participatory mapping and data visualization tools. The objective will be twofold: on the one hand, to identify missing data and assess the interest perceived by residents in the existing data, and on the other hand, to discuss collectively the credibility of the proposed responses to local environmental health issues. Finally, at the end of the contract, a feedback session will be organized in each of the two territories. It will be aimed at both the public and institutional actors (decentralized state services, local authorities, water unions, elected officials). This feedback session will aim to make the information produced accessible and understandable, to strengthen citizens' ownership of knowledge, and to expand the data on which local public authorities base their decisions. It will also take the form of a final report, a scientific article in a peer-reviewed journal, and a publication for the general public, which will be facilitated by employees and volunteers from the two partner eco-citizen institutes.

Profile

• PhD : history, sociology, political science, geography, anthropology, science and technology studies (STS), environmental science, and/or data science.
• Research experience in interdisciplinary issues, ideally in health and/or environmental issues, is desirable An aptitude for data management, processing, and visualization, as well as for participatory approaches and scientific mediation.
• Experience and knowledge of the non-profit sector, ideally on health and/or environmental issues.
• Ideally, experience or knowledge of institutions and regulatory expertise sharing on pollution issues.

Required skills

• Scientific rigor
• Autonomy
• Interdisciplinary teamwork
• Ability to listen, communicate, teach, and mediate science
• Good interpersonal skills