Postdoctoral Research Position in Social Sciences (M/F)

Job Description

Missions

The crisis of generational renewal in agriculture, highlighted since the 1980s, is now widely recognised as a major challenge for the French agri-food system. In response, the development of support mechanisms for farm entry and transfer has gradually structured a complex landscape of assistance schemes and programmes, operating at different scales and involving a wide range of actors. This landscape includes highly visible public policy instruments (PAI, support provided by Chambers of Agriculture or ADEAR organisations, young farmers' installation grants, etc.); support provided by associative organisations (Mosaïque-Mosagri, Terre de Liens, Terres Adonis, business incubators, etc.); training organisations (CFPPA, Ecopaysan, the InPACT network, etc.); and economic support schemes such as employment agency or regional grants.

Academic research has explored various dimensions of farm installation trajectories: competition for access to land; the functioning and effects of support schemes; the characteristics of new farmers (connections to agricultural communities, social, educational and family capital, psychological factors); and their integration into professional careers and life trajectories.

Taken individually and collectively, these studies highlight both the diversity of human and material resources available to aspiring farmers and the persistent administrative, financial and organisational difficulties that shape individual pathways, often making the installation process a genuine “obstacle course”. This observation is particularly relevant for the most alternative or unconventional projects, which may differ from the expectations of the actors responsible for supporting and sharing part of the associated risks (banks, Chambers of Agriculture, etc.).

At the same time, for these types of projects, aspiring farmers can rely on an ecosystem of “third-sector” organisations explicitly committed to more sustainable agriculture: local seed exchange and dissemination associations, distribution networks (e.g. short food supply chains), organic farming incubator spaces, as well as the various ONVAR organisations (Organismes Nationaux à Vocation Agricole et Rurale).

While existing research has examined the specific roles played by some of these actors, few studies provide an integrated account of how they are sequentially mobilised throughout a farm installation trajectory. How do aspiring farmers build support networks by drawing on these local resources? To what extent does the mobilisation of these actors contribute to establishing the credibility of a project, particularly in the eyes of potential funders?

Conversely, little is known about how these third-sector actors build networks at the local level: What relationships do they maintain with one another and with more institutional actors? How do public policies enable (or could enable) support for their activities? What role does professional mobility between organisations play in maintaining and facilitating these networks? Is it possible to identify “mandatory passage points” within this associative ecosystem?

This postdoctoral position aims to investigate the role of the third sector in farm installation processes that are part of an ecological transition of agricultural practices. The research will focus jointly on the two dimensions outlined above:

The mobilisation of third-sector actors in farm installation processes. Based on a sample of aspiring farmers and recently established farmers, the research will analyse the formation of, or integration into, hybrid networks composed of organisations committed to the development of sustainable agriculture. Particular attention will be paid to the roles played by these actors: (i) in developing (and adapting) the agronomic and economic model of the farm; (ii) in building the credibility or legitimacy of the project among institutional stakeholders (particularly Chambers of Agriculture) and financial actors (banks); and (iii) in developing and formalising reasoning regarding the agronomic and economic trajectory of farms, including the assessment and management of risks.
The organisation and structure of third-sector networks at the local level (within a French administrative region). This will include examining the existence of key actors performing intermediary functions between aspiring farmers and the associative ecosystem.

The research will be conducted in the Pays de la Loire region. It will benefit from the simultaneous implementation, in the same area, of another survey focusing on experimental infrastructures, which may provide opportunities to identify aspiring farmers. Partnerships with well-established institutional or associative organisations (e.g. Terre de Liens) may also be considered.

Activity

The successful candidate will be responsible for:

•Establishing a panel of aspiring farmers or recently established farmers engaged in the ecological transition of agricultural practices. The ability to access and develop such a fieldwork site will be an important recruitment criterion.

•Conducting qualitative surveys through interviews and field visits with this panel.

•Developing a functional map of third-sector organisations involved at the regional level in supporting farm installation. Depending on the skills and interests of the successful candidate, quantitative analyses (e.g. network analysis) may be conducted based on this mapping.

Your Profil

Skills

• Knowledge and qualifications: Sociologist (preferably specialised in economic sociology or the sociology of science and technology) with a strong understanding of agricultural communities and sectors.

• Technical skills: Experience in qualitative interview-based research, and in building and (where applicable) quantitatively analysing databases.

• Personal qualities: Ability and motivation to work as part of a team.

Your Work Environment

The postdoctoral position is part of the PEPR Transform programme, within Work Package 2 (WP2), which is dedicated to the study of actors and initiatives from the “third sector” supporting agri-food transitions. Through this perspective, WP2 will explore several dimensions of agri-food transitions addressed by a wide range of third-sector actors.

The successful candidate will join a large research team composed primarily of sociologists and economists and will be hosted at LISIS (Interdisciplinary Laboratory for Science, Innovation and Society). As one of France's leading laboratories for the study of science and technology in society, LISIS provides a rich and diverse scientific environment, with extensive resources and expertise related to agricultural and food issues.

The research will be conducted in close collaboration with two other postdoctoral researchers recruited on distinct topics (see positions UMR9003-BAPBED-001 and UMR9003-BAPBED-002), while sharing several cross-cutting research questions regarding the role and place of the third sector in the ecological transition of agriculture.

The main scientific contacts are Baptiste Bedessem (INRAE, UMR LISIS), Stéphanie Barral (INRAE, UMR LISIS), Madeleine Akrich (CSI, Mines Paris), Philippe Larédo (University of Manchester), and Vanessa Léa (CNRS, UMR Géode, Toulouse).

Compensation and benefits

Compensation

From 3131€ gross per month, depending on experience

Annual leave and RTT

44 jours

Remote Working practice and compensation

Pratique et indemnisation du TT

Transport

Prise en charge à 75% du coût et forfait mobilité durable jusqu’à 300€

About the offer

About the CNRS

The CNRS is a major player in fundamental research on a global scale. The CNRS is the only French organization active in all scientific fields. Its unique position as a multi-specialist allows it to bring together different disciplines to address the most important challenges of the contemporary world, in connection with the actors of change.

CNRS

The research professions