​​​​​​​Plastics Policy Innovation Hub Area Director, Nicholas Institute

Job title:

​​​​​​​Plastics Policy Innovation Hub Area Director, Nicholas Institute

Company

Duke University

Job description

Duke University:Duke University was created in 1924 through an indenture of trust by James Buchanan Duke. Today, Duke is regarded as one of America’s leading research universities. Located in Durham, North Carolina, Duke is positioned in the heart of the Research Triangle, which is ranked annually as one of the best places in the country to work and live. Duke has more than 15,000 students who study and conduct research in its 10 undergraduate, graduate and professional schools. With about 40,000 employees, Duke is the third largest private employer in North Carolina, and it now has international programs in more than 150 countries.Plastics Policy Innovation Hub Area Director Area DirectorDuke University’s Nicholas Institute for Energy, Environment and SustainabilityAbout the Nicholas Institute:The Nicholas Institute conducts and supports actionable research and undertakes sustained engagement with policymakers, businesses, and communities-in addition to delivering transformative educational experiences to empower future leaders. The Nicholas Institute’s work is aligned with the which unites the university’s education, research, operations, and external engagement missions to address climate challenges.Occupational Summary:Duke is seeking a scholar and multidisciplinary innovator on identifying, informing, and developing policy solutions to plastic pollution. The Director will lead a new Plastics Policy Innovation Hub at the Nicholas Institute and support the campus-wide Plastic Pollution Working Group to develop transdisciplinary solutions to this global problem. The Policy Innovation Hub will inform and support governments and other relevant stakeholders to design policy solutions to the plastic pollution crisis and better evaluate how well policies are working – particularly toward meeting targets and commitments of an international treaty currently under negotiation.The hub will update and expand the Institute’s Plastics Policy Inventory to help governments (i) develop new policies to address plastic pollution, considering the equity implications and the distribution of benefits and costs, as well as monitoring frameworks to assess impact; (ii) monitor progress worldwide to implement an international plastics treaty, e.g. contributing data on policy responses to global models of plastic pollution, and tracking policies introduced by governments to comply with the treaty; and (iii) build a transdisciplinary field of knowledge about what new policies are needed and what is or isn’t working in existing plastics policy. The working group supported by this position represents researchers from 14 departments and divisions of the university and includes robust biology, toxicology, engineering, law, and policy components. Part of the position would be to support the evolution of the group to a center that facilities research on the impact of plastic on environmental and human health and translates that to policy.The Director will lead the Institute’s work on developing actionable policy solutions to the plastic pollution problem, as well as support the Plastic Pollution Working Group to evolve into an inter-disciplinary research hub at Duke. This position will report to the Nicholas Institute Director of the Oceans Program and will be a three-year term-limited position, with possibility for renewal based on satisfactory performance and ongoing financial support. A faculty appointment may also be available depending upon the candidate’s qualifications.Diversity, equity, and inclusion are core values of Duke University. We believe that the educational environment is enhanced when diverse groups of people with diverse ideas come together to learn. Applicants with a demonstrated commitment to issues of diversity in higher education are particularly encouraged to apply.Work Performed:The Director will lead the Institute’s Plastics Policy Innovation Hub to:

• Design and execute actionable and engaged research projects that support governments and non-state actors to develop and/or evaluate new policies or strategies to address plastic pollution;
• Maintain and expand the functionality of the Plastics Policy Inventory as a tool to help monitor progress worldwide to implement an international plastics treaty;
• Work with faculty and partners to help build a field of knowledge on what is and isn’t working in plastics policy;.
• Build partnerships with policymakers, businesses and communities to design and evaluate more effective plastic pollution policies;
• Enhance Duke’s leadership and reputation with priority stakeholders on research to inform plastic pollution policy solutions;
• Pursue funding to provide financial sustainability to the Hub.

The Director will also lead the University’s Plastic Pollution Working Group:

• Develop and implement a portfolio of transdisciplinary research projects to find solutions to the plastic pollution problem;
• Develop models and action plans to integrate biological/toxicological data into policy decision-making, building upon the group’s strength in biomedical and toxicological research;
• Work with the Group’s Executive Board of faculty to support the working group develop into a university-wide hub for interdisciplinary research, for example as a research center; and
• Provide intellectual leadership and coordination to convene the Group and foster collaboration across disciplines.

Required Qualifications at this Level Education/Training:Terminal degree (eg PhD, JD preferred) in a field related to design and evaluation of public policies to address plastic pollution. Can consider a Master’s degree with 7 years of progressive experience.Experience & Skills:Work requires the ability to plan and administer research programs and direct program activities, as well as coordinate a large group of scholars from multiple schools and disciplines.Preferred Skills:We are looking for candidates with most or all of the following:

• Demonstrated scholarship in addressing the problem of plastic pollution in general, and specifically in the design and/or evaluation of plastic pollution policies (as demonstrated through publications);
• Ability to engage with policymakers, businesses and communities to find actionable solutions to plastic pollution (as demonstrated through work experience, research project collaborations with non-academic partners);
• Fluency from biology and human health to environmental chemistry, law and policy in plastic pollution;
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills as demonstrated through past publications (reports, white papers, blogs, marketing communications).
• A high level of competence in speaking with faculty, students, senior university administrators, and external contacts in a range of contexts, and demonstrated ability to collaborate with faculty.
• Strong project management skills, a clear ability to plan and prioritize task, and attention to detail.
• Demonstrated strategic thinking and planning experience, including familiarity with benchmarking, developing strategic goals, timelines, and budgets, and achieving buy-in from stakeholders.
• Ability to raise funds and resources to support research projects.

Additional information on Plastic Innovation at the Nicholas Institute:The Nicholas Institute has a strong track record upon which to build a world-class Plastics Policy Innovation Hub, having developed analytical tools and insights since 2019 on government responses to plastic pollution. For example, in 2020 the Institute published the most comprehensive overview to date of the global landscape of public policy responses, developing the Plastics Policy Inventory: a publicly searchable database of plastic pollution policies, laws and regulations (n=888) enacted worldwide since 2000, with periodic updates, and accompanying summaries of trends and key emerging issues. Since that time, the Institute has:

• received in 2021 one of the first “Ocean Innovation Challenge” awards from the United Nations Development Program for creation of the Plastics Policy Inventory;
• published in 2022 an online library of studies of plastic pollution policy effectiveness;
• led in 2023 the plastic pollution chapter of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) review of national environmental policy in the United States;
• seconded in 2023 a staff member part-time to support plastic pollution policy development at the United States Government’s Council on Environmental Quality,
• hosted in 2024, together with Duke Law School’s Environmental Law and Policy Clinic, a workshop of experts in Washington,

D.C. to explore the state of the science on understanding the social costs of plastics and implications for policy design; and

• served (current) on the editorial board of one of the few scientific journals solely dedicated to plastic pollution.

More broadly at Duke, with the Institute’s support a campus-wide Plastic Pollution Working Group of over 60 faculty, staff and students was formed in 2020, from the university’s Business, Environment, Engineering, Law and Medical Schools, as well as the Institute. Working across disciplines on research related to solving the plastic pollution problem, this group constitutes a wide base of expertise to support targeted questions that may arise in conjunction with plastic pollution policies (e.g., the effect on human health of chemicals added to plastics, etc.). Throughout these efforts, Duke researchers have framed the inequitable harms across the lifecycle of plastics as a global environmental justice issue, and in September 2024 researchers from multiple schools received a grant from the National Science Foundation to investigate the health impacts of the chemicals added to plastics.Duke is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer committed to providing employment opportunity without regard to an individual’s age, color, disability, gender, gender expression, gender identity, genetic information, national origin, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, or veteran status.Duke aspires to create a community built on collaboration, innovation, creativity, and belonging. Our collective success depends on the robust exchange of ideas-an exchange that is best when the rich diversity of our perspectives, backgrounds, and experiences flourishes. To achieve this exchange, it is essential that all members of the community feel secure and welcome, that the contributions of all individuals are respected, and that all voices are heard. All members of our community have a responsibility to uphold these values.Essential Physical Job Functions: Certain jobs at Duke University and Duke University Health System may include essentialjob functions that require specific physical and/or mental abilities. Additional information and provision for requests for reasonable accommodation will be provided by each hiring department.

Expected salary

Location

Durham, NC

Job date

Wed, 18 Dec 2024 23:23:58 GMT

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