Senior/ Research Fellow in Energy Transitions and Justice

Offer Description

Organisation: Cranfield University

Faculty or Department: Faculty of Engineering and Applied Sciences

Based at: Cranfield Campus, Cranfield, Bedfordshire

Hours of work: 37 hours per week, normally worked Monday to Friday. Flexible working will be considered.

Contract type: Fixed term contract

Fixed Term Period: For 30 months

Salary: Research Fellow – Full time starting salary is normally in the range of £37,337 to £44,906 per annum. Senior Research Fellow – Full time starting salary is normally in the range of £48,039 per annum

Apply by: 11/02/2026

Role Description

About the Role

You will be advancing the development and application of socio-technical systems thinking and justice principles to ensure the benefits and disbenefits of hydrogen transition are borne fairly. You will be joining the Global Hydrogen Production Technologies (HyPT) Center, which aims to develop net‑zero and responsible hydrogen pathways across the UK, USA, Canada and Australia. You will become a member of the cross‑cutting policies, economics and market thrust as well as the UK team. You will lead social aspects of hydrogen infrastructure development and justice work streams across the four jurisdictions. You will be expected to evaluate incumbent governance regimes, including formal laws and regulations, against principles of flexibility and learning with a view to establish a set of adaptive governance principles and identify best practices. Analysing how the hydrogen transition may impact vulnerable or indigenous peoples, and whether it can undo past injustices, is a key responsibility. You will work and coordinate this strand of work with local partners across the four jurisdictions and support Cranfield’s role in embedding multidisciplinary collaboration between technical and social science teams.

About You

Doctoral-level education in governance of energy systems, institutional perspectives on energy transitions, socio‑technical perspectives on energy change, energy justice, or energy policy and regulation. Excellent communication skills and expertise in social science research methods and development of new concepts and frameworks are required. For a Senior Research Fellow level, demonstrated ability to win and deliver research grants or manage research teams is essential.

About Us

Cranfield is a specialist postgraduate university with world‑class expertise, large‑scale facilities and industry partnerships that create leaders in technology and management globally. Our expertise spans Automotive, Energy and Photonics, covering motorsport engineering, autonomous vehicles, battery technologies, renewable energy development, and optical sensing research.

Our Values and Commitments

Cranfield’s shared values underpin everything we do: Ambition, Impact, Respect and Community. We are a Disability Confident Employer and proud members of the Stonewall Diversity Champions Programme. We are committed to flexible working options and have been ranked in the Top 30 family‑friendly employers in the UK.

Working Arrangements

Our Working Arrangements Framework allows staff to combine on‑site and remote working where roles allow, balancing the needs of our community of staff, students, clients and partners.

How to apply

For an informal discussion about this opportunity, please contact Prof Nazmiye Ozkan, Chair in Sustainable Energy Transitions, on 01234 45 7296 or n.ozkan@cranfield.ac.uk.

Closing date for receipt of applications: 11 February 2026

Please note that we reserve the right to close this advert prior to the stated closing date should we receive sufficient numbers of applications. We encourage you to complete and submit your application as soon as possible.