Position Summary

Search is seeking an early career researcher for a six-month fixed-term contribution to a multi-year regional project in the Middle East and North Africa region. The project aims to identify risks and meet the immediate and medium-term atrocity prevention and response needs of religious and ethnic minority (REM) populations in MENA. This position reports to the project’s Deputy Chief of Party.

In the past decade, the Internet and social media have been used to fuel interethnic or religious violence. In order to analyze the contribution of these communications to current landscapes of violence in the MENA region, the consultant will work to develop a statistical framework to examine influencers and leaders’ speech on social media and its correlation with the rise in violence towards a certain group in the four target countries. By building on existing academic studies that display how online speech in newspapers, blogs, public commentary, Facebook, and Twitter comments can be predictive of violence and armed conflict, the consultant will analyze whether there is any correlation between select social media narratives and the perpetuation of violence/atrocities. To the extent possible, this statistical analysis will consider gender, although the gender identity of individuals on social media may not always be apparent.

Deliverables

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Competencies

• Masters degree (PhD in progress preferred) in Peace and Conflict Studies, Development, Political Science, International Affairs, Social Sciences, or another relevant subject, or equivalent combination of education, experience, and training,
• 2-4 years performing significant research projects in statistical analysis, preferably directly relating to social media analysis
• Proficiency in R or Stata
• Experience in Early Warning Early Response (EWER) or work with ethnic and religious minorities is required
• Professional experience and knowledge of the Middle East and North Africa and deep familiarity with inter-ethnic and inter-religious dynamics in the MENA region
• Strong writing, editing, and research skills in English (Arabic is a strong advantage)
• Highly organized with attention to detail and accuracy
• Flexible, self-motivated, able to manage multiple tasks efficiently
• Ability to work effectively and multi-task in a team setting in a dynamic environment
• Strong written and verbal communication skills in English and Arabic.

To apply

To apply, interested candidates should send the following items to our employment portal here:

• A brief outline of the bidder’s proposed approach and methodology for this piece of work (1-2 pages max)
• A financial proposal which includes the number of days of work and daily rate
• Curriculum Vitae
• Names and contact information of 3 references