Call for Expressions of Interest - CAROLINE post-doc funding

Disability Federation of Ireland (DFI) and the Centre for Disability Law and Policy at NUI Galway (CDLP) are seeking expressions of interest from prospective Postdoctoral Research Fellows. DFI and the CDLP will support one prospective fellow to apply for CAROLINE post-doc funding, which would fund a two-year project to compile an audit of the state of disability law and policy in Ireland.

Overall Purpose

As Ireland is expected to ratify the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities before the end of 2016, DFI and the CDLP believe the time is right for an audit that will provide an overview of disability law and policy in Ireland in the last 20 years, since the Report of the Commission on the Status of People with Disabilities, ‘A Strategy for Equality’ in 1996. This will, among other things, allow for a review of gaps in the law, and recommendations for changes. The audit will support knowledge in terms of identifying and exploring the policy and legal changes that will be required to progressively realise the rights set out in the UN CRPD.

Key objectives of Audit:

Review Irish law, policy and practice to identify gaps in the protection of the rights of people with disabilities with particular focus on the UN CRPD.

Make recommendations under each thematic area for government action to strengthen these rights that will assist in the realisation of the CRPD rights and freedoms, taking account of existing jurisprudence and practice, including making proposals for relevant reform.

Duties

If successful in obtaining CAROLINE funding, the Fellow will be expected to coordinate the project, and duties will include research, editing, peer-review, and working with an advisory group. In particular the position will involve the following:

• Coordinating a group of experts to write specific chapters for the audit report
• Working with an advisory group to ensure the audit is peer reviewed and covers the thematic areas required.
• Providing scoping research in each thematic area.
• Editing chapters of the final audit report and liaising with authors.

Requirements

Applicants must have either a Ph.D in the area of disability law or policy awarded within the past 5 years, or equivalent (4 or more years) research experience. Experience in human rights monitoring and/or UN shadow reporting is preferred. As this is a Marie Curie position, applicants must meet the residency requirements, and must have spent no more than 12 months cumulatively in Ireland in the past three years. The successful applicant will work with DFI and the CDLP to apply for CAROLINE funding for this project, and will take up the position if the funding application is successful. For more information about CAROLINE post-docs, please see here.