For our new NWO Cooperation Indonesia - Netherlands Merian Fund project 'The Urban-Ocean Nexus: Towards Developing Inclusive, Resilient, and Sustainable Blue Economy in Indonesia and the Netherlands' at the International Development Studies (IDS) section of Human Geography and Spatial Planning Department, we are seeking a postdoctoral researcher.

The blue economy is increasingly vital for maritime countries such as Indonesia and the Netherlands. The ocean supports diverse functions, including biodiversity conservation, carbon sink, energy production, fisheries, aquaculture, transportation, and tourism. Proponents emphasize the benefits of a diversified blue economy for achieving multiple Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Critics, however, argue that the blue economy leads to new territorial and resource conflicts, displacements of coastal communities, and ecosystem degradation due to increased infrastructure development. Both arguments overlook that maritime countries like Indonesia and the Netherlands are urbanizing, with blue economy development intricately linked to urbanization processes, co-shaping urban and blue frontiers in coastal and offshore spaces.

As urbanization expands the seaward frontier of infrastructure development and blue economy development causes landward flows of materials and people, this project conceptualizes a novel 'urban-ocean' nexus to assess the impacts of urban and blue frontier development and to align marine spatial planning with urban planning in coastal and offshore areas. Specifically, the project applies this urban-ocean nexus to the coastal and offshore areas of the Makassar Strait in Kalimantan, Indonesia, and the North Sea off the Netherlands’ coast. The overall objectives of the project include: (1) to map and assess seaward and landward impacts of urban and blue infrastructure development on coastal and marine environments and territories; (2) to develop and apply a practical model to address the impacts and establish synergies between marine spatial planning and urban planning; and (3) to create a platform for co-creation and exchange of knowledge and experiences between researchers, students, and practitioners to design desirable urban and ocean governance arrangements. Through an inter-and-transdisciplinary approach and based on a well-established Indonesian-Dutch research consortium, this project contributes to multiple SDGs while advancing the Indonesian Vision 2045 and Blue Economy Roadmaps of Indonesia and the Netherlands.

Within this Urban-Ocean Nexus project, the postdoctoral researcher will lead a work package on 'social impacts of the urban-blue frontier expansion in Indonesia and the Netherlands'. The researcher will focus on social inclusions and the changing relationship between water and society due to urban-blue frontier expansion. Central questions include: how do relations between water and society change, and how can we frame an instrumental understanding of water vis-à-vis the rights of nature? Furthermore, how does such an emic, cultural understanding of water and vegetation vary among different social groups, and how should they be included in outlining new governance forms to establish alternative visions of the blue economy? The researcher is expected to excel within the large international research consortium, both collaboratively and independently, while mentoring the project’s PhD researcher and master students involved in the project. Specific tasks include:

• Conducting field research in collaboration with other researchers in Indonesia and the Netherlands.
• Actively organizing meetings at international conferences, symposiums, and workshops to set the research agenda with broader groups of colleagues.
• Publishing research results in international academic journals.
• Engaging in impact activities to expand networks of societal partners, expose research to a wider public, and embed research results in policy-making and advocacy activities.
• Conceiving new research proposals.
• Teaching relevant master and bachelor courses and supervising student thesis projects at the IDS section (max. 10% of the appointment).