Director, Research Development

Director Of Research Development

The Climate Systems Engineering initiative (CSEi) is a new University-wide research effort seeded in the Physical Sciences Division (PSD) and part of a larger climate and energy focus at the University of Chicago, anchored in the Institute for Climate and Sustainable Growth. CSEi addresses the science, engineering, and policy of new technologies to reduce or reverse the harms from accumulated greenhouse gasses, including open-systems carbon removal, solar geoengineering, and local interventions to slow the melting of glaciers. The initiative spans engineering, physical and biological sciences, social sciences, humanistic approaches, behavioral science, law, policy and ethics, bringing together a collaborative group of faculty and researchers and leveraging the global network and partnerships of the University.

The Climate Systems Engineering initiative seeks an experienced Director of Research Development to provide technical and intellectual leadership to the suite of CSEi research activities across its focal areas of open-systems carbon removal, sunlight reflection methods and local interventions to prevent glacial melting. Reporting to the Executive Director, the role will work closely with founding Faculty Director David Keith and faculty leadership to provide direction for, and ensure the rigor and quality of, CSEi's portfolio of research projects. The Director of Research Development will negotiate and supervise engineering contracts, will recruit at least one junior engineer, and will work with researchers across campus to deliver on CSEi's research priorities and maximize collective impact.

Responsibilities include managing CSEi-funded research projects, developing relationships and communication strategies to encourage proposal submission, structuring proposal review, monitoring project budgets, engaging in frequent coordination between CSEi leadership and researchers, assisting researchers in managing complex external contracts, supporting researchers in raising external funding, developing synergies among projects, helping researchers to develop external collaborations, managing grant / funding applications, coordinating complex research contracts, managing in-house engineers and research staff, coordinating with researchers across UChicago, managing the production of articles, reports and manuscripts, collaborating with the communications team, working with external stakeholders, providing mentoring and support for students, ensuring compliance with institutional, state, and federal regulatory policies, managing research professionals and support staff, developing goals and operating procedures, and performing other related work as needed.

Minimum qualifications include a college or university degree in a related field and 7+ years of work experience in a related job discipline. Preferred qualifications include a PhD in climate science, engineering, or a related field, knowledge and skills developed through 7+ years of work experience managing engineering and applied research tasks, lead complex, interdisciplinary research programs, formulate long-term research strategies, build and manage research programs, deep knowledge of climate and engineering, modeling, risk assessment, and / or climate intervention technologies, strong understanding of climate governance and the policy landscape, capacity to navigate uncertainty and drive innovation, excellent written, verbal, and visual communication skills, facilitate collaboration across disciplines, demonstrated sensitivity to the ethical, legal, and social implications of emerging climate technologies, experience with stakeholder engagement, track record of securing and managing research grants, strong commitment to scientific rigor, transparency, reproducibility, and high standards of academic and professional ethics, excellent management skills, and excellent computer skills.