Experts/Authors on Gen Z Civic and Political participation (remote) (Paris, France) contract

Parent Sector : Social and Human Sciences Sector (SHS)

Duty Station: Paris

Job Family: Social and Human Sciences

Type of contract : Non Staff

Duration of contract : From 1 to 6 months

Recruitment open to : External candidates

Application Deadline (Midnight Paris Time) : 14-APR-2025

UNESCO Core Values: Commitment to the Organization, Integrity, Respect for Diversity, Professionalism

PROJECT OVERVIEW

The civic and political participation of Gen Z young people reflects the needs and aspirations of this generation of young people. It also reveals the impact they want to make in society. Understanding what motivates their participation can help grasp better this generation and how they see themselves in their societies. It is also a necessary step to better engage with them as they redefine societies. Ultimately, this builds the foundation for bringing relevant solutions to today’s challenges, with the contributions and ideas of young people.

“In the minds of Gen Z: Understanding today’s citizens” is a new research project by UNESCO to explore the phenomena informing Gen Z’ s civic and political participation. The project is implemented with the guidance of an Expert Group composed of eight scholars from all UNESCO regions. The project will produce a global study that explores the research question: “What motivates and affects the civic and political actions of Gen Z and how?”. The study will also explore two related sub-questions:  

•How can we best understand the variety of civic and political aspirations, values and actions of young people who constitute Gen Z?
•How are members of Gen Z variously acting politically? Are we seeing evidence of ‘new’ kinds of politics?

The study will include a landscape analysis to explore the central research question and sub-questions, through the lens of the following five major categories  that may affect Gen Z civic and political actions: (i) Identities; (ii) Experiences; (iii) Relationships; (iv) Action; (v)Context. It is understood that these five categories are interconnected. Analysis through each of these categories may shed light as to how the others motivate Gen Z civic and political engagement. It may also allow showcase how each of these categories interconnect.

In the context of the project, UNESCO will recruit two experts to develop the Landscape analysis with the following parameters: 

Substantive scope: the landscape analysis is expected to provide a rigorous global analysis of the relevant factors that inform civic and political choices of Gen Z young people, through each of the project’s five lenses (Identities; Experiences; Relationships; Action; Context). The analysis may also explain how each lens may intersect or co-relate with the other lenses in informing civic and political choices of Gen Z. The analysis is also expected to particularly highlight expressions of Gen Z in relation to the factors informing their civic and political choices. 

Temporal scope:

•The analysis must focus on Gen Z young people. This imposes a temporal scope that covers the past five to seven years at the most (i.e. between 2017 and 2024). Empirical data (if any) used in the analysis and that relate directly to Gen Z young people’s experiences must have been collected within this timeframe.

•Data or literature references relevant to ontology, theory, concepts, historical or geographical contextualization or discussion that does not directly relate to Gen Z young people’s experiences may extend beyond that timeframe and do not need to adhere to the temporal scope indicated above.  

Data

This analysis should be informed by:

oExisting literature and secondary data about Gen Z that is available globally;
oMedia sources, posts and material on or by Gen Z young people in the past 5 to 10 years;
oPublicly available expressions by Gen Z young people, accessed through social media sites or other outlets and given due recognition.
 

No plagiarized or self-plagiarized material should be included. Authors must provide a proper credit or citation to the original work of the third parties that may be used in the Landscape analysis.
 

ASSIGNMENT

Under the overall authority of the Assistant Director-General for Social and Human Sciences,

the overall guidance of the Chief of the Youth Section and the immediate supervision of the Associate Programme Specialist at the UNESCO Headquarters,  two experts will collaborate to complete the Landscape Analysis required by the project. The incumbents shall:

• Undertake state-of-the-art research, including the research available in the project’s Framing Document, to inform the Analysis
• Identify possible additional contributors to the Analysis, particularly options to engage Gen Z young people
• Write the full manuscript of the Analysis, according to UNESCO publication guidelines (to be provided by UNESCO), in a good standard English, and in a timely manner. Ensure a first draft (approx. 75 standard pages, without annexes), relevant revisions, as well as a final draft (same length) that is considered satisfactory by UNESCO, integrating UNESCO and peer review inputs.
• Advise on possible peer reviewers.
• Ensure that the research and final publication have the highest standards and rigor of scientific and academic publications published by peer-reviewed journals. 

Education
•PhD degree in social and political sciences, humanities, youth development or relevant field. 

Work experience 
•A minimum of 5 years of work experience in research on youth political and civic participation, of which a minimum 1 year on or around young people from Generation Z 
•Proven knowledge of the central thematic fields of the project.
•Record of high-quality scholarly research, including publications in peer-reviewed journals or of comparable quality.

Skills and Competencies
•Proven conceptual and analytical skills 
•Excellent research skills 
•Excellent knowledge of concepts relevant to youth, politics and civics
•Ability to work with peers and in a multicultural environment
•Capacity to work independently and in a timely manner
•Understanding and adherence to the UN principles. 

 Languages: Fluency in written and spoken English.

DESIRABLE QUALIFICATIONS
•At least 2 high-quality scholar publications, in the past 5 years, on Gen Z civic and political participation
•Proven knowledge of specific thematic categories relevant to the project (e.g. digital technologies; social movements; climate action and relation to nature; citizenship; empathy; identity-building; mental health)  
•University affiliation and teaching experience
•Familiarity with the UN system, especially with UNESCO, considered an advantage. 
•Knowledge of French or Spanish 
 

Interested candidates should complete the online application and submit as a single PDF document in the “Employment History Form” section the following documents:

•UNESCO Employment History Form, accompanied by a list of past works such as articles, reports or publications authored or co-authored, with hyperlinks to access such works if they are available online.
•A Technical Proposal comprising 1) Statement indicating how the candidate’s qualifications and experience make them suitable for the assignment 2) Approach (methodology and detailed workplan) the candidate would adopt to carry out the assignment (maximum 4 pages)
•A Financial Proposal indicating the monthly rate in USD to be charged for the assignment.

Applications submitted without all the requested documents will not be considered.

Assessment:
•Only applications providing the information requested in the application procedure will be considered.
•Evaluation of qualified applicants may include an assessment exercise and a competency-based interview.