Careers

Description:

The Center for Human and Planetary Health, launched in October 2024, is the newest Center hosted at the Woods Institute, in close collaboration with the Center for Innovation in Global Health at the Stanford School of Medicine. The Center advances research, solutions and education to improve health and sustainability. The Center’s lead contamination research initiative, now called Project Unleaded, is a critical part of the new Center. Project Unleaded’s efforts began in 2020 and have spanned 6 countries with 7 external partners. Project Unleaded prioritizes policy-relevant research and deep engagement with local partners in affected countries to achieve lasting change. Project Unleaded’s mission is to create a healthier world by addressing lead poisoning at the source. Research priorities center around 3 goals:

1. To identify critical lead exposure sources linked with the human lead burden
2. To develop, test and scale-up interventions to eliminate sources of lead
3. To advance lead detection techniques

Project Unleaded is seeking a flexible, collaborative interdisciplinary scientist who can work both independently and as part of a team of researchers, government partners, and NGOs. The ideal candidate is an interdisciplinary global environmental health researcher with experience spanning supply chain investigation, environmental or market-based sampling and behavior or mixed-methods research. The Interdisciplinary Researcher will conduct and support studies examining lead contamination in spices and other consumer products - including identifying and coordinating with partners, sampling across supply chain nodes, tracking and documenting results and mapping how and why populations use products with elevated lead content. The Interdisciplinary Researcher will use those findings to design and recommend interventions to reduce lead exposure. The individual should be comfortable moving between lab-adjacent sampling work and qualitative field research in diverse contexts including, but not limited to South and Central Asia and North Africa. 

Your Responsibilities will include:  

• Develop and adapt research protocols for cohort, supply chain, and source identification studies. Design, recommend, and help oversee implementation of survey instruments and sampling strategies; ensure compliance with IRB, data governance, and international regulatory standards.
• Conduct and coordinate international fieldwork, including spice and product sampling and incentive mapping across supply chains through surveys, sampling, structured field interviews and observation.
• Develop recommendations to translate research findings into actionable policy and support implementation of evidence-based interventions to reduce lead exposure.
• With support from the Project Unleaded Research and Program Manager, coordinate scientific operations, including field logistics, procurement, staffing, training, and quality assurance across international study sites.
• Develop and refine survey instruments and accompanying interviewer guides to ensure consistent, high-quality data collection across field sites and enumerator teams.
• Maintain rigorous quality tracking and chain of custody documentation for all samples collected across supply chain and field sites, coordinating with analytical laboratories to ensure sample integrity from collection through analysis.
• Engage with quantitative findings from sampling, survey and supply chain data to support interpretation and reporting of results      
• Contribute to grant writing, fundraising, and donor reporting activities to support the long-term sustainability of the research portfolio.
• Support preparation of peer-reviewed publications, technical reports, and public communication materials for both technical and non-technical audiences.

Skills/Eligibility:

The ideal candidate is highly organized, intellectually curious, and has a passion for translating science into measurable global impact. The person thrives in a fast-paced, collaborative, interdisciplinary and dynamic environment where priorities can shift in order to support the broader team’s goals. The ideal candidate has experience conducting field-based social science research and is comfortable working across disciplines to address complex public health and environmental challenges. Experience conducting research in South Asia is desirable. The successful candidate will be willing to work flexible hours to accommodate partner time zones, and eager to travel internationally. The position is based on Stanford’s campus, and reports to the Director of Project Unleaded.  

Minimum Education and Experience

Graduate degree in an applicable social science related field and five years of applicable experience, or combination of education and relevant –experience in an applicable social science.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

• Expert level knowledge and skills in field of science related to research project.

• General computer skills and ability to quickly learn and master computer programs.

• Strong analytical skills and excellent judgment.

• Ability to work under deadlines with general guidance.

• Excellent organizational skills and demonstrated ability to complete detailed work accurately.

• Demonstrated oral and written communication skills.

• Ability to work with human study participants.

• Supervisory skills.
  
  

In addition, our preferred qualifications include: 

• Master’s or PhD in a relevant field - including but not limited to environmental or global health, social sciences, or public policy - or equivalent combination of education and field research experience.     
• Experience conducting fieldwork in international or resource-limited settings     
• Demonstrated experience designing and implementing survey instruments and interviewer guides, and conducting structured or semi-structured interviews - including with households, community members, vendors, or supply chain actors
• Experience with environmental or product sampling protocols, including quality tracking, chain of custody documentation, and coordination with analytical laboratories
• Ability to work independently across complex, multi-site research contexts with limited on-the-ground supervision
• Comfort with extended international travel (trips of 2–6 weeks) 
• Strong organizational and scientific communication skills, including experience contributing to peer-reviewed publications or technical reports
• Comfortable navigating both rigorous research environments and the practical realities of working with government, NGO, and community partners in low-resource settings. 

• Familiarity with lead contamination, heavy metals, or environmental exposure science

• Experience with supply chain research

• Familiarity with IRB processes and international research ethics standards

• Basic data visualization and summarization skills

• Proficiency in a relevant language (Urdu, Hindi, Nepali, Bangla, or others depending on country scope)

• Experience contributing to grant writing or donor reporting