Research Assistant, Specified Purpose Contract, School of Business

Maynooth University is committed to a strategy in which the primary University goals of excellent research and scholarship and outstanding education are interlinked and equally valued.

We are seeking a Research Assistant to join the project “Duck-FEED: Duckweed as a novel, sustainable source of protein for Ireland”, which is funded by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Ireland”. The Duck-Feed project, that brings together researchers from Maynooth University (MU), Technological University Dublin (TUD), Teagasc, and University College Cork (UCC). The central objective of the Duck-Feed project are to develop improved, small scale outdoor cultivation systems, develop Lemna growth on farm waste-streams, optimise protein extraction technology, assess feed quality, economic and environmental viability, and public acceptance of duckweed as a native, protein-rich feedstock.

We seek to appoint a Research Assistant for a 13-month period, with the objective to support the Primary Investigator and the co-applicants in conducting a Political, Economic, Social, and Technological (PEST) analysis to evaluate opportunities and challenges for future adoption and marketing of the innovative and environment-friendly value chain from Duckweed and develop a Decisions Support Tool (DST). Specifically, the candidate will review international knowledge to conduct the Political, Economic and Technological assessment while Social assessment will be conducted by a questionnaire-based consumer study.