Sustainable mobility interventions, travel behaviour, and active mobility
The Mobility, Transport and Territory Studies Group (GEMOTT) at the Department of Geography, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), invites expressions of interest from outstanding postdoctoral candidates wishing to co-develop a proposal for the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Postdoctoral Fellowships 2026 call.
We welcome applicants interested in sustainable mobility, urban change, travel behaviour, and active mobility, particularly where these intersect with questions of public acceptability, lived experience, spatial inequality, and everyday environments. Candidates should see the thematic lines below as entry points for proposal development rather than fixed project briefs. We are especially interested in applicants who can bring an original research vision that builds on the expertise, datasets, and ongoing projects of GEMOTT.
GEMOTT offers an interdisciplinary research environment at the intersection of geography, urban studies, mobility research, and sustainability transitions. The group is based in one of Spain’s leading geography departments and is closely linked to ICTA-UAB, providing a strong international and interdisciplinary setting for postdoctoral research.
Please note that only one candidate will be selected to receive full support for the 2026 MSCA-PF call.
Topic 1: Public acceptability, backlash, and political responses to sustainable mobility interventions
This thematic line welcomes proposals examining how urban mobility interventions become publicly contested, resisted, accepted, or normalised over time. Relevant proposals may address the social and political dynamics surrounding measures such as superblocks, school streets, cycling infrastructure, pedestrianisation, low-traffic neighbourhoods, low-emission zones, or other built environment-based sustainable mobility interventions.
Particularly welcome are projects exploring issues such as public backlash, changing attitudes before and after implementation, political responses to contestation, spatial differences in support and opposition, or the gap between vocal resistance and broader public opinion.
Expected methods: mixed-method or comparative designs combining survey research, interviews, focus groups, quasi-experimental approaches, electoral or attitudinal analysis, discourse or media analysis, and GIS-based spatial analysis.
This line will benefit from the intellectual and empirical environment created by ATRAPA, GEMOTT’s ERC-funded project on the acceptability and opposition to built environment-based sustainable travel interventions.
Topic 2: Travel dissonance, travel satisfaction, and adaptation to sustainable transport transitions
This thematic line welcomes proposals focused on how individuals and households experience and adapt to changing transport systems and sustainability-oriented mobility policies. Relevant topics include travel dissonance, travel satisfaction, behavioural adaptation, perceived accessibility, mobility-related wellbeing, and the uneven effects of sustainable transport transitions across social groups, neighbourhoods, or metropolitan contexts.
We are particularly interested in proposals that explore the relationship between everyday travel practices and broader processes of urban or transport transition, including how constraints, preferences, and life circumstances shape people’s capacity to adjust to change.
Expected methods: travel surveys, longitudinal or panel designs, quantitative modelling, GIS-based accessibility measures, activity-travel analysis, qualitative interviews, and mixed-method approaches linking behavioural and experiential dimensions of mobility.
This line will be supported by the research environment of the STRADI project, an Agencia Estatal de Investigación-funded project focused on sustainable transport policies, travel dissonance, and travel satisfaction on metropolitan and suburban environments.
Topic 3: Children’s and youth active mobility through participatory GIS and mobility tracking
This thematic line welcomes proposals centred on children’s and young people’s active mobility and the role of everyday environments in shaping autonomy, wellbeing, school travel, walking, cycling, and independent mobility. Particularly relevant are projects exploring how children and adolescents experience urban space, how they perceive barriers and opportunities for active travel, and how inequalities in the built environment affect mobility and access.
We are especially interested in proposals that combine child-centred perspectives with innovative spatial and behavioural methods, generating evidence that can inform mobility planning, healthy urban environments, and more inclusive transport policies.
Expected methods: participatory GIS, map-based approaches, GPS or app-based tracking, school route analysis, activity space methods, travel diaries, qualitative or participatory research with children and families, and mixed-method designs combining spatial and experiential evidence.
This line will connect with the ACTIVATE project, a DUT funded project focusing on active travel, everyday mobility, and socio-spatial inequalities, offering a strong platform for postdoctoral work on child- and youth-centred mobility research.
What the selected candidate will receive
The selected candidate will receive close support in shaping and writing a competitive MSCA-PF proposal in collaboration with GEMOTT. This includes feedback on project framing, fit with the call, methodological design, training and knowledge-transfer dimensions, and overall proposal structure.
The proposal will be developed within an active and supportive research environment linked to ongoing projects in sustainable mobility, urban change, and active travel. GEMOTT brings substantial experience in competitive research funding and postdoctoral mentoring.
Candidates will also benefit from a highly collaborative interdisciplinary environment with expertise in quantitative spatial analysis, GIS, survey design, participatory methods, mixed-method research, and policy-oriented mobility studies, as well as from the wider research ecosystem of UAB and ICTA-UAB.
Because only one candidate will be fully supported in this call, the selected applicant will receive focused mentoring and close feedback throughout the proposal-development process.
Candidate profile
- Hold a strong academic record relative to career stage
- Have a clear postdoctoral research vision
- Can demonstrate thematic fit with one of the lines above, or bring complementary expertise
- Are interested in developing an ambitious and internationally competitive project in collaboration with GEMOTT
As per MSCA-PF rules, applicants must also fulfil the eligibility conditions of the 2026 call, including the mobility rule and experience requirements.
See full information:
EURAXESS EoI Call: https://euraxess.ec.europa.eu/jobs/hosting/msca-pf-uab-acceptability-and-impacts-sustainable-mobili…
How to apply
Interested candidates should send the following documents (in English) by 30 April, 2026:
- Curriculum Vitae, highlighting publications, projects, and awards
- Research Statement / Project Abstract max. [1-2] pages outlining your research idea.
- Cover Letter explaining your motivation and how your profile fits the group.
- Letter of Recommendation or names and contacts of at least two references.
- A signed letter certifying that you comply with the MSCA elegibility criteria
Subject line: MSCA-PF-2026-EoI_[Candidate Surname_Name]
Applications and informal enquiries to:
Oriol Marquet
Oriol.Marquet@uab.cat
and please CC Kasia Tusiewicz (kasia.tusiewicz@uab.cat)
Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.
