Student Assistant

About us

As an interdisciplinary centre of the University of Bern, the Centre for Development and Environment (CDE) has the mandate to promote and implement research, application, and teaching in the field of sustainable development and global change, in cooperation with academic partners and the Global North and South.

As part of this mandate, CDE offers a Bachelor Minor, a Master Minor, and a CAS in Sustainable Development, as well as an international graduate school. In addition, CDE advises all faculties of the university on the integration of the topic of sustainable development into their study programmes.

CDE runs activities with a regional or national focus in around 70 countries worldwide, with the aim of not only understanding human–environment systems, but also making them more viable for the future and shaping them in a sustainable manner, taking into account inevitable conflicts of interest.

This position is embedded in the TOGETHER goes local project, funded by the ENLIGHT Thematic Network (ETN). The project builds on the Erasmus+ TOGETHER simulation game - a digital serious game in which students take on stakeholder roles to tackle real-world sustainability challenges in an interdisciplinary setting. TOGETHER goes local extends this work by co-creating place-based game modules with local actors such as municipalities and regional partners, reflecting sustainability challenges specific to partner regions. The project also supports the institutional integration of game-based learning in higher education and fosters a community of practice for long-term collaboration and knowledge exchange.

Tasks

Organizational, administrative, and content support for the project:

• Organise and coordinate local testing sessions of the TOGETHER game in university courses.
• Support the planning, logistics, communication, and documentation of the ETN dissemination conference in Bern.
• Document use cases, learning designs, and best practices for internal use and sharing within the ENLIGHT network.
• Collaboration on the further development of game content for the TOGETHER game and other games used in teaching at CDE (e.g., development of roles, scenarios, decision options, and feedback mechanisms)
• Support in creating project and dissemination materials (e.g., flyers, presentations, website or social media content)

Requirements

• Current enrolment in a bachelor's or master's degree program in sustainable development, sustainability transformations, or related sciences at a Swiss university
• Excellent written and oral communication skills in English (required); proficiency in German is an asset, particularly for engagement with local stakeholders and partners.
• Excellent organizational skills to assist in the planning and implementation of the Swiss Dissemination Conference (e.g., participant management, logistics, communication)
• Interest in sustainable development and education for sustainable development (ESD), as well as an affinity for game-based learning, serious games, or innovative teaching/learning formats (ideally, initial experience or strong interest in this area)
• Creativity and conceptual thinking to contribute to the further development of game content and teaching materials
• Reliable and precise working style; ability to organize work independently and flexibly