KOTA KITA FOUNDATION JOB VACANCIES 2025
Terms of Reference
RESEARCHER: HEAT-RESILIENT URBAN HOUSING
Be-Housing Project Semarang
- Employment Position : Researcher for Heat-Resilient Urban Housing (Be-Housing Project Semarang)
- Employment Type : 12-month initial contract, with potential extension
- Project Name : Beyond Housing Types: Comparative Study of Urban Poor Settlements for Urban Heat Adaptation and Inclusive Urban Future (Semarang Case Study)
- Period of Engagement : August 2025 – July 2026
- Location : Semarang / Surakarta (with possible travel to other cities)
- Language Required : Fluent in English and Indonesian, knowledge of Javanese is highly preferable
- Application Deadline : 8 August 2025
Kota Kita is looking for passionate, impact-driven, creative, yet analytical urbanists to join our team! We are looking for those who genuinely want to make our cities a better place—more inclusive and sustainable for all. We seek a Lead Researcher to join our team and produce knowledge focusing on urban heat adaptation as part of our effort to make our cities more equitable, inclusive, and climate-resilient!
ABOUT KOTA KITA
Kota Kita is a non-profit organization based in the Indonesian city of Surakarta with expertise in urban planning and citizen participation in the design and development of cities. We bridge the dialogues between governments and their constituencies by facilitating citizen participation and collaboration, influencing urban policies, encouraging open access to information, and providing civic education to empower urban citizens. KK’s projects focus on governance, inclusivity, and climate change resilience. We use a co-creation design process that cultivates the active participation of underprivileged and marginalized communities in improving their living spaces. We believe that by facilitating a stronger relationship between communities and spaces, communities will gain a stronger sense of belonging to the space and strengthen their collective agency to bring about change.
In our commitment to strengthening and expanding our practice in climate adaptation and mitigation through research and our role in advocacy, we are currently undertaking several research projects focusing on urban heat adaptation in settlement areas, regenerative built environment, youth education for climate resilience advocacy, risk-informed planning, and disaster risk management.
ABOUT THE PROGRAM
Kota Kita team is seeking a Researcher for Heat-Resilient Urban Housing who will primarily support the implementation of the ongoing project, “Be-Housing (Beyond Housing Types): Comparative Study of Urban Poor Settlements for Urban Heat Adaptation and Inclusive Urban Future in South East Asian Cities, focusing on Semarang Case Study. The research investigates how different housing forms (kampung kota, kampung susun, and public rental flats) enable or hinder low-income communities’ capacity to adapt to climate risk (particularly urban heat). The research program is a collaborative research between Rujak Center for Urban Studies, Kota Kita, Arkom Indonesia, and University Kebangsaan Malaysia, and will be implemented in Indonesia (Jakarta, Surabaya, Semarang) and Malaysia (Selangor).
Kota Kita is leading the research implementation and coordinating multi-stakeholder engagement in Semarang, looking at at least two housing typologies: kampung kota and public rental flats. Key activities will be primarily centered around the research activities (site visits and participatory data collection through surveys, interviews, and co-design workshops, analysis, and dissemination). Research activities are carried out in a collaborative manner, building and strengthening engagement with various communities and stakeholders through interviews, observations, focus group discussions, and high-level multi-stakeholder meetings. Furthermore, research activities will also include developing communications strategies as well as disseminating findings through comprehensive reports, policy briefs, academic publications, and a national-scale dissemination event to promote knowledge-sharing.
ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
Our team is seeking a Researcher for Heat-Resilient Urban Housing to support and operate our research activities in Semarang. The researcher will primarily be involved in the Be-Housing project, while also being given the opportunity to be involved in other projects at Kota Kita, particularly on the urban resilience discourse. The researcher will need to be a multi-tasker with the ability to learn new skills and processes on the go; to be able to arrange a collaborative working process with various stakeholders; to be able to demonstrate sharp analytical skills; and to be able to communicate effectively with different audiences.
The key responsibilities of the researcher will be:
- Support the coordination and implementation of the Be-Housing project;
- Implement on-ground research activities in Semarang:
- Contributing to the research design (elaborating qualitative and quantitative methods)
- Conducting site visits and data collection activities (surveys, interviews, FGDs with local communities)
- Analysing qualitative and quantitative data and consolidating research findings
- Documenting the project activities, including minutes of meetings, photography, and any archives
- Assisting in the completion of reports and any deliverables output (reports, policy briefs, academic publications)
- Establish close engagements with our local partners, governments, local community, and other stakeholders, especially in Semarang;
- Assist the stakeholder engagement process and support knowledge dissemination efforts.
WHAT WE OFFER
- The opportunity to work with an interdisciplinary team of passionate urban changemakers.
- The opportunity to work with diverse partners from international organizations, research institutions, local governments, academics, and other related stakeholders in a collaborative and innovative work culture.
- Knowledge of working across various urban stakeholders.
- A competitive fee.
- A high degree of responsibility but also autonomy.
QUALIFICATION
The candidate should be:
- A minimum of a Bachelor’s degree in urban planning/design or architecture.
- A minimum of 2 years of experience in urban planning/design or housing issues in urban context.
- Having familiarity with Semarang or having previous project experience in Semarang is highly preferable.
- Because we work with a wide range of partners locally and internationally, the ideal candidate is bilingual in English and Indonesian. Being able to speak the Java language is also highly preferable.
- Willing to travel to Semarang for the duration of the contract.
COMPETENCIES
We would love to work with you if you have experience in one or more of these themes (and are extremely passionate about them):
- Urban planning/urban development
- Climate change and urban resilience
- Heat-adaptation in urban housing
- Green building, alternative building materials, bio-based building materials
- Eco-friendly technology
- Green infrastructure
- Collaborative and participatory design
- Community development
- Gender equality, disability, and social inclusion (GEDSI)
And if you’re good at:
- Research and data analysis
- Working with different stakeholders: government, communities, and CSOs
- Stakeholder engagement/community facilitation
- Presentation skills and publication design
- Public campaign and advocacy
We would be thrilled if you could use one or more of these:
- GIS software (ArcGIS/QGIS/Google Earth Engine or equivalent)
- Design tools (Adobe Suite (InDesign, Illustrator, Photoshop), CorelDRAW, SketchUp, or equivalent.
- Data analysis tools: MS Excel / Google Sheets / NVIVO
- Microsoft Office: Word/Excel/PowerPoint/Others
- Other design tools: Canva/Others
- If you can do more or have more tricks up your sleeve, even better!
Location
Our office is primarily based in Surakarta, Indonesia, but currently operates in many cities. This position requires the applicant to be based in Surakarta and frequently travel to the site projects in Semarang, with possible visits to other cities.
APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS
To apply for this position, you must fill out the application form in Google Forms CLICK HERE and upload the following supporting documents through Google Forms:
- Your most recent CV (maximum file size 10 MB).
- Project portfolio or writing samples (in either Bahasa Indonesia or English) that best demonstrate how your skills and experience align with the roles and responsibilities of the position (maximum file size: 25 MB).
- The application deadline is August 8, 2025.
- Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.
- If you have any queries, please email us at work@kotakita.org.