YOUR TASKS
We welcome applications for a full-time postdoctoral researcher within the Research Group Sustainable Systems Engineering (STEN) of the Department of Green Chemistry and Technology, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, UGent. The postdoctoral researcher will be appointed in the first place on the project “Sustainable Marine Ecosystem Services (SUMES)”. The duration of the contract is at least 1 year, but prolongation is possible after a positive evaluation. Based on the researcher’s interest, he or she may also support other ongoing (or future) research projects related to STEN.
A short summary of the SUMES project:
A major challenge today is the sustainable management and use of the marine environment, especially as human activities increase and diversify. It is becoming valuable for companies to understand and measure the environmental impact associated with their operational activities (construction of wind turbines, aquaculture, innovative coastal protection systems, etc.) that provide ecosystem services to society, so that they can adapt their design, technologies, etc. towards a more sustainable business, giving them a competitive advantage. However, no comprehensive sustainability assessment methodology is currently available to measure and quantify both the positive and negative impacts of human activities at sea.
The Blue Cluster SUMES project therefore aims to develop a comprehensive model to assess the impact of human-induced changes on the marine ecosystem and beyond. The model investigates the structure (e.g. biodiversity) and function (e.g. food chains, biogeochemistry) of the marine ecosystem, its capacity to provide goods and services (e.g. carbon sequestration) and the impact of activities on the aforementioned aspects. The model integrates methods and indicators for ecosystem services, risk assessment and life cycle analysis, which will be aggregated at the level of ‘endpoints’ or ‘protected areas’, and therefore serves as a decision support model. The model will be based on case studies in the North Sea in collaboration with Flemish companies. A first case is wind energy from the Belwind park located on the Belgian continental shelf.
Besides the STEN research group, there are three more partners: Universiteit Antwerpen (ecosystem services expertise, Ecobe group), VLIZ (marine data and know-how), and research group Ghentoxlab, UGent (risk analysis expertise). SUMES also has a scientific and strategic advisory board, bringing global expertise from academia and local businesses on board.
The STEN research group is coordinator of the SUMES project (i.e. project leader) and leader of work packages 4 and 5 (which include the development of the final sustainability model, elaboration of case studies, etc.). In addition, the STEN group is also involved in all the other work packages, and must also make a scientific contribution there.
Your tasks will include:
- (co-)Management/organization of the SUMES project
- Scientific support, mainly in WP4 and WP5
- Supervision of one or more PhD and/or Master students (working on themes similar to SUMES)
At least 70% of your assignment will be spent on academic research.
WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR
- You hold a thesis-based doctorate in an environmental engineering related field, or equivalent.(obtained max. 6 years ago. This term of 6 years is determined by the date written on the above-mentioned required diploma).
- Candidates are expected to have an engineering background and/or affinity with sustainability analysis methods such as life cycle analysis. For this project, we are looking for someone who is critical, analytical and has a sense of initiative. Knowledge and expertise of processes in the marine environment is a plus, as well as experience with methods such as ecosystem services and risk analysis.
Other profile requirements:
- You have an interest in scientific research and are highly motivated.
- You can work independently, but also in a team.
- You have good coaching and management skills.
- You have good writing and presentation skills.
- You have a very good oral and written command of academic (Dutch and) English.
- Positive points:
- o You have experience in conducting quantitative and/or qualitative research and in collecting data independently.
- o You have experience with LCA software such as OpenLCA, Gabi, Simapro, etc. and LCA databases (e.g. Ecoinvent).
WHAT WE CAN OFFER YOU
- We offer you a contract of indefinite duration with a maximum term of 1 year
- Your contract will start on 1/01/2022 at the earliest.
- Your remuneration will be determined by salary scale PD1. Click here for more information about our salary scales.
- All Ghent University staff members enjoy a number of benefits, such as a wide range of training and education opportunities, 36 days of holiday leave (on an annual basis for a full-time job) supplemented by annual fixed bridge days, a bicycle allowance and eco vouchers.. Click here for a complete overview of all the staffbenefits (in Dutch).
INTERESTED?
Apply online through the e-recruitment system before the application deadline (see above). We do not accept late applications or applications that are not submitted through the online system.
Your application must include the following documents:
- In the field ‘CV’: your CV and an overview of your study results (merged into one pdf file)
- In the field ‘Cover letter’: your application letter in pdf format
- In the field ‘Diploma’: a transcript of the required degree (if already in your possession). If you have a foreign diploma in a language other than our national languages (Dutch, French or German) or English, please add a translation in one of the mentioned languages.
- In the field “other documents”: contact details of 1 or 2 reference persons
Note that the maximum file size for each field is 10 MB.
MORE INFORMATION
For more information about this vacancy, please contact Dr. ir. Sue Ellen Taelman (Tel. +32 (0)9 264 58 71 – SueEllen.Taelman@ugent.be). Important: do NOT send your application by email, but apply online.
For more information about the position, follow this link.