Postdoc Groundwater drought and adaptation (f/m/x)

Do you have experience with groundwater data analysis and modelling? Are you interested in studying groundwater drought and designing sustainable adaptation measures? And do you want to develop your project management skills? Please apply for this postdoc position at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (VU).

Location: AMSTERDAM
FTE: 0.8 – 1

Job description

How do groundwater extremes develop and recover as a result of complex and interacting physical and anthropogenic processes under ongoing and future global change? What are the effects of drought adaptation measures related to groundwater? And what are potential unintended consequences on flood risk and other sectors? At VU Amsterdam we do research to find the answers to these questions.

We are now searching for a postdoctoral researcher with a groundwater data and modelling background to join our team. You will analyse groundwater level observations to assess the development, duration and recovery of groundwater drought, to quantify the role of climate, subsurface characteristics, vegetation, and water use, and to investigate effects of ongoing and future climate change and changes in water use and land management. You will also apply models to investigate how groundwater-related drought adaptation measures can influence the development and recovery of groundwater drought, to assess short- and long-term (unintended) consequences of these drought adaptation measures on flood risk and other water users, and to investigate future adaptation pathways and their feasibility under different climatic and governance conditions.

This position is part of the GroundedExtremes and RESHAPE projects. GroundedExtremes is a 3-year European funded research project that aims to investigate groundwater processes in relation to hydrological extremes and the potential for improved groundwater management as a powerful adaptation strategy to both droughts and floods. In GroundedExtremes six postdoctoral researchers will study and compare groundwater dynamics, management and governance in four case studies: Spain, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Sweden. RESHAPE is a 5-year NWO-funded interdisciplinary research programme that aims to develop change-pathways to increase the resilience of Dutch sand landscapes in face of ongoing climate change. RESHAPE focuses on droughts, floods, biodiversity loss and deteriorating water quality and employs four PhD students and two postdoctoral researchers working on different aspects within this complex system.

We are looking for someone who is interested in inter- and transdisciplinary research and enjoys working together with the other early-career researchers in the two projects and with external partners and stakeholders. Additionally, we are searching for someone who is able to support the project management and organisation of our (inter)national research projects and is interested to (further) develop project management skills. You will be based at the Water & Climate Risk group within the Institute for Environmental Studies (IVM) , and will collaborate with the Hydrology group at the Earth Sciences department and with KWR Water Research Institute.

Your duties

• groundwater data analysis to assess effects of climate change and land and water management on groundwater drought development and recovery
• developing a groundwater model to simulate drought adaptation measures that can be used in workshops with stakeholders
• write and contribute to scientific papers
• work with the team members and project partners
• support the project administration and management

Requirements

• a PhD degree in hydrology, physical geography, civil or environmental engineering, earth or environmental science with a hydrogeology / groundwater focus
• experience with (groundwater) data analysis
• experience with modelling; ideally socio-hydrological modelling (e.g. system-dynamics)
• strong programming skills (in R or Python)
• experience in scientific publishing, exemplified by relevant and good quality peer-reviewed publications
• good collaboration and communication skills to work in a larger multidisciplinary team and with international partners

Note:

we are always looking for people who can enrich our institute with unique perspectives and experiences. We actively encourage you to apply if you are from an underrepresented group in academia. We welcome applicants from a wide variety of backgrounds (including gender, LGBTQIA+, ethnicity, culture, ability, neurodiversity and minority identities), which we acknowledge enhances the quality of our research and education. Since women and other minoritized groups tend to refrain from applying when they do not tick all the boxes, we encourage you to apply even if you do not feel that you have all of the requirements listed above.

What are we offering?

An exciting 3-year postdoc position in a socially-engaged organisation with a supportive project team and an active early-career scientist community. The salary will be in accordance with university regulations for academic personnel and amounts to a minimum gross monthly salary of €3226 (scale 10) and a maximum €5090 (scale 10), depending on your education and experience, based on a full-time employment. The job profile is based on the university job ranking system and is vacant for at least 0.8 FTE (other part-time options can be discussed).

The appointment will be for 3 years (based on a full-time employment) and the expected start date is April 2024.
Additionally, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam offers excellent fringe benefits and various schemes and regulations to promote a good work/life balance, such as:

• a maximum of 41 days of annual leave based on full-time employment
• 8% holiday allowance and 8.3% end-of-year bonus
• solid pension scheme (ABP)
• contribution to commuting expenses
• optional model for designing a personalised benefits package

About Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam

The ambition of Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam is clear: to contribute to a better world through outstanding education and ground-breaking research. We strive to be a university where personal development and commitment to society play a leading role. A university where people from different disciplines and backgrounds collaborate to achieve innovations and to generate new knowledge. Our teaching and research encompass the entire spectrum of academic endeavor – from the humanities, the social sciences and the natural sciences through to the life sciences and the medical sciences.

Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam is home to more than 31,000 students. We employ over 5,000 individuals. The VU campus is easily accessible and located in the heart of Amsterdam’s Zuidas district, a truly inspiring environment for teaching and research.

Diversity
We are an inclusive university community. Diversity is one of our most important values. We believe that engaging in international activities and welcoming students and staff from a wide variety of backgrounds enhances the quality of our education and research. We are always looking for people who can enrich our world with their own unique perspectives and experiences.

The Faculty of Science
Working at the Faculty of Science means working together with students, PhD candidates and scientists who are focused on their discipline, yet also have a broad view of the world. We are proud of the collegial working environment within the faculty, which is characterised by an ambitious and pragmatic attitude with commitment to the bigger picture. At the Faculty of Science, scientists and students work on fundamental and complex social issues for a sustainable and healthy future. From forest fires to big data, from obesity to malnutrition, from genetics to pharmaceuticals and from molecules to the moon: our teaching and research cover the full breadth of the natural sciences. Scientific teaching and research is highly experimental, technical, computational and interdisciplinary in nature. This is why we collaborate extensively with leading research institutes and industry. The faculty has over 11,000 students studying across 40 educational programmes and employs over 1,600 staff spread over 10 scientific departments, making us the largest science faculty in the Netherlands.

About the institute
Established in 1971, IVM is a leading environmental research institute that is internationally recognised for its high quality research output in a range of environmental disciplines, as well as for its interdisciplinary work. The mission of the institute is to contribute to sustainable development and care for the environment through scientific research and teaching. IVM aims to do excellent problem-oriented research that is useful to a wide range of stakeholders in the Netherlands and internationally. A unique strength of our research is to understand sustainability problems in their social and economic context. IVM’s research community works within four departments: Environmental Economics; Environmental Geography, Environmental Policy Analysis; and Water and Climate Risk. Since 2001 IVM has been part of the Faculty of Science at VU Amsterdam (legal name Stichting VU).

The department of Water and Climate Risk studies hydrological and climate processes, and how these processes lead to risks and opportunities for society, the economy, and the environment. A defining characteristic of the department is a multidisciplinary approach that combines expertise from natural sciences with knowledge from the fields of economics, e-Science and geography. This approach has led to a unique research portfolio of water and climate risk projects, and the department is a global leading institute in flood and drought risk assessment, and risk management research.

Application

Are you interested in this position? Please apply via the application button and upload your curriculum vitae and cover letter by 

10 January 2024

. 

Submitting a diploma and a reference check are part of the application process.

Applications received by e-mail will not be processed.

Vacancy questions
If you have any questions regarding this vacancy, you may contact:

Name: Dr Anne van Loon
Position: Associate Professor
E-mail: [email protected]
Website: www.vu.nl/ivm

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