CSIRO Postdoctoral Fellowship Economics of Bioengineering

• Do you have a PhD (or will shortly satisfy the requirements of a PhD) in a relevant discipline area, such as economics, applied mathematics, engineering or sustainability science/circular economy?
• Conduct research to enable the transition from fossil-fuels to a bio-enabled economy
• Join the Advanced Engineering Biology (AEB) Future Science Platform at CSIRO! 

CSIRO Early Research Career (CERC) Postdoctoral Fellowships provide opportunities to scientists and engineers who have completed their doctorate and have less than three years of relevant postdoctoral work experience. These fellowships aim to develop the next generation of future leaders of the innovation system.

This Fellowship is funded by the Advanced Engineering Biology Future Science Platform (AEB FSP) , where we’re working to catalyse a step change in biotechnology development in Australia while ensuring engineering biology makes a positive difference in the lives of all Australians. Engineering biology creates solutions from nature’s building blocks, to solve our greatest challenges. It can underpin transformative innovations across health, agriculture, energy, and other key sectors. But to harness its full potential, we need to make it faster, more affordable and scalable.  Our research is working to overcome the obstacles that are holding engineering biology back from delivering benefits for society, industry and the environment. We take an interdisciplinary, collaborative approach, partnering with government, research institutions and industry to foster innovation and build capabilities.

Sustainability transition from fossil-fuels to a bio-enabled economy (use of biological resources) calls for a deep transformation of the economy, the society, and the technological systems. However, the economic drivers for the transition to a bio-enabled economy are not well understood. The Postdoctoral Fellow will be part of the AEB FSP Interdisciplinary Decision Making Theme and will contribute to the understanding of the economic and institutional complexities associated with sustainability transitions in a circular bioeconomy. The CERC Fellow will be core to delivering a Horizon 3 research agenda, supporting decision making and uptake of advanced engineering biology technologies by incorporating a focus on technoeconomics, life cycle analysis, frameworks and policy, and engagement with key industry stakeholders. The goal is to improve tools for modelling future feedstocks to help de-risk investments and better incorporate circularity of reusing waste as inputs into the creation of high value products and materials in biomanufacturing.