Postdoctoral fellow to FAIRTRANS

Ref. No. SU FV-1726-22

at Stockholm Resilience Centre . (Closing date: 15 June 2022) Prolonged application time - new closing date: 29 June 2022.

The Stockholm Resilience Centre (SRC) is a leading international centre in sustainability science for biosphere stewardship, at the Stockholm University. The SRC currently employs around 135 members of staff. It was founded in 2007 and is a joint initiative between Stockholm University and the Beijer Institute of Ecological Economics at The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.

FAIRTRANS (Fair Transformations to a Fossil-Free Future) is a 4-year research programme funded by Mistra and Formas. Our mission is to develop science-based and fair roadmaps for rapid decarbonisation, consistent with a globally fair Swedish carbon budget, through collaboration with key actors from civil society. Sustaining the resilience of Earth’s biosphere requires far-reaching transformations of the economy, breaking path dependency and shifting toward a new development trajectory defined by a fundamentally different narrative. A postdoctoral fellow within this program will gain experience in problem-oriented, interdisciplinary collaboration in sustainability science and become an expert in climate benefits of forestry and resilient forestry.

Project description
Green negative emissions is Work Package 3 in FAIRTRANS. We want to hire a postdoc for two years to explore and analyse how the climate benefits of Swedish forests and forestry can be optimized, with respect to other ecosystem services and biodiversity. The overarching research questions are:

Questions include how to ensure a high net sink at different time scales (maintain or decrease harvesting rate?), how to maximise the benefits of substitution (e.g. increase the share of timber to constructions at the expense of paper and biofuel?), how to make forests more resilient (e.g. increase the share of continuous cover forestry?), and explore novel avenues for sustainable forest management (SFM) with several co-benefits. Since more than half of stored carbon in Swedish forests is sub-soil, attention cannot be limited to calculations of biomass in trees.

We are seeking a postdoctoral researcher to work with us to develop new governance and management approaches for optimising the climate benefits of forestry and safeguard the resilience of these benefits. This research is truly interdisciplinary and even transdisciplinary and the candidate should have previous experience of that. Research experience from forestry or climate is desirable but not mandatory.

The research will include a review of forestry transformations in other countries, especially Germany, and developing scenarios for alternative management including continuous cover forestry (CCF). These scenarios will be discussed and modified in workshops together with interested Swedish forest owners and the Forest Agency. No Swedish language proficiency is required. Depending on the skills of the candidate, case studies with interviews or modelling (e.g. CAPRI) will be used to assess the robustness/resilience of pathway scenarios for a few explicit forest management strategies. The candidate may also supervise a MSc student in the same field.

Qualification requirements
Postdoctoral positions are appointed primarily for purposes of research. Applicants are expected to hold a Swedish doctoral degree or an equivalent degree from another country.

Assessment criteria
The degree must have been completed at latest before the employment decision is made, but no more than three years before the closing date. An older degree may be acceptable under special circumstances. Special reasons refer to sick leave, parental leave, elected positions in trade unions, service in the total defense, or other similar circumstances as well as clinical attachment or service/assignments relevant to the subject area.

In the appointment process, special attention will be given to:

• Research experience of policy-relevant transdisciplinary sustainability science.
• Research and practical experience of climate and forestry.
• Methodological skills in either qualitative or quantitative methods.
• Practical experiences from science-policy dialogues.
• Record of publications in scientific journals.
• Ability to take initiative and work independently and as part of a team.
• Very good English language communication skills.

Terms of employment
The position involves full-time employment for a minimum of two years and a maximum of three years, with the possibility of extension under special circumstances. Start date as per agreement.

Stockholm University strives to be a workplace free from discrimination and with equal opportunities for all.

Contact
Further information about the position can be obtained directly from:
Thomas Hahn, [email protected] .

Union representatives
Ingrid Lander (Saco-S), telephone: +46 708 16 26 64, [email protected] , Alejandra Pizarro Carrasco (Fackförbundet ST/Lärarförbundet), telephone: +46 8 16 34 89, [email protected] , and [email protected] (SEKO).

Application
Apply for the position at Stockholm University's recruitment system. It is the responsibility of the applicant to ensure that the application is complete in accordance with the instructions in the job advertisement, and that it is submitted before the deadline.

Please include the following information with your application:

• Your contact details and personal data
• Your highest degree
• Your language skills
• Contact details for 2–3 references

and, in addition, please include the following documents

• Cover letter
• CV – degrees and other completed courses, work experience and a list of publications
• Research proposal (no more than 3 pages) describing:
  – why you are interested in the field/project described in the advertisement
  – why and how you wish to complete the project
  – what makes you suitable for the project in question
• Copy of PhD diploma
• Letters of recommendation (no more than 3 files)
• Publications in support of your application (no more than 3 files).

The instructions for applicants are available at: How to apply for a position .

We look forward to your application!

Stockholm University contributes to the development of sustainable democratic society through knowledge, enlightenment and the pursuit of truth.

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