PhD student Effects of climate change on interactions between aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems in...

Background

CMK is a multi-disciplinary research institute, which, among others, focuses on the anthropogenic impacts on our environment: from the molecular survival strategies, which organisms have developed to the stress on terrestrial ecosystem processes, to the relationship between environment-health, environmental economy and environmental law. The Ecotron-infrastructure is a state of the art research infrastructure, in which a set of 12 climate-controlled units is used to analyse the dynamics of complex ecological processes. Each unit consists of an above- and below-ground compartment. The climatological circumstances of each unit can be controlled and manipulated independently. Ecotron  is located in Maasmechelen, Connecterra, the main entrance gate of the National Park Hoge Kempen.

Job content

You will conduct research, write and publish scientific articles, actively participate in international and national congresses, with the aim of writing a doctoral dissertation.

Your research concerns the following topic: the mechanisms of climate control on biodiversity and food webs in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems and zones of their interface are understood very poorly.

As a PhD student you will try to understand how the dynamics of water fluxes, food webs and associated biogeochemical cycles are affected by climate change, following realistic climate change scenarios, modelled in the Ecotron and Medorome terrestrial and aquatic research facilities of Hasselt University and University of Antwerp.

As a PhD student you have a strong background in one of the following fields: Terrestrial/Aquatic Ecology, Environmental Biology, Earth Sciences, Microbiology. A combination of skills related to several of these fields will be considered as an advantage, though is not strictly required.

You are part of a dynamic, interdisciplinary research team with a broad international and national scope network. You participate in the Doctoral School of Sciences & Technolgoy. You will also have some limited teaching tasks in the department of Biology & Geology.