Funding, Study, Work Opportunities

Population is a quarterly scientific journal published in English (Population-E) and in French (Population-F) by the French Institute for Population Studies (INED).

The Population Young Author Prize is open to PhD students and young researchers working in the field of population studies and will be awarded to the most outstanding original paper submitted to the competition jury.

For more information, see https://iussp.org/sites/all/modules/contrib/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=4666&qid=1697758

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Population est une revue scientifique trimestrielle publiée en français (Population-F) et en anglais (Population-E) par l’Ined.

Les étudiant·e·s en thèse et les jeunes chercheur·e·s travaillant dans le domaine des études de population sont invité·e·s à proposer un article original pour concourir au prix jeune auteur·e de la revue Population.

Pour plus d’informations : http://www.revue-population.fr/prix-jeune-auteur/

The School for Environment and Sustainability (SEAS) at the University of Michigan is seeking applications for a full-time, nine-month, tenure-track Assistant or Associate Professor in Spatial Science of Coupled Natural-Human Systems.

SEAS seeks applicants whose work advances the frontiers of knowledge in natural-human system processes and relationships at diverse scales using theories, methods, and tools of spatial science. Topical areas of interest are broad. These could include human dimensions of global change as they relate to biodiversity loss, land-cover/land-use change, urbanization, climate change, ecosystem services and valuation, material and energy flows, and environmental degradation, among others.

To apply and for more information, see http://seas.umich.edu/form/assistant_or_associate_professor_spatial_science_coupled_natural_human_systems

In the Group Science, Engineering & Technology, Faculty of Science, Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Division of Geography and Tourism, there is a full-time academic vacancy in big data and human-environment systems, at the Arenberg campus in Leuven. The main mission of the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences is to carry out state-of-the-art scientific research with respect to the functioning of geo- and ecosystems at different spatial and temporal scales, including the interaction between humans and the environment and the sustainable management of natural resources. The Division of Geography and Tourism currently has 11 professors. The division conducts research and provides academic training in the interrelated fields of earth surface processes and climate, society and space, tourism research and education in geosciences. The division has long-term research experience in socio-ecological and socio-economic relations. Moreover, geographical information systems and analysis of spatio-temporal data are a core pillar of our research and educational programmes. To further strengthen these components, the division is looking for an internationally oriented candidate with a strong track record in human-environment systems, using opportunities arising from the growth in data availability.

To apply and for more information, see https://www.kuleuven.be/personeel/jobsite/jobs/54567601?hl=en&lang=en

The Centre for Fertility and Health of the Norwegian Institute of Public Health (Oslo & Bergen, Norway) is strongly committed to the education and engagement of young researchers and has established the Gro Harlem Brundtland Visiting Scholarship. This visiting scholar program hosts young researchers from Norway and abroad to engage in collaborative research and to participate in and enrich the research community at the Centre and at the Norwegian Institute of Public Health. The center is currently accepting applications for this visiting scholar program.

For more information, see https://www.fhi.no/en/more/research-centres/Centre-for-fertility-and-health/the-gro-harlem-brundtland-visiting-scholarship/

The Institute for Environmental Studies (IVM) at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (VU) seeks applications for a postdoctoral fellowship on African city food systems, beginning early September 2018. The postdoc will be based in South Africa for approximately 75% of the time and work as a guest researcher in the Netherlands for the remaining time.

The research forms part of an international collaborative project under the auspices of LEAP-Agri (http://www.leap-agri.com/) and includes researchers from South Africa, Uganda, Netherlands and Belgium. The project aims to promote sustainable and nutrition-secure city food systems by developing knowledge and tools for local and national development planning. The research will be undertaken in two case studies (Cape Town and Kampala) and includes (i) characterizing city food systems through identifying key food system activities, drivers, feedbacks and outcome indicators; (ii) modelling current food systems dynamics and exploring alternative futures; (iii) developing response strategies that target local and national development planning; and (iv) running and evaluating knowledge co-production and participatory planning approaches for achieving impact.

Key activities of the postdoc:
•    Developing a model to represent food system dynamics across the urban, peri-urban and rural landscapes of the case studies with inputs from the project team and stakeholders on food system activities, key drivers, feedbacks and outcome metrics
•    Translating narrative scenarios of alternative food futures to quantitative scenarios that can be modelled
•    Exploring the trade-offs and synergies presented by these alternative scenarios in terms of the different outcomes identified by stakeholders
•    Producing spatial products and tools for city planners
•    Synthesizing results of research in peer-reviewed journal articles
•    Supervising Masters-level researchers in collection of field data and analysis of the results
•    Presenting results to academic and policy audiences in meetings, forums, workshops and conferences
•    Overseeing meeting and travel logistics undertaken by Masters-level researchers and secretarial support
•    Working with the project coordinator to implement the project activities across a geographically-dispersed project team

Requirements:
•    PhD in one or more disciplines that are broadly associated with land system science (e.g. geography, agriculture, environmental science, natural resource economics, ecology, social sciences and humanities), with a strong research interest in urban food systems and a good academic record.
•    Programming experience (e.g. in R, Python and/or Google Earth Engine) to allow customization and coupling of existing land use and other related models
•    Advanced skills in analyzing geospatial data in GIS (e.g., ArcGIS, QGIS, etc.) and the ability to source, manage and harmonize diverse data types in spatial analyses across a range of spatial scales
•    Experience in research focused on food systems dynamics, social-ecological systems, scenarios planning, and/or ecosystem services is a strong advantage
•    Demonstrated track record in writing scientific publications
•    Excellent communication skills in English – both orally and written
•    Ability to work collaboratively in the transdisciplinary space in developing countries, with academics, businesses, and government agencies at different scales and across different sectors
•    Ability to ensure that professional ethics are followed in gathering, processing and disseminating research information so that the rights, interests, values and welfare of people who take part in the research are not compromised
•    Strong interest in integrating knowledge across the natural, social, economic and health sciences, and in developing science-based products that meet policy and implementation needs

Logistical requirements:
•    Availability for regular meetings with the project team and other project-related meetings
•    Availability for research exchange visits to the Netherlands
•    Willingness to travel locally and internationally for meetings as required (meetings may take place in all four partner countries – some of these may be virtual and others than face-to-face)
•    Driver’s license
•    Ideally be a resident of an African country

The candidate will be based approximately 9 months per year at the Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services Research Group of CSIR in South Africa and visit IVM of VU for about 3 months per year.     The fellowship includes a living allowance of € 1,750 per month that will be paid from the project through the VU in the Netherlands.

In addition, the project will reimburse research costs, such as travel between South Africa and the Netherlands during the project and an accommodation allowance while on research exchange in the Netherlands. 

The fellowship will be awarded initially for one year and upon good performance a prolongation for another 2 years will be offered. The candidate is expected to pay all health insurance, housing and other insurances from the fellowship

Applicants should send a full CV, contact details for three references, and a cover letter that details their interest in the position and outlines their relevant skills and experience. The cover letter should be a maximum of 2 pages.

Please submit all materials as one pdf file. The submission should be made by email with subject line ‘Postdoc Application: LEAP-Agri’ to Ms Marjolijn Staarink (marjolijn.staarink @vu.nl). 

Contact Dr Jeanne Nel (j.l.nel@vu.nl) should you have questions.

These positions are located primarily in the Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) and the Regional Commissions. DESA is a vital interface between global policies in the economic, social and environmental spheres and national action. The incumbent typically reports to a Senior Officer, Head of Unit, or Chief of Section. The typical job in this area is Associate Statistician, and may also be Associate Population Affairs Officer.

Applicants with expertise in Demography who are interested in positions as Associate Population Affairs Officers are encouraged to apply for the YPP examinations either in Statistics or Social Affairs.

The YPP examination in Statistics covers a wide range of topics in the areas of probability theory, descriptive statistics, inferential statistics, and demographic, social, economic and environmental statistics, accounts and indicators.

Successful candidates will be considered for YPP positions as they become available throughout the Secretariat, including field offices. Initial appointments will be for two years and subject to review for a continuing appointment. The Organization promotes mobility within and across duty stations and job families.  For more information, see https://careers.un.org/lbw/jobdetail.aspx?id=97438

To learn more about the Young Professionals Programme (YPP), visit:
https://careers.un.org/ypp

Annonce en français et inscriptions:
https://careers.un.org/lbw/jobdetail.aspx?id=97438&lang=fr-FR

Pour plus d’infos sur le Programme Jeunes administrateurs (YPP) :
https://careers.un.org/lbw/home.aspx?viewtype=NCE&lang=fr-FR

Visioneering is XPRIZE’s main channel for designing prizes that solve humanity’s Grandest Challenges. Rooted in its passion for harnessing the power of the global crowd to develop such solutions, for the first time ever XPRIZE is inviting the world to participate in Visioneering. From designing prizes, to evaluating prize designs, to participating in the Annual XPRIZE Visioneering Summit, XPRIZE will tap into the collective genius around the world to deliver prize designs that are elegant, massively impactful, and funded to launch.

The designers of the best concepts will work with experts at XPRIZE to further refine their concepts and develop them into the robust, incentivized competitions that take a global stage at our premier annual event, Visioneering 2018.  Participants will be eligible to win prizes up to $100k in value.
 
5 Grand Challenge Areas:
•    Off-Grid Energy Access, Sponsored by Kingo
•    Feeding the Next Billion, Co-sponsored by The Tony Robbins Foundation & the Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research (FFAR)
•    Lifting Farmers out of Poverty, Sponsored by Gagan Gupta
•    Natural Disaster Prediction, Sponsored by Fairfax Financial Holdings
•    Saving Coral Reefs, Sponsored by XPRIZE Ocean Initiative

For more information and to register, see https://www.xprize.org/visioneering.

This contest includes two different prize categories:

Category A: Models of Management and Technology that contribute to sustainable water management. Submissions in this category include projects/ideas/technology that have proven to improve water management.

Category B: Educational project or activity addressed to children or teenagers. This includes initiatives or projects aiming at raising awareness of children and teenagers about different aspects of water resources and the importance of its sustainable management.


More information can be found at https://www.fundacionbotin.org/observatory-area/prizes-to-young-talent-applied-to-sustainable-water-management.html?lan=en

The researcher will contribute to the European Research Council (ERC) Starting Grant project MIDLAND (https://erc-midland.earth). Payments will be based on Belgian regulations, depending on prior research experience, and will include the benefits of the Belgian social security such as health insurance.

Objectives: To understand the conditions under which land governance in the emerging frontiers of northern Mozambique can be transformed to foster sustainable land uses and land use planning, by involving local and distant actors.

The work should: (i) Bring together public and private actors which typically operate at different scales, from global to local, (ii) Take into account tradeoffs between local realities and broader sustainability issues, and (iii) Articulate emerging private-led and market-based instruments of land use governance with traditional land use policies and public governance.

Research description: This research will investigate how land governance in the focal region, including land use planning, land tenure and land policies, can be transformed to foster sustainable land uses. The research will draw on workshops, supported by stakeholders analyses, mapping, tradeoffs analyses and scenario development, to bring together different public and private actors influencing directly or indirectly the land systems in the focus region, and which operate at different scales, from global to local. The work will explore various visions of land uses, sustainable intensification, and linkages between the study area and distant places, and will identify the key institutional entrepreneurs and agents of transformative change in land use, and the opportunities and current barriers for transformation.

Profile required: A researcher holding a PhD degree, experienced in social sciences theories and methods of transdisciplinary research and multi-stakeholders participatory approaches, qualitative and quantitative methods, institutional analysis, resilience, scenarios, as well as land system science.

Experience in studying deliberate transformation, transformative agency, institutional entrepreneurs and strategic fields are assets. Experience in tropical/developing regions, as well as ability to interact with different people ranging from rural smallholders to high-level decision-makers will be crucial. Knowledge of Portuguese is a requirement. Familiarity with the land use and political contexts in Mozambique are very useful. The candidate should demonstrate an excellent command of the English language, good communication skills, and ability to work in a research team and to establish a local and international network.

This position is for two years.

Candidates should submit a cover letter detailing qualifications and research interests, CV, and names and contacts of three referees to:

Prof. Patrick Meyfroidt
patrick.meyfroidt @uclouvain.be

Research approaches will provide insights into how rural counties on Maryland’s Eastern Shore are affected by and respond to environmental changes associated with sea level rise and climate change. Of particular interest are projects that would inform policies related to residential relocation and nature restoration. Applicants with background in anthropology, demography, economics, geography, psychology, public policy, sociology, or another social science discipline with expertise in environmental topics preferred.

One of the NatureNet Science Fellowships sponsored by the Nature Conservancy. 

TNC Mentor: Ariana Sutton-Grier, Director of Science, Maryland/DC Chapter. 
University Mentor: Elizabeth Fussell, Institute at Brown for Environment and Society, Brown University

Position open until filled.

To apply and for more information, see
https://www.nature.org/science-in-action/naturenet-science-fellows-universitypartners-and-mentors.xml#urban

The National Socio-Environmental Synthesis Center invites applications for a 5-day short course, 11 -15 June  2018, that will serve as an introduction to the theory and practice of spatially-explicit agent-based modeling (ABM).

This course will guide you through the basic phases of the ABM research process: formulating a research question, specifying a model, creating a simulation and interpreting the output. The course combines lectures with hands-on model-building sessions where you will build a model using NetLogo to acquire basic and intermediate programming skills. More advanced students are welcome to build a model in a programming language of their choice.

Application Deadline: 2 April 2018

To learn more and apply, please https://www.sesync.org/opportunities/short-courses/introduction-to-spatial-agent-based-modeling-june-2018?utm_source=SESYNC+February+2018+Newsletter&utm_campaign=February+2018+Newsletter&utm_medium=email

Up to three Ph.D. graduate research assistantships are available at Michigan State University in the areas of social-ecological systems, coupled human and natural systems, ecosystem services, and participatory research to support a pair of new, multi-year, multidisciplinary, NASA-funded projects addressing the socio-ecological effects of climate change and dam construction in the Lower Mekong River Basin (i.e. Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam).

Mainland Southeast Asia is a dynamic and rapidly changing region, where rapid urbanization and technological and economic development are increasingly shaping rural landscapes, ecosystems, and agrarian communities. In recent years, numerous dams have been (and are being) constructed along the Mekong River and its tributaries in order to meet the region’s growing appetite for energy, irrigation for agricultural intensification, and protection from extreme weather events. This highly interdisciplinary project aims to better understand the downstream social and ecological effects of dam construction in order to identify sustainable scenarios that address broader regional needs while preserving important ecosystem services and local livelihoods.

The Ph.D. students will use remote sensing and field-based social science research methods (e.g. ethnography, participatory research, participatory GIS, household surveys) to evaluate tradeoffs and synergies among ecosystem services, human well-being, and livelihoods in rural communities affected by upstream dam construction and climate change. The students will work with an interdisciplinary MSU-based team as well as with local partners and will at times be responsible for carrying out independent field research in Southeast Asia.

It is preferred that candidates have a master’s degree in conservation science, environmental studies, ecology, fisheries and wildlife, geography, sociology, anthropology, resource or environmental economics or other relevant fields. Students should have an interest in interdisciplinary research with strong analytical skills (qualitative and/or quantitative, depending on the position) and an interest in mixed-method approaches. Students should have excellent writing skills and the ability to work both independently and in teams in a variety of contexts, including fieldwork in rural communities. Some experience with geospatial tools and analyses is desired, as are familiarity with the region and proficiency (or willingness to learn) one or more local languages (Thai and Khmer).

There is some flexibility on home department depending on interests and experience. Students would be expected to start in the summer of 2018. Expressions of interest should be sent to Dr. Daniel Kramer, dbk @msu.edu.

Deadline: 31 March 2018

For more information, see https://wfscjobs.tamu.edu/jobs/graduate-research-assistantships-michigan/.

The Department of Geography at the National Taiwan Normal University invites applications for a tenure track position at all levels. The department seeks an outstanding candidate who will contribute to the Department's teaching and research in the field of human geography, in particular cultural geography, economic geography, social geography, urban geography or urban environmental planning and design.

The appointment will be effective August 1, 2018 or February 1, 2019. The deadline for application is 12 March 2018. Each application should include a copy of his/her PhD certificate, a copy of identity card or passport, curriculum vitae (including a publication list), copies of last five years' publications, syllabi for intended teaching courses (3 courses, each within 500 words in either Chinese or English) and 2-3 reference letters. We sincerely encourage qualified candidates to apply.

NTNU is an established and growing prestigious university. The Department of Geography offers BA, MA, MS and PhD degrees. The city of Taipei is characterized by ample resources for conducting research and appreciating life. It is a global city with an Asian life style.

Please send application by postal mail to Ms. Joy Chiu, Department of Geography, National Taiwan Normal University, #162 He-ping East Road Section 2, Taipei City, 10610 TAIWAN.

For candidates residing in a foreign country, send application with e-mail to joy @ntnu.edu.tw.

For more information about Geography at NTNU, see www.geo.ntnu.edu.tw.

For questions, contact Ms. Joy Chiu at Telephone: (886) 2-77341654, Fax: (886)2-23691770, or joy@ ntnu.edu.tw.

The Population Reference Bureau (PRB) is now accepting applications for its 2018-2019 Policy Communication Fellows Program. The program is funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). It is open to individuals from developing countries currently enrolled in academic institutions pursuing doctoral programs and who are between their 3rd and 5th year of studies. The goals of the Policy Fellows program are to understand the process by which research informs the policy environment; to learn how to communicate research to policy audiences in a way that encourages action; and to improve participants’ communication skills using a variety of format and platforms.

Developing-country applicants may be in any field of study but their research focus must be related to one or more of the following: Family planning and/or reproductive health (FP/RH); Contraceptive use/behavior; Maternal and child health (MCH), specifically family planning/MCH integration; Population growth; Adolescent reproductive health; Poverty, health equity, and connections with reproductive health; Gender issues, specifically gender-based violence (GBV), early marriage, and male engagement in family planning; Population, health, and environment interrelations.

More information including instruction on how to apply: https://www.prb.org/About/ProgramsProjects/PRB-Policy-Communication-Fellows-Program.aspx.

Deadline: 26 February 2018

Ryerson University in Toronto, Canada, has been selected to nominate a prestigious Canada Excellence Research Chair (CERC) in Migration and Integration with a one-time investment of $10 million in funding over seven years. The university is currently in the active search for a global research leader to nominate for this Chair position. Applications should be emailed to cerc @ryerson.ca and will be accepted until 25 February 2018 at 11:59 p.m.

Ryerson’s Centre for Immigration and Settlement is a leader in immigration studies, exploring migration, integration, as well as refugee and diaspora studies, and has a stellar track-record of creating knowledge that impacts policy and practices. The Chair will be particularly relevant in Ryerson, with its ethnically diverse faculty and student population, and based in Toronto, where immigrants make up more than half the population.

The WorldPop programme, based at the University of Southampton, is seeking to recruit two researchers to assist with spatial demographic analyses in a number of low-income countries around the world. We require enthusiastic statistical analysts to work on a range of research projects relating to high-resolution predictive mapping of population distributions and demographics based on household survey, census and bespoke survey data, along with high-resolution geospatial covariate data layers. The work will be foundational to a new collaborative programme entitled GRID3 (Geospatial Reference, Infrastructure and Demographic Data for Development) with partners at National Statistics Offices, the Flowminder Foundation, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, DFID, CIESIN and UNFPA, and will be used to guide projects ranging from population enumeration to delivery of health programs and alleviation of poverty. As well as joining the vibrant and well-connected WorldPop and Flowminder Foundation teams, you will have opportunities to lead high-impact publications.

See: https://jobs.soton.ac.uk/Vacancy.aspx?ref=952617WR