PhD student position in environmental impact assessment of shipping

This PhD student position at the Department of Mechanics and Maritime Sciences offers you the opportunity:

- To join an inclusive and creative interdisciplinary team within the field of environmental impact assessment of shipping;

- to acquire advanced expertise in environmental impact and risk assessments of shipping and how these assessments can support decision-making processes;

- To contribute to science-based policy development, i.e., high societal impact, as your research results will be directly implemented and used by stakeholders;

- To create a large international network, both within academia and the shipping sector, including policy makers

Information about the research
Shipping is a sector responsible for a wide range of emissions contributing to climate change and negatively impacting air quality and the marine environment. Emissions from shipping is mainly regulated through different international regulatory frameworks, where each waste stream (e.g. sewage, antifouling paints and ballast water) is assessed one by one. Hence, a holistic assessment, where all waste streams cumulative impact on the marine environment is considered is typically lacking. Yet, recent studies show that shipping contributes substantially to the contaminant load to the Baltic Sea, also in comparison to other sources such as river run-off and atmospheric deposition. Hence there is an urgent need to bridge this gap and ensure that environmental impact assessment of shipping can guide both marine environmental management and the shipping industry towards reduced pressures and impacts on the marine environment. To achieve this goal, methods to assess the environmental impacts of shipping need to be improved. While the methodology on how ship emissions impact climate and human health are comparatively well established and used in cost-benefit analysis, the knowledge base is not the same for impacts on the marine environment. This situation risks policies to be biased towards air pollution whilst trading off impacts on the marine environment.

We now have an open PhD student position in the area of environmental impact assessment of shipping, with specific focus on how different pressures from shipping degrade marine ecosystems and the services they provide. As a PhD student you will work in several Swedish governmental funded project with the ambition to provide solid scientific ground for sustainable development of the shipping sector and improved integration of shipping in marine environmental management, e.g. through contribution to national and international regulatory frameworks. The work will be carried out in close collaboration with responsible public authorities such as the Swedish Agency for Marine and Water Management and the Swedish Transport Agency. The successful candidate will be employed as a PhD student at the unit of Maritime Environmental Science (MES). The common denominator of the research carried out at MES is the aim to contribute to sustainable development of shipping and other maritime activities. We are actively sharing our research results with the research community, policymakers and the wider public, why networking and collaborations with stakeholders are central. MES is one of three units at the Division of Maritime Studies, and our sister-units are: Technical and Maritime Management and Nautical Studies. The Division of Maritime Studies offers a creative interdisciplinary working environment, which together with the   division of Marine Technology covers most perspectives of shipping related research and education. The division for Maritime Studies is engaged in research and education connected to shipping and other maritime sectors. We educate the seafarers of tomorrow, focusing on developing a sustainable shipping industry.

Major responsibilities
The main responsibility of the successful candidate will be to i) develop a framework to evaluate the cost of degradation of ecosystem services due to ship emissions ii) use the developed framework to assess impacts of ship emissions on marine ecosystems, including an estimation of external costs iii) propose cost efficient measures to reduce environmental impact from shipping. The candidate will be responsible for dissemination of results through conference and seminar presentations and through publications in relevant scientific journals.

The candidate is expected to communicate the research findings to relevant stakeholders e.g. the Swedish Agency for Marine and Water Management (SwAM), the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Swedish Transport Agency and the Swedish Shipowners´ association. The position also includes teaching on Chalmers' graduate and undergraduate level or performing other administrative duties.

As a PhD student at Maritime Environmental Science, you will belong to the graduate school Shipping and Marine Technology. Included in your 4 years PhD education you will take 60HEC of relevant courses, both to develop general academic skills, and to deepen your knowledge within your field of research. As a PhD student at Chalmers, you are also expected to participate in teaching at the department implying that the PhD student position is a full-time temporary employment limited to a maximum of 4,5 years.


Qualifications
To qualify for the PhD student position the candidate is expected to have a Master of Science in relevant fields, preferably in environmental science, marine science, environmental economics, chemistry or biology. The candidate shall have documented experience in environmental risk assessment and environmental impact assessments. Experience in shipping and marine policy is meritorious. The candidate is expected to have excellent oral and written communication skills in English. Excellent Swedish skills is meritorious since the project will be partly funded by Swedish stakeholders, e.g. SwAM.

Contract terms
Full-time temporary employment. The position is limited to a maximum of four and a half years.

Application procedure
See link to ad at Chalmers Webpage for more information about application procedure: 
PhD student position in environmental impact assessment of shipping