Post-doctoral position in Forest Economics

The Department of Forest Economics is engaged in research and education in circular bioeconomy with focus on business administration, natural resource economics, economics, and policy, with a particular focus on the sustainable development of forest-related natural resources. The Department contributes to education at the Faculty of Forest Sciences, and is responsible for Bachelor and Master degree programs as well as offering Ph.D. education in business administration and economics. The Department is located at two campuses: Ultuna (Uppsala) and Umeå. The Department has strong research domestic and international connections: we hold the editorial office of the Journal of Forest Economics; we are a key partner in the joint SLU/Umeå University - Centre for Environmental and Resource Economics; we host the head office of European Forest Institute’s Forest Bioeconomy Network, among many others.

Duties:
We are searching for a highly-motivated individual to join the Department of Forest Economics at SLU in Umeå for a two-year postdoctoral fellowship. The person will assess socio-economic values and trade-offs of green infrastructure investments with an empirical focus on forests and the provision of watershed services.

The position is funded by the research program Future Forests led by the SLU, Umeå University, and the Forestry Research Institute of Sweden. The postdoctoral fellow will benefit from access to wide professional networks across Sweden and the world. The chosen candidate can enjoy ample opportunities for advancement through grant writing, teaching, and additional career mentoring.

Postdoctoral Research foci

Knowledge on the socio-economic contributions of enhanced green infrastructure within forest ecosystems is scarce. Within a goal of forest landscapes for climate-resilient green infrastructure, some of the barriers or precursors to change are tangible (e.g. difficulty to buy seedlings) while others are less so (e.g. changes in cultural values; trade-offs in local employment). A heightened role of forests within green and blue infrastructures includes trade-offs between intensive silvicultural purposes and ecosystem restoration objectives. Trade-offs are particularly relevant within localized areas, but impacts and perceptions of trade-offs are more nuanced at larger geographical scales and over time. Possible management activities promoting greater tree species diversity can contribute to local economies through new forest-based activities, thus, reducing hard trade-offs between restoration and silvicultural goals.

This research aims to identify and quantify socio-economic indicators to assess the contribution of forest-based green infrastructure toward advancing the Swedish environmental goals. The postdoctoral fellow will generate new information from a synthesis of extant research, and original analyses to gauge the extent that green infrastructure investments can incentivize socio-economic activity. During this process, the postdoctoral fellow will quantify market and non-market socio-economic trade-offs.

Work responsibilities

Duties include research and scientific and popular communication. The researcher is expected to make a leading contribution to high quality research within the scope of this project, as well as take part in complementary collaborative efforts.

Qualifications:
Required:

- Ph.D. in Agricultural, Forest or Resource Economics; Forestry; Biostatistics, or relevant discipline with solid quantitative skills. An applicant should have been awarded a Ph.D. no more than 3 years from the time of application

- Ability to work independently in a multi-disciplinary and multi-cultural environment

- Excellent written and oral English communication skills

Recommended:

- Applied research and practical experience with forest resources

- Demonstrated leadership in scientific methods as lead author in at least one peer-reviewed manuscript (published, or under-review)

- Capacity to work effectively in an inter-disciplinary team environment 

Place of work:
Umeå, Sweden

Form of employment:
Temporary employment, 24 months

Extent:
100%

Starting date:
1 December 2021, or upon agreement

Application:
We welcome your application no later than 2021-10-29, use the button below.

 

The application, written in English, is expected to include:

- A letter of application outlining your motivation for the position and research interests, clearly describing required and desired qualifications

- A current CV including a list of publications and oral presentations

- A proposal that addresses suggested avenues of research for this postdoctoral project (no more than 2000 words, excluding references)

- At least two professional references

- Copy of Ph.D. diploma and academic transcripts for all degrees

- Two writing samples (e.g. peer-review journal articles published or under-review)

Academic union representatives:
https://internt.slu.se/en/my-employment/employee-associations/kontaktpersoner-vid-rekrytering/



The Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU) develops the understanding and sustainable use and management of biological natural resources. The university ranks well internationally within its subject areas. SLU is a research-intensive university that also offers unique degree programmes in for example rural development and natural resource management, environmental economics, animal science and landscape architecture.

SLU has just over 3,000 employees, 5,000 students and a turnover of SEK 3 billion. The university has invested heavily in a modern, attractive environment on its campuses in Alnarp, Umeå and Uppsala.

www.slu.se

SLU is an equal opportunity employer.