Postdoc in area prioritization for sustainable development of land use in Denmark

We are looking for a highly motivated and dynamic postdoc for a 2-year position from 15 June 2025 or as soon as possible thereafter. The position will be based at the University of Copenhagen in a joint project between the departments of Biology and Geosciences.
The position is offered as part of the project TRANSFORM, which is a multi-partner, transdisciplinary project. 

Our research
The global biodiversity and climate crises have evoked national and supranational goals on biodiversity and GHG emissions. The Kunming-Montreal agreement stipulates 30% of the land and sea area set aside for nature and the EU nature restoration law similarly. In Denmark, the recent “Green Tripartite Agreement” aims at transforming a minimum of 400,000 ha of agricultural land to other land uses, including natural ecosystems, in order to reduce nutrient losses to the aquatic environment, protect groundwater, and to reduce net GHG emission. The TRANSFORM project, and its Work Package 2 in particular, aims at downscaling the spatial demand of international and national policy targets to the national and local scale.
The post doc will work closely with project partners from Aarhus University (Biology and Agroecology), who will develop guidelines for how the environmental impacts of future land uses in Denmark are kept within the planetary boundaries for climate and biogeochemical cycles and area-based biodiversity targets.

Your job and collaborators
The main focus of the postdoc is to obtain an overview of relevant policy targets and geodata and to use this knowledge to define local and regional scenarios for future land uses in compliance with national and international biodiversity, climate and environmental policy targets, including planetary boundaries. The scenarios should be spatialized using a land use allocation model, e.g., Clue-Mondo.
You will work in a highly interdisciplinary setting, in which understanding of ecology, geography and policies is essential. The scientific working environments at biology and geography are vibrant, and you will be part of research groups focused on leveraging data for the green transition.

Associate Professor Martin Rudbeck Jepsen (Geosciences) and professor Hans Henrik Bruun (Biology) are the main advisors of the postdoc project, which is embedded in the TRANSFORM project led by Professor Henrik Vejre (Geosciences).

Your profile
We are looking for a highly skilled and enthusiastic scientist with the following competencies and experience:
Essential experience and skills:
•    You have, or will soon have, a PhD in ecology, geography, environmental science or a related field and a maximum of 4 years post-PhD experience (can be extended for leave of absence)
•    Expertise within quantitative spatial modelling
•    Experience in analysing land use change and areal prioritization using GIS 
•    Experience in programming using Python or R
•    Proficient communication skills and a demonstrated ability to work independently and in teams
•    Excellent English language skills
Desirable experience and skills:
•    Strong knowledge base and research experience in biodiversity and conservation science
•    An excellent publication track-record, including first-author papers in international peer-reviewed journals

Terms of employment
The average weekly working hours are 37 hours per week. The position is fixed-termed for a period of 2 years. Starting date is 15 June 2025 or as soon as possible afterwards.
Salary, pension and other conditions of employment are set in accordance with the Agreement between the Ministry of Taxation and AC (Danish Confederation of Professional Associations) or other relevant organisation. Currently, the monthly salary starts at 38,700 DKK/approx. 5,100 EUR (April 2025 level). Depending on qualifications, a supplement may be negotiated. The employer will pay an additional 17.1 % to your pension fund.

Foreign and Danish applicants may be eligible for tax reductions, if they hold a PhD degree and have not lived in Denmark the last 10 years.

The position is covered by the Job Structure for Academic Staff at Universities 2020. 

Questions
For further information please contact Hans Henrik Bruun ([email protected]) 
Foreign applicants may find this link useful: www.ism.ku.dk (International Staff Mobility). 

Application procedure
Your online application must be submitted in English by clicking ‘Apply now’ below. Furthermore your application must include the following documents/attachments – all in PDF format:
1.    Motivated letter of application, including a research plan outlining how the project could be carried out (max. one pages). The research plan is used only for evaluating the applicant.
2.    CV incl. education, work/research experience, language skills and other skills relevant for the position.
3.    A certified/signed copy of a) PhD certificate and b) Master of Science certificate. If the PhD is not completed, a written statement from the supervisor will do.
4.    List of publications
5.    Full contact details (Name, address, telephone & email) of two professional references (these will only be contacted if the applicant are short-listed). 

Deadline for applications: 27 March 2025, 23:59 CET+1 

We reserve the right not to consider material received after the deadline, and not to consider applications that do not live up to the abovementioned requirements.

The further process
After the expiry of the deadline for applications, the authorized recruitment manager selects applicants for assessment on the advice of the hiring committee. All applicants are then immediately notified whether their application has been passed for assessment by an unbiased assessor. Once the assessment work has been completed each applicant has the opportunity to comment on the part of the assessment that relates to the applicant him/herself. 
You can read about the recruitment process at http://employment.ku.dk/faculty/recruitment-process/ 

The applicant will be assessed according to the Ministerial Order no. 242 of 13 March 2012 on the Appointment of Academic Staff at Universities. 

Interviews are expected to be held from week 15.

The University of Copenhagen wishes to reflect the diversity of society and encourages all qualified candidates to apply regardless of personal background.