Tenure-track position on vegetated coastal ecosystems and blue carbon

The Department of Ecoscience, Aarhus University, invites applications for a tenure-track position on coastal and marine vegetated habitats focusing particularly on carbon and nutrient cycling and storage and related management aspects.
 

Expected start date and duration of employment

The position is available from 1. June 2025.
 

Job description

Marine vegetated ecosystems are biodiversity hotspots, support carbon storage, so-called blue carbon, retain nutrients, protect the coastlines and offer additional ecosystem functions. The position is linked to national and international collaborative projects, to explore the role of marine vegetation in carbon and nutrient cycling and storage, and the potential of protection and restoration of these habitats to serve as nature-based solutions to address the combined biodiversity-, eutrophication and climate crisis. Projects include the EU LIFE project “CoastalLIFE” on coastal zone management in Denmark, a blue task under the European Environmental Agency, a EU Horizon project (POMP) on Arctic blue carbon as well as cross-disciplinary aspects of coastal management.
You are expected to contribute to field- and laboratory work on marine vegetation ecology and sediment stocks and -sequestration rates of carbon and nitrogen. Data analysis, including bioinformatic- and statistical analyses, as well as communication of results in scientific papers and broader scale dissemination are also important components of the work. The position also involves project management and contribution to mapping, monitoring and management strategies for Nordic vegetated habitats. You are also expected to contribute to the supervision of students.
 

Your profile

We are seeking a candidate who holds a Ph.D. in Biology or Environmental Sciences and has a strong background with documented scientific experience on vegetated coastal ecosystems in the Nordic region. Specifically, the candidate should possess scientific expertise on seagrass and saltmarsh blue carbon and sediment nutrient storage.
In addition to hands-on experience, the successful candidate should be well-versed in data analysis, including the application of multivariate statistical techniques, time series analyses, and familiarity with general linear and additive models, Geographical Information Systems (GIS) and spatial analysis. Furthermore, a deep understanding of palaeoecological interpretation of sedimentary data is an advantage.

The candidate should also have experience and interest in managerial aspects of marine vegetated habitats including possibilities and limitations of the protection and restoration of these habitats to serve as nature-based solutions to address the combined biodiversity- and climate crisis.
Moreover, the candidate should have a track record of supervising and mentoring bachelor- and graduate students.
Fluency in spoken and written English is expected. Finally, the candidate should enjoy working as part of a large team on collaborative projects and be capable of working independently.
 

Who we are

The Section of Marin Ecology at the Department of Ecoscience work with research, innovation, consultancy and monitoring, as well as popular research communication and education mainly related to the marine coastal zone, particularly in Denmark and Greenland. The main purpose of our research and advisory activities is to promote sustainable use of the coastal zone, e.g. by developing nature-based solutions in the field of algae cultivation, conservation/restoration of plant societies (seagrass, seaweed forests, etc.), consultancy on biogeochemical turnover and storage of carbon and nutrients, as well as technological developments in management and research.
 

What we offer

• Access to a welldeveloped research infrastructure
• Office Space and shared equipment
• A research climate inviting lively, open and critical discussion within and across different fields of research
• A working environment with teamwork, close working relations, network activities among young scientists and social activities
• A workplace characterized by professionalism, equality and a healthy worklife balance

Place of work and area of employment

The Department of Ecoscience (https://ecos.au.dk/en/) is organized under the Faculty of Technical Sciences and studies life in all respects. We teach, provide consultancy and research in life; right from bacteria to whales over genes to ecosystems and from basic research to applied biology in nature management and biotechnology. The Department has approximately 300 staff members, just over 100 working in Roskilde, and 200 in Aarhus. The applicant will join the Department of Ecoscience in Aarhus Campus.
 

Contact information

For further information, please contact: Professor Dorte Krause-Jensen, +4561860618, [email protected]

 

Deadline

Applications must be received no later than 16.12.2024.

Ensuring gender balance at the Department of is a high priority at Aarhus University, and therefore, we particularly encourage women to apply for this position. No candidate will be given preferential treatment, and all applicants will be assessed on the basis of their qualifications for the position in question.
 


Technical Sciences Tenure Track

Aarhus University offers talented scientists from around the world attractive career perspectives via the Technical Sciences Tenure Track Programme. Highly qualified candidates are appointed as Researcher for a period of six years with the prospect of performance- based advancement to a tenured position as Senior Researcher.

The aim of the Technical Sciences Tenure Track Programme is to:

• attract outstanding talented individuals that are competitive at an international level
• to promote the early development of independent research success early in the career of scientists
• to create transparency in the academic career path

As part of the tenure track position, the candidate is offered:

• access to research infrastructure
• capability development, including postgraduate teacher training
• a mentoring programme
• support to develop scientific networks and to secure interdisciplinary research at the highest level

As part of the Aarhus University Tenure Track Programme, the University carries out a mid-way evaluation to review the progress of the tenure track candidate after three years, according to the same criteria used in the final tenure review. The final tenure review is conducted after five and a half years. If the review is positive, the candidate will be offered a tenured position as Senior Researcher at Aarhus University.

Please refer to the tenure track guidelines for the tenure review criteria and for the tenure review process.


Application procedure

Shortlisting is used. This means that after the deadline for applications – and with the assistance from the assessment committee chairman, and the assessment committee if necessary, – the head of department selects the candidates to be evaluated. The selection is made on the basis of an assessment of who of the candidates are most relevant considering the requirements of the advertisement. All applicants will be notified within 6 weeks whether or not their applications have been sent to an expert assessment committee for evaluation. The selected applicants will be informed about the composition of the committee and will receive his/her assessment. Once the recruitment process is completed a final letter of rejection is sent to the deselected applicants.


Letter of reference

If you want a referee to upload a letter of reference on your behalf, please state the referee’s contact information when you submit your application. We strongly recommend that you make an agreement with the person in question before you enter the referee’s contact information, and that you ensure that the referee has enough time to write the letter of reference before the application deadline.
Unfortunately, it is not possible to ensure that letters of reference received after the application deadline will be taken into consideration.


Formalities and salary range

Technical Sciences refers to the Ministerial Order on the Appointment of Academic Staff at Danish Universities under the Danish Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation.
The application must be in English and include a curriculum vitae, degree certificate, a complete list of publications, a statement of future research plans and information about research activities, teaching portfolio and verified information on previous teaching experience (if any). Guidelines for applicants can be found here.

Appointment shall be in accordance with the collective labour agreement between the Danish Ministry of Taxation and the Danish Confederation of Professional Associations. Further information on qualification requirements and job content may be found in the Memorandum on Job Structure for Academic Staff at Danish Universities.

Salary depends on seniority as agreed between the Danish Ministry of Taxation and the Confederation of Professional Associations.

Aarhus University’s ambition is to be an attractive and inspiring workplace for all and to foster a culture in which each individual has opportunities to thrive, achieve and develop. We view equality and diversity as assets, and we welcome all applicants.

Research activities will be evaluated in relation to actual research time. Thus, we encourage applicants to specify periods of leave without research activities, in order to be able to subtract these periods from the span of the scientific career during the evaluation of scientific productivity.

Aarhus University offers a broad variety of services for international researchers and accompanying families, including relocation service and career counselling to expat partners. Read more here. Please find more information about entering and working in Denmark here.

The application must be submitted via Aarhus University’s recruitment system, which can be accessed under the job advertisement on Aarhus University's website.
 


Aarhus University

Aarhus University is an academically diverse and research-intensive university with a strong commitment to high-quality research and education and the development of society nationally and globally. The university offers an inspiring research and teaching environment to its 38,000 students (FTEs) and 8,300 employees, and has an annual revenues of EUR 935 million. Learn more at www.international.au.dk/