Dr. Jeff Kane (https://fwr.humboldt.edu/people/jeffrey-kane) is seeking a highly motivated student interested in joining the Cal Poly Humboldt Fire Lab (https://firelab.humboldt.edu/) and the Humboldt Fire Resilience Institute (https://fireinstitute.humboldt.edu/) to pursue an MS degree in Forestry, Watershed, and Wildland Sciences at Cal Poly Humboldt (http://humboldt.edu/fwr/program/graduate_degrees).
The selected student will be supported by an assistantship to work on a Cal Fire project developing resources (website, pamphlets, briefs) and coordinating workshops and training opportunities related to engaging community members about wildfire related benefits, problems, and solutions in Humboldt County and adjacent regions.
The student’s research project is flexible but likely focused around assessing community resilience to prior or future wildfires in northwestern California/southern Oregon. The selected student must be able to work well independently and in a team setting, assist with other on-going projects, and be willing to travel to regional sites in northwestern California/southern Oregon. Successful candidates must reside in or near Arcata, California over the duration of the assistantship.
Position Duties:
• Assist in developing community fire outreach materials
• Establish connections with community members and groups related to fire and fuels related issues
• Assist in developing and coordinating workshops and webinars for community members
• Lead or coordinate periodic Humboldt Fire Lab demonstrations and tours for community members
• Work closely with the Humboldt Fire Resilience Institute Director and Integrated Fire Education, Training, and Experience program managers to assist with project goals
Minimum Qualifications:
Strong candidates for admission to the Cal Poly Humboldt Department of Forestry, Watershed, and Wildland Science Graduate Program should have a grade point average of 3.0 or greater on a 4.0 scale for all college and university work. There is some flexibility if the candidate has a strong experiential background associated with community fire or a related field. Minimum qualifications include a BS degree completed no later than June 2023 in Forestry, Forest Ecology, Ecology, or related fields.
Additional minimum qualifications include:
• Undergraduate coursework in some combination of forest ecology, fire ecology, fire science/management, and geospatial sciences
• Familiarity and willingness to use common fire behavior and effects modeling programs
• Ability to competently use of ArcMap, ArcPro, or ArcGIS Online programs
• Willingness to learn R or Python coding languages
• Ability to synthesize scientific information and convey in plain language
• Well organized and detail-oriented
• Strong written and oral communication skills
• Possess a valid US driver’s license
Preferred Qualifications:
• Experience developing and posting content for websites
• Experience collecting and analyzing spatial fuels and forest data
• Experience using spatial fire behavior and effects modeling programs
• Experience in using R or Python coding languages
Contact Person Jeff Kane, Contact Phone 707-826-5622, Contact eMail jkane@humboldt.edu
Salary $25,000
Start Date 05/15/2023
Last Date to Apply 01/15/2023