1 – PhD position in Radar Remote Sensing of Forest:
Ref SLU.ua.2023.2.5.1-1336, Department of Forest Resource Management
The Department of Forest Resource Management conducts education and research in the areas of forest planning, forest remote sensing, forest inventory and sampling, forest mathematical statistics and landscape studies. The department is also responsible for the implementation of the ongoing environmental monitoring programs the National Forest Inventory, National Inventory of the Landscape in Sweden, Terrestrial Habitat Monitoring and the Butterfly and Bumblebee Inventory. In total, we are about 100 employees. Investigating the connections between radar measurements of forest variables and the water content
Background: Radar measurements of forest are impacted by e.g., the geometrical forest properties and the water exchange in trees. The geometrical properties are changing relatively slowly, while the tree water exchange (evapotranspiration) varies both throughout the day and season, and across years. The external forest properties have been and are still extensively researched using, e.g., laser scanning and other sensors, while the internal properties (primarily through the water exchanges) are only since recently undergoing important research.
An improved understanding of how the water exchange in trees and varying weather conditions affect the radar measurements enables improved estimations and a wider use of radar sensors for mapping biomass and other forest variables at global scales with higher accuracy.
This project will contribute to the forest research by making use of proximate radar measurements from the ground and from a tower, and link those measurements with both terrestrial sensors and remote sensing collected from airplanes and satellites. Furthermore, field measurements will be used in combination with the radar meaasurements to generate wall-to-wall estimates.
The project is co-funded by several national projects and is carried out in collaboration with different departments in SLU and other universities in Sweden. The doctoral student will work in the SLU Forest Remote Sensing group in Umeå and will collaborate closely with researchers from other SLU departments and Swedish universities, but the work will also contribute to a large European project and therefore travels within Europe should be expected.
The PhD project will develop models that describe the relationship between forest variables (e.g. biomass ), radar measurements, and water status (both the exchange within trees and through soil moisture). The work inludes data processing, image analysis, statistical modelling, field data collection, scientific writing and oral presentations. The work will be applied to single trees to landscape scales. Research visits to the project partners is possible based on interest.
Qualifications:
Required:
Master degree in Engineering (e.g., Physics, Electrical, Computer science) or similar.
Fluent in English.
Meriting:
- Experience in remote sensing data processing and analysis
- Knowledge of image analysis, signal processing etc.
- Knowledge of machine learning methods
- Knowledge in statistics
- Proficiency in programming (Python, R, C, Matlab etc.)
- Experience of forest or vegetation dynamics
- Driver licence level B (car)
We put a large importance to personal qualities, such as team work, problem-solving and the ability to work independently.
Place of work:
SLU, Umeå.
Form of employment:
Employment as a doctoral student 4 years of education.
Starting date:
According to agreement.
Application:
We welcome your application no later than 2023-05-01, use the button below.
Academic union representatives:
The Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU) is a world-class international university with research, education and environmental assessment within the sciences for sustainable life. Its principal sites are in Alnarp, Umeå and Uppsala, but activities are also conducted at research stations, experimental parks and educational establishments throughout Sweden. We bring together people who have different perspectives, but they all have one and the same goal: to create the best conditions for a sustainable, thriving and better world.
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.
Contact person
Henrik Persson
Researcher, Project leader
+46 90 786 81 05
surname.lastname@slu.se
Jonas Bohlin
Head of Forest Remote Sensing Division
+46 90 786 86 40
surname.lastname@slu.se
2 – PhD position in Remote Sensing of Forest Disturbances:
Ref SLU.ua.2023.2.5.1-1201; Department of Forest Resource Management; The Department of Forest Resource Management conducts education and research in the areas of forest planning, forest remote sensing, forest inventory and sampling, forest mathematical statistics and landscape studies. The department is also responsible for the implementation of the ongoing environmental monitoring programs the National Forest Inventory, National Inventory of the Landscape in Sweden,
Terrestrial Habitat Monitoring and the Butterfly and Bumblebee Inventory. In total, we are about 100 employees. Developing remote sensing techniques for monitoring forest damage and disturbance in a changing climate
Background: The project is “Developing remote sensing techniques for monitoring forest damage and disturbance in a changing climate”. Global warming has triggered forest abiotic and biotic disturbances to an unprecedented intensity in Europe in recent years. Windstorms, drought, insect outbreaks, and forest fires are exacerbated by extreme weather, weakening the forest ecosystem and devastating the sustainable management of forest resources. Such abiotic and biotic threats to the forest under global warming highlight the urgent need for monitoring forest health and disturbance.
This project aims at developing improved remote sensing techniques and methods for monitoring forest disturbance and damages at different scales, caused by, e.g., drought, insect outbreaks, wind storms, and forest fires. New methods and frameworks will be proposed adapting to the new generation of remote sensing data and new needs under climate issues.
The project is co-funded by SLU Forest Damage Centre research school and the Horizon project RESDINET. Therefore, the doctoral student will work in the SLU Department of Forest Resource Management and closely collaborate with researchers from other SLU departments and from Finland and Slovakia through the project RESDINET.
The PhD project will develop remote sensing techniques and methods for mapping and monitoring forest disturbance and damages at different scales. The potential disturbances include forest insects such as European bark beetles, drought, windstorms, and forest fires.
The potential remote sensing data include multispectral and hyperspectral drone images, optical satellite images, laser scanning data, and radar data. The work will include developing automatic methods to extract information from remote sensing data and statistical methods to estimate damages. The analysis will be applied from single trees to landscape scales.
The PhD student is expected to be involved in collecting field data and drone data in southern and potentially northern Sweden, including inventory of tree health status and physiological monitoring. Research visits to the project partners are possible based on interest.
Qualifications:
Required:
- Master degree in Engineering, Computing Science, Forestry, or other relevant subject.
- Fluent in English for communication and scientific writing
Meriting:
Knowledge and experience in
- scientific programming
- remote sensing data processing and analysis
- image analysis, signal processing etc.
- machine learning methods and statistics
- forest damages
- field data collection
- driver licence level B (car)
We put great importance to personal qualities, such as the ability to collaborate, solve problems, and work independently.
Desirable:
• technical skills in electronics
Place of work: SLU, Umea
Form of employment: Employment as a doctoral student 4 years of education
Starting date: According to agreement, preferably the summer of 2023.
Application:
We welcome your application no later than 2023-05-01, use the button below. To qualify for third-cycle (Doctoral) courses and study programmes, you must have a second-cycle (Master’s) qualification. Alternatively, you must have conducted a minimum of four years of full-time study, of which a minimum of one year at second-cycle level.
Please note that applicants invited to interview must submit attested copies of their degree certificate, a transcript of records from previous first and second-cycle studies at a university or higher education institution. Applicants who are not Swedish citizens need to submit an attested copy of their passport’s information page containing their photograph and personal details.
Academic union representatives:
The Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU) is a world-class international university with research, education and environmental assessment within the sciences for sustainable life. Its principal sites are in Alnarp, Umeå and Uppsala, but activities are also conducted at research stations, experimental parks and educational establishments throughout Sweden.
We bring together people who have different perspectives, but they all have one and the same goal: to create the best conditions for a sustainable, thriving and better world.
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.
Contact person
Langning Huo
Researcher, Project leader
+46722059199
firstname.lastname@slu.se
Jonas Bohlin
Head of Forest Remote Sensing Division
+46 90 786 86 40
firstname.lastname@slu.se
3 – PhD position in forest management:
Ref SLU.ua.2023.2.5.1-1193; Southern Swedish Forest Research Centre
SLU is one of the world’s highest ranked universities in several subject areas and is ranked #1 in forestry (CWUR). At our centre we carry out research, teaching and dissemination of scientific findings with direct application to the sustainable management of forests. We have a multidisciplinary profile, with global relevance and specialized expertise on forests and forestry as complex socio-ecological systems.
We closely collaborate with multiple stakeholders and conduct applied research in silviculture, forest ecology, pathology, policy and planning. We teach bachelor, Masters and PhD level courses addressing all of these subject areas. Fertilizers of ash – a new possibility for increasing growth of fast growing broad leafed trees
We are accepting applications for a four-year PhD position at Swedish university of agricultural science (SLU) department of Southern Swedish Forest Research Centre. The project works in close collaboration with Luleå Technical University, forest and energy stakeholders and Center of Excellence (TREES FOR ME).
Description:
Ash recycling to fast growing broadleaf tree plantations might generate 45 TWh/year by 2045 were 30 TWh is made possible through application of ash. Ash recycling is not only increasing production per area unit but also the possible plantation areas by creating an integrated value chain combining residues form cities and countryside with biomass production systems with e.g, poplars and birch.
The project will develop the value chain by problem-solving of key processes i.e., identification of ash properties needed for enhancing biomass production. In addition, laws/rules, techno-economic and environmental aspects is evaluated for realization of the value chain.
The project also develops new actor constellations by intra- and intersectional collaborations that enable a sustainable value chains for ash recycling and biomass production of fast-growing broadleaf tree species (poplars and birch) – an attractive energy and resources efficient chain that can be used nationally and internationally.
We are seeking a highly motivated person to conduct research on recycling of ash – how can ash be transformation into fertilizers and how will this fertilizers influences growth of poplars or birch. The successful candidate will as part of a PhD position conduct research to on analyzing the important ash parameters for increasing growth of poplars and birch trees. This increased understanding is critical to understand the future biomass supply from plantations to industry and combine residues from cities and countryside with biomass production.
For this research, we will use existing data that will be complemented with high-through-put plant phenotyping and establishment of new field experiments. In the project there is a great possibility to include your own ideas and thoughts to the project. The work will consist of both outdoor fieldwork and laboratory work. The selected candidate will join a creative research environment with international colleges.
Qualifications:
As doctoral appointments are career-developing positions, we are looking for candidates with a master degree. The candidate, we are seeking for is a highly motivated person with a master degree in, genetics, plant biotechnology, biomass production, silviculture, forest science, forest management, biology, biostatistics, forest restoration or equivalent, with ideally a focus on genetics, plant physiology, biomass production systems, growth modeling, climate effect on plant growth and plant physiology.
Applicants should also have:
- Excellent verbal and written English
- Knowledge in data analysis and modelling using R, or similar programs
- Ability to contribute to a positive environment in an inclusive and diverse team
- Ability to work independently and in a team
- Taking pride in original and high-quality work
- Experience or an interest in novel technologies
- Works well under pressure and meet deadlines
- Have strategic and creative mindset
- Driver’s license and willingness to perform fieldwork
- Willingness to participate in mentoring undergraduate research
We offer you:
- A stimulating work environment
- Possibility to join a research team
- Possibility to contribute with your skills and personality
- Warried work tasks and great freedom to develop your own ideas together with colleagues.
- Participation in national and international scientific conferences and meetings
- Collaboration with end-users in government and industry
- Mentorship and support in an expanding research team
- Opportunity to contribute novel and original insights to forest management in the face of global change
- Possibility to publish in top ranked journals.
Place of work:
Alnarp
Forms for funding or employment:
Employment (4 years)
Starting date:
According to agreement.
Application:
Click the “Apply” button to submit your application. The deadline is 2023-04-24. Note! We are evaluation applications continues during the application period.
To qualify for third-cycle (Doctoral) courses and study programmes, you must have a second-cycle (Master’s) qualification. Alternatively, you must have conducted a minimum of four years of full-time study, of which a minimum of one year at second-cycle level.
Applicants will be selected based on their written application and CV, degree project, copies of their degree certificate and transcript of records from previous first and second-cycle studies at a university or higher education institution, two personal references, and knowledge of English.
Please note that applicants invited to interview must submit attested copies of their degree certificate, or equivalent, a transcript of records from previous first and second-cycle studies at a university or higher education institution. Applicants who are not Swedish citizens need to submit an attested copy of their passport’s information page containing their photograph and personal details.
Academic union representatives:
The Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU) is a world-class international university with research, education and environmental assessment within the sciences for sustainable life. Its principal sites are in Alnarp, Umeå and Uppsala, but activities are also conducted at research stations, experimental parks and educational establishments throughout Sweden. We bring together people who have different perspectives, but they all have one and the same goal: to create the best conditions for a sustainable, thriving and better world.
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.
Contact person
Henrik Böhlenius
Associate Professor
+46 702796832
4 – PhD position at Forestry Genetics and plant physiology:
Ref SLU.ua.2023.2.5.1-942
The Department of Forest Genetics and Plant Physiology was founded in the late 1970s – when the College of Forestry moved to Umeå. The number of employees has since grown steadily is now around 100, including postdoctoral researchers and postgraduate students. In the late 1990s it was decided to join with the Department of Plant Physiology at Umeå University to form a research center, Umeå Plant Science Centre (UPSC).
The Department of Forest Genetics and Plant Physiology moved into the premises adjacent to the partner department and together have developed a close and successful collaboration on research issues, technology platforms, and training of master’s and doctoral level students. The international element within UPSC is large, with over 40 nationalities represented.
The department conducts introductory and advanced training in plant physiology, ecophysiology, plant molecular biology, forest genetics and forest biotechnology within the Forestry program and at the master level.
The department offers postgraduate studies in biology, specializing in plant physiology, ecophysiology, plant molecular biology and forest genetics. Postgraduate courses are generally held in cooperation with the Department of Plant Physiology. ERC-funded PhD position at SLU: How plants deal with heat and cold at the cellular level
Postgraduate subject: Biology
Description:
Temperatures below or above the physiological optimum for plant growth induce temperature stress, which can cause detrimental and irreversible damage to plant growth and development. While most of the studies to date have focused on big-picture elements of plant responses to climate change, our research will provide insights into the molecular and cellular responses, to improve our mechanistic understanding of plant acclimation to heat and cold stress.
The project will mainly work with the root of the model organism Arabidopsis thaliana. and will combine state-of-the-art approaches, e.g. various microscopy techniques, molecular and cell biology, biochemistry and genetic screens.
Qualifications:
To be admitted for studies at third-cycle level the applicant is required to have completed a second-cycle level degree, or completed course requirements of at least 240 ECTS credits, of which at least 60 ECTS credits are at second-cycle level, or have an equivalent education from overseas, or equivalent qualifications.
The applicant should have a strong interest for plant biology, and a background in plant cell and molecular biology. Previous experience working with Arabidopsis is advantage. The successful candidate is expected to have good social skills and the ability to do research independently, as well as in a team. Furthermore, good oral and writing skills in English are essential qualifications.
Place of work:
Umeå
Forms for funding or employment:
Employment (4 years)
Starting date:
2023-09-01 or as agreed.
Application:
Click the “Apply” button to submit your application. The deadline is 2023-04-15.
To qualify for third-cycle (Doctoral) courses and study programmes, you must have a second-cycle (Master’s) qualification. Alternatively, you must have conducted a minimum of four years of full-time study, of which a minimum of one year at second-cycle level.
Applicants will be selected based on their written application and CV, degree project, copies of their degree certificate and transcript of records from previous first and second-cycle studies at a university or higher education institution, two personal references, and knowledge of English.
Please note that applicants invited to interview must submit attested copies of their degree certificate, a transcript of records from previous first and second-cycle studies at a university or higher education institution. Applicants who are not Swedish citizens need to submit an attested copy of their passport’s information page containing their photograph and personal details.
Academic union representatives:
The Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU) is a world-class international university with research, education and environmental assessment within the sciences for sustainable life. Its principal sites are in Alnarp, Umeå and Uppsala, but activities are also conducted at research stations, experimental parks and educational establishments throughout Sweden. We bring together people who have different perspectives, but they all have one and the same goal: to create the best conditions for a sustainable, thriving and better world.
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.
Contact person
Petra Marhava
Researcher
5 – PhD position, Forest regeneration and belowground competition between trees and seedlings:
Ref SLU.ua.2023.2.5.1-703, Department of Forest Ecology and Management
The advertised position is based in Umeå, Sweden, at the Department of forest ecology and management (Swedish university of agricultural sciencees).
The department includes about 100 people of which 11 are professors. Our mission is to advance the understanding of forest ecosystem processes and to progress the principles of forest ecosystem management. Project title: Forest regeneration and belowground competition between trees and seedlings
Research subject: Biology
Description:
Interest in alternatives to clearcut rotational forest management is growing. But transitioning to various continuous cover forestry systems or closer to nature forestry requires that adequate forest regeneration can be secured without clearcuts and possibly also without conventional site preparation measures.
However, it is common to find very poor seedling growth and several near overstory trees – especially (but not exclusively) in northern pine forests. It has been shown for multiple tree species that shading by overstory canopies cannot fully explain this poor growth, leading to consideration of belowground limitations and competition with larger trees. The current project will use stable isotope labelling techniques to investigate the role of competition for nitrogen.
Specifically, the project will test a hypothesis that competition within ectomycorrhizal networks aggravates the situation for small seedlings near large trees. A series of new large-scale field experiments will be established in the initial phase of the project, and the PhD student will be integral to managing them, and will be the main author on scientific publications of results from them.
The goals of the current project is 1) to test the role of belowground competition via mycorrhizal fungi on seedling establishment, 2) identify where the competition effects are the most severe, and 3) to provide a mechanistic understanding of how and where forest regeneration is hampered by nearby trees. This is crucial if alternatives to current forest management practices are to be developed.
The announced PhD position is fully funded for four years, with the expectation that the student will defend their doctoral thesis at the end of this time period. The successful applicant will work under the supervision of Nils Henriksson, professor Torgny Näsholm, and associate professor Sandra Jämtgård at the department of forest ecology and management (Swedish university of agricultural sciences, Umeå, Sweden).
The PhD student will belong to a research group with broad expertise ranging from plant physiology and nutrition to forest ecophysiology, which will provide both support and opportunities for scientific discussion and exchange. The group has well established expertise in using stable isotope techniques for studying ecophysiological processes in field, greenhouse, and lab environments.
Applications from Sweden and from abroad are welcome.
Qualifications:
Basic requirements
- MSc degree in a relevant subject area (biology, ecology, forest science, ecophysiology etc.)
- Good English communication skills (written and spoken)
- Basic knowledge of statistical software (such as R or JMP) is an advantage
- Strong work ethic
Meritous
- Experience with scientific field studies is an advantage, but not required
- Experience with independent work and organizing your own work schedule
- Comfortable working with others
Place of work:
Umeå
Forms for funding or employment
Employment as PhD student, full time for 4 years
Starting date:
Spring/Summer of 2023
Application:
Click the “Apply” button to submit your application. The deadline is April 20 2023
Applications should be written in English, and include the following:
- CV
- A cover letter, introducing yourself snd your reason for applying for the position
- Short (max 1 page) description of your scientific background, research interests, and how you fulfill the qualifications listed above.
- Copies of degree certificates (or corresponding documents), and other relevant documents and certificates (such as English scores, for instance)
- Names and contact info for two professional references.
To qualify for third-cycle (Doctoral) courses and study programmes, you must have a second-cycle (Master’s) qualification. Alternatively, you must have conducted a minimum of four years of full-time study, of which a minimum of one year at second-cycle level.
Applicants will be selected based on their written application and CV, degree project, copies of their degree certificate and transcript of records from previous first and second-cycle studies at a university or higher education institution, two personal references, and knowledge of English. More information about the English language requirements can be found here:
Please note that applicants invited to interview must submit attested copies of their degree certificate, a transcript of records from previous first and second-cycle studies at a university or higher education institution. Applicants who are not Swedish citizens need to submit an attested copy of their passport’s information page containing their photograph and personal details.
Academic union representatives:
The Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU) is a world-class international university with research, education and environmental assessment within the sciences for sustainable life. Its principal sites are in Alnarp, Umeå and Uppsala, but activities are also conducted at research stations, experimental parks and educational establishments throughout Sweden.
We bring together people who have different perspectives, but they all have one and the same goal: to create the best conditions for a sustainable, thriving and better world. 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.