Last application date Jun 09, 2025 00:00
Department LA20 - Department of Environment
Contract Limited duration
Degree Masters, or Honours, in Bioscience Engineering, Biology, Ecology, Forestry or equivalent in Life or Mathematical Sciences with background in Ecology
Occupancy rate 100%
Vacancy type Research staff
Job description
ABOUT GHENT UNIVERSITY
Ghent University is a world of its own. Employing more than 15.000 people, it is actively involved in education and research, management and administration, as well as technical and social service provision on a daily basis. It is one of the largest, most exciting employers in the area and offers great career opportunities.
With its 11 faculties and more than 85 departments offering state-of-the-art study programmes grounded in research in a wide range of academic fields, Ghent University is a logical choice for its staff and students.
For the Forest & Nature Lab at the Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, we are looking for a m/f/x
Doctoral fellow within the ERC Consolidator Grant project "Novel light regimes and drought effects on temperate forest plant biodiversity (CanopyChange)" https://canopychange.ugent.be/
Project background
Tree canopies are one of the most recognizable features of forests, providing shelter from external influences to a myriad of species that live in the understorey. Canopy disturbances are now accelerating across European forests, and climate-change induced drought is a key driver. These disturbances are opening the canopy and exposing forest biodiversity to no-analog light regimes and drought – light and drought levels they have never been exposed to before. As the majority of forest plant species occur in the shade below tree canopies, the combination of altered light regimes and intensifying droughts can strongly impact forest biodiversity. However, the interactive effects of novel light regimes and drought on temperate forest biodiversity have never been investigated before. Since recent European droughts are unprecedented in the last two millennia, and this has initiated the largest pulse of forest disturbances in almost two centuries, the time to assess impacts on biodiversity is now. The overarching aim of CanopyChange is to quantify, understand and predict the impacts of no-analog light regimes and drought on below-canopy forest plant biodiversity. To address this challenging goal, cross-continental resurveyed vegetation plots, the first pan-European forest disturbance-drought experiment, and a pioneering canopy clipping mesocosm experiment will be combined with an interdisciplinary toolbox drawing from ecology, forestry, and climatology. These data will then feed into cutting-edge joint species distribution models to project European forest plant biodiversity responses to future climate and canopy change.
YOUR JOB
Here we advertise for one PhD position which will be part of the broader CanopyChange project and team. This particular PhD position will focus on a forest disturbance-drought experiment which will be installed at several sites across Europe (WP2; see https://canopychange.ugent.be/) and in Belgium (WP3).
WHAT WE CAN OFFER YOU
- We offer a full-time position as a doctoral fellow, consisting of an initial period of 12 months, which - after a positive evaluation, will be extended to a total maximum of 48 months.
- Your contract will start on 1 Sept. 2025 at the earliest.
- Collaboration in a young and dynamic scientific team.
- The possibility to gain experience in doing scientific research, with many travelling opportunities and field work across Europe.
- The opportunity to obtain a PhD degree at Ghent University in a topical field of applied environmental sciences and climate change.
- The fellowship amount is 100% of the net salary of an AAP member in equal family circumstances. The individual fellowship amount is determined by Team Personnel Administration based on family status and seniority. A grant that meets the conditions and criteria of the regulations for doctoral fellowships is considered free of personal income tax. Click here for more information about our salary scales
- All Ghent University staff members enjoy a number of benefits, such as a wide range of training and education opportunities, 36 days of holiday leave (on an annual basis for a full-time job) supplemented by annual fixed bridge days, bicycle allowance and eco vouchers. Click here for a complete overview of all the staff benefits.
Research Environment
The successful candidate will be based, along with the rest of the CanopyChange team, at the Forest & Nature Lab (www.fornalab.ugent.be) of Ghent University, Belgium. ForNaLab consists of 30 staff members and is headed by professors Kris Verheyen, Lander Baeten, Jan Mertens and Pieter De Frenne. The research group is part of the Department of Environment at the Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University (https://www.ugent.be/bw/environment).
The Forest & Nature Lab aims at understanding the interactions between the ecological processes, composition, and structure of terrestrial ecosystems, with a clear link to management and policy. ForNaLab is actively involved in numerous national and international projects and networks, including FLEUR (www.fleur.ugent.be), forestREplot (www.forestreplot.ugent.be), TreeDivNet (www.treedivnet.ugent.be), PASTFORWARD (https://pastforward.ugent.be/), FORMICA (https://formica.ugent.be/) and CanopyChange (https://canopychange.ugent.be/).
Additional information
For more information, please do not hesitate to contact Prof. Pieter De Frenne, via telephone at
+32 9 264 90 36 or via email at [email protected]
More information on our work and research group is available at http://www.fornalab.ugent.be and at https://canopychange.ugent.be/
Job profile
Job profile
- You have a Masters, or Honours, degree in Bioscience Engineering, Biology, Ecology, Forestry or equivalent degree in Life or Mathematical Sciences with background in Ecology. Also candidates that will obtain their degree in the summer of 2025 are invited to apply.
- You have excellent study grades.
- You have a strong interest in forests, ecology, and climate change.
- You have good knowledge of both the biotic and abiotic components and processes in temperate forest ecosystems.
- You are highly motivated to perform scientific research that involves field work, quantitative data analyses as well as writing scientific publications.
- You are a team player with good communication skills, you like to write and discuss ideas. An excellent knowledge of the English language is required.
- You are highly motivated to work in a collaborative project with other PhD students, postdocs and technical assistants.
How to apply
How to apply
To apply, please send us the following documents, merged into a single PDF file:
- A one-page cover letter outlining your motivation to apply for the position(s)
- Your CV
- A transcript of records
Send this PDF document to [email protected] and [email protected] by 9 June 2025 at 17:00h Central European time.
The interviews with selected applicants will be organized at the end of June and/or the first week of July 2025.
