Employment & Opportunities

Jobs at UBC - Climate Emergency

Deadline to apply: June 20, 2021

In response to UBC’s Climate Emergency Declaration, a Climate Emergency Task Force (CETF), consisting of UBC students, faculty and staff from both Vancouver and Okanagan campuses, was assembled and asked to oversee an extensive community consultation process in 2020. The Task Force, with support from working groups, synthesized the Engagement Report findings into 9 strategic priorities and 28 recommendations. The strategic priorities span the community, academic (teaching, learning and research) and operational dimensions of the university. Climate Justice is a core theme woven throughout the strategic priority areas and of the recommendations.

The CETF priority areas and recommendations have connections to many UBC plans and strategies including UBC’s Strategic Plan, 20-Year Sustainability Strategy, Indigenous Strategic Plan, Global Engagement Strategy, Wellbeing Strategic Framework, Inclusion Action Plan, emerging Student Strategic Plan, Employment Equity Plan, and divestment commitments, among others. The UBC Sustainability Initiative, in partnership with the UBCO Provost Office, will play the role of convening, coordinating and tracking implementation planning of the CETF strategic priorities and recommendations.

1. Senior Project Manager, Climate Emergency Coordination: The Senior Project Manager is a cross-functional two-year term position that will support the CETF implementation by providing strategic support across all facets of the university to ensure coordinated, coherent, measured change in priority areas in a manner that engages members of the community and key leaders across institutional units on both campuses.
2. Project Coordinator, Climate Emergency Coordination: The Project Coordinator is a cross-functional two-year term position that will support the Senior Project Manager, Climate Emergency Coordination,  with CETF implementation by providing strategic support across all facets of the university to ensure coordinated, coherent, implementation.

PhD Position in High Altitude Lakes & Climate Changes - University Lausanne, Switzerland

University Lausanne has an open PhD position in the analysis and projections of high altitudes lakes responses to climate change. Part of the work includes interactions with local managers (French National Parks).

Expected start date in position : 01.10.2021 or later
Contract length : 1 year, renewable 2 x 2 years, maximum 5 years
Activity rate : 80% – can be completed by teaching duties. The contract implies a 25% service duty.
Workplace : Lausanne – Mouline (Géopolis)

The successful applicant’s main responsibility will consist in addressing the singularity of high-altitude lakes physical and biogeochemical responses to climate change. The research will benefit from a unique high-frequency dataset from high-altitude lakes from the French and Swiss Alps, including long-term pilot sites. The candidate is expected to complete sampling on pilot sites, and to perform the analysis of long-term and spatial datasets, using statistical and machine-learning techniques, along with modelling. The PhD candidate will be co-supervised by Dr. Bouffard (EAWAG).

Click here for more information and to apply.

Fisheries scientist for the ecological modelling of fish populations and their responses to environmental impacts - BadenWürttemberg

A five-year research post is offered at the Fisheries Research station of the Agricultural center for cattle, grassland, dairy, game and fisheries of BadenWürttemberg (LAZBW) in Langenargen, Germany.

River engineering works, such as water power plants or alterations for flood control, heavily impact freshwater ecosystems and fish populations. In addition, climate change, new fish diseases, and invasive species offer further challenges to native fish stocks. For these reasons, it is becoming more and more challenging to conserve or establish self-sustaining populations of highly endangered fish species but also to preserve relatively intact fish stocks at natural levels that support fisheries and maintain ecosystem functions. It is thus imperative to identify and rank effective and long-lasting fisheries management options.

This is where the outlined project jumps in, and the researcher is required to apply advanced ecological modeling techniques to address two main objectives. First, extensive time series of fishing records and accompanying environmental information should be analyzed to identify management options that support and improve populations of long- and mid- distance migratory fish species, especially Atlantic salmon. Afterwards, this ranking should be used as a blue print to evaluate possible protection measures for other endangered migratory fish species in the area. Second, population and ecosystem modelling should be used to evaluate the effects of invasive species in selected systems. A rich time series dataset describing fish population and other ecosystem characteristics is available to support this effort.

The results will be used to support local fisheries managers in their efforts to protect endemic fish species as well as to preserve a sustainable use of the local fish stocks for commercial fishermen and anglers.

Expected Qualifications:

• Master degree or equivalent in fisheries and wildlife sciences, ecology, biology or related fields with an emphasis on fish biology; fish ecology; fishery management or related subjects
• PhD in fisheries science or fish ecology with an emphasis on ecological modeling, ideally focused on population modeling and stock assessment
• Five-year work experience in applied fishery research and/or fish stock management
• Several publications as first author in Q1 journals (SCImago Journal Ranking)
• Advanced experience with quantitative methods and advanced ecological modelling (e.g., maximum likelihood and/or Bayesian estimation, time series analysis, and integrated modeling)
• Excellent understanding of project relevant statistical methods
• Experience with relevant software (R, JAGS, STAN, ADMB, TMB) to create scientific and user-friendly models is essential
• Knowledge of native fish fauna in Baden-Württemberg or from regions with similar fish communities is desirable
• Strong capacities for teamwork and ability to closely collaborate with project partners (e.g. fisheries administration, angling clubs, local scientists)
• Excellent knowledge of spoken and written English
• Excellent knowledge of spoken and written English

Review of applications will begin on 25.06.2021. Please send applications (full academic CV, preferably: names of three reputations, one or two representative publication) marked with the relevant reference number 0823/LAZBW/3505 to:

Ministerium für Ernährung, Ländlichen Raum und Verbraucherschutz
Baden-Württemberg
- Personalreferat -
Postfach 10 34 44,
70029 Stuttgart

or via email, with the relevant reference number 0823/LAZBW/3505 as the e-mail subject (as one document formatted as pdf or tif, max. 3 MB) to:

For further information, you are welcome to contact: Alexander Brinker, PD Ph. D. (Fon: 0049 7543 9308324; E-Mail: )

Postdoc position in Holocene abrupt climate change - Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, Colorado University - Boulder

The Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences (CIRES) at the University of Colorado Boulder is seeking a PostDoctoral Associate. The selected candidate will work with Dr. Carrie Morrill on an NSF-funded project examining large-scale temporal and spatial patterns of abrupt climate change during the Holocene. The research will involve aggregating paleoclimate proxy records, quantifying uncertainties, and analyzing proxy time series and climate model simulations using novel mathematical techniques. The position duration is one year, with the possibility of extension for up to two additional years based on funding availability and performance.

Complete position information and application instructions can be found here.