Postdoctoral Researcher - integrated modeling of agricultural futures

Hiring Organization: Emory University
Employment type: Full-Time
Job Location: Dekalb County, GA
Application Due Date: February 12, 2025

Drs. Emily Burchfield and Eric Lonsdorf at Emory University are hiring a Postdoctoral Researcher to join an interdisciplinary team focused on developing integrated models for assessing agricultural resilience in response to climate change. This position will play a key role in advancing research that combines social, environmental, and climate data to create comprehensive, data-driven insights into how agricultural systems can adapt and thrive under climate pressures. The postdoc will work on a funded project aimed at building an integrated assessment model to inform climate-forward agricultural policy and strengthen regional resilience. Collaborators include the Environmental Defense Fund, University of Georgia and Michigan State University, and the position will be co-supervised by Dr. Eric Lonsdorf and Dr. Emily Burchfield.

The successful candidate will contribute to several key project goals, including the following responsibilities:

  • Assisting in the development of an integrated assessment model to evaluate agricultural resilience under various climate scenarios.
  • Gathering, cleaning, and organizing large datasets for use within an integrated modeling framework, with particular focus on creating high-quality metadata and ensuring interoperability across data sources.
  • Collaborating with team members who specialize in different aspects of the model to integrate social and environmental data effectively.
  • Conducting spatial analyses, predictive modeling, and statistical assessments to support the development of a counter-factual assessment of agricultural vulnerability and an agricultural possibilities frontier.
  • Be a co-PI on a grant building from the integrative model.

Essential Skills:

  • Ph.D. in Environmental Science, Data Science, Agricultural Science, or a related field by the start date.
  • Strong skills in spatial analysis and data integration, with proficiency in coding using R, Python, or MATLAB.
  • Demonstrated experience working with large, complex datasets, ideally within social and environmental contexts.

Preferred Qualifications:

  • Experience with climate data analysis.
  • Familiarity with USDA datasets or previous experience working with U.S. agricultural systems.

Position Details:

Start Date : Flexible but ideally around March 1st, 2024
Location: Environmental Sciences Department, Emory University, Atlanta GA
Term: Initial 15-month appointment with opportunities for additional funding

Interested applicants should submit the following materials:
1. Cover letter outlining relevant skills and experience related to

    (1) data integration,
    (2) spatial analysis and coding,
    (3) climate and agricultural data, and
    (4) experience working with interdisciplinary teams.
2. Curriculum vitae (CV).
3. A writing sample (preferably a journal publication related to data integration or climate resilience in agriculture).
4. Contact information for three references (to be contacted for finalists)

For more information and to apply, please visit this link.

 

 

Eric V Lonsdorf
Assistant Professor
Dept of Environmental Sciences
Emory University

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