research effort to better understand the effects of air-pollution on
land ecosystems. Using a global carbon-nitrogen cycle ecosystem model,
the project will exploit ecological data bases and/or ecophysiological
theory to improve the representation of critical plant physiological
processes and plant-soil interactions. The improved model will then be
evaluated using results of ecosystem studies and manipulation
experiments and used to estimate the likely present-day and future
effects of air pollution on terrestrial carbon sequestration and
reactive nitrogen losses.
The project would be most suited to students with a background in a
quantitative science (e.g. geo-ecology, environmental science,
biology, applied mathematics, physics, and computer science) with an
interest in applying their expertise to terrestrial ecology and global
change research and numerical modelling. The project will involve
mainly data analyses and computer simulation modelling.
The position will be in the Department of Biogeochemical Systems
(http://www.bgc-jena.mpg.de/bgc-systems/index.shtml). The successful
applicant is encouraged to apply for admission to the International
Max Planck Research School for Global Biogeochemical Cycles, a
structured PhD program that offers complementary courses and other
helpful additions to the thesis project. For detailed information, see
www.imprs-gbgc.de. The conditions of employment, including upgrades
and duration follow the rules of the Max Planck Society for the
Advancement of Sciences and those of the German civil service. The Max
Planck Society seeks to increase the number of women in those areas
where they are underrepresented and therefore explicitly encourages
women to apply. The Max Planck Society is committed to employing more
handicapped individuals and especially encourages them to apply.
Please send your applications including letter of interest, and CV,
and the names and contact information of one or two references either
via email to szaehle@bgc-jena.mpg.de, or directly to the institute’s
address Max-Planck-Institut für Biogeochemie, Postfach 10 01 64, 07701
Jena, Germany by the 30th September 2011.