The project
Viticulture, the cultivation of grapes, is among the oldest and most profitable forms of agriculture, but also one of the most intensive forms of agriculture. In the SECBIVIT project (Scenarios for providing multiple ecosystem services and biodiversity in viticultural landscapes), we will explore how to better balance grape production, biodiversity conservation and ecosystem service supply under changing conditions. Viticultural landscapes are influenced by climate change, the invasion of alien (pest) species and market globalisation. These drivers influence land use and policy decisions at the local, landscape and regional level, affecting multiple dimensions of biodiversity, the delivery of ecosystem services and income. In the project, we will develop and test different model frameworks which integrate different land use and biodiversity scenarios across spatial scales for future management in various European viticultural regions.

The three-year BiodivERsA project will start in January 2019. The SECBIVIT consortium encompasses partners from Austria (University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna), Germany (Julius Kühn-Institute - Federal Research Centre for Cultivated Plants; University of Göttingen; University Koblenz-Landau), Spain (Agencia Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas - CSIC), France (French National Institute for Agricultural Research - INRA), the Netherlands (University of Twente), Romania (University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine Cluj-Napoca) and the United States (University of California, Davis).

The position
In the project, you will develop a spatially explicit agent-based model (ABM) on viticulture as a social-ecological system: Winegrowers are agents who take land use decisions and thereby influence the vineyard and surrounding landscape. The status and changes of the vineyards and landscape, in turn, can influence winegrowers’ decision-making. You will start with conceptualising and implementing a generic ABM to discuss it with stakeholders in case study regions located in Spain, France, Germany, Austria and Romania. Based on the outcomes of local focus groups, you will develop locally adapted versions of the generic ABM for the case study regions, also gradually incorporating findings from project partners about major relationships between land management decisions and ecosystem services. For the stakeholder involvement process, you will closely collaborate with our project partners at the University of Göttingen in Germany. You will describe your results in your contributions to SECBIVITs project reports as well as in publications in peer-reviewed journals and on conferences.

We are looking for a creative and motivated candidate. You should have:
- An interest in ecosystem services, agricultural landscapes and the decision-making of farmers.
- A PhD degree in social sciences with a strong interest in environmental sciences or environmental sciences with a strong interest in social sciences. If you have not yet obtained your PhD degree, the PhD thesis has to be submitted before the start of the contract.
- Experience in agent-based modelling using NetLogo or other programming languages.
- Experience in involving stakeholders in research projects, preferably also experience in social science methods such as focus groups and interviews.
- Excellent oral and written English language skills. Working knowledge of German, Spanish, French and/or Romanian is an asset.
- Interest to work in an interdisciplinary and international environment.
- Willingness to travel to SECBIVITs study sites for stakeholder meetings.

More information
For more information you can contact Dr Nina Schwarz (e-mail: [email protected]) or Dr Louise Willemen ([email protected]). You are also invited to visit our homepage.

Please submit your application before October 15, 2018 (choose “apply here” on our website). Please include a detailed Curriculum Vitae, a motivation letter, relevant certificates and the names and contact details of two references.

Job interviews will likely be held during the week of October 29, 2018.

Our offer
We offer you an inspiring multidisciplinary and challenging international and academic environment. The university offers a dynamic ecosystem with enthusiastic colleagues in which internationalisation is an important part of the strategic agenda.

You will be employed for three years. Salary and conditions will be in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement (CAO-NU) of the Dutch Universities.
- Gross monthly salary between € 3545,- and € 4852,- depending on experience and qualifications in case of fulltime employment (job profile Researcher level 3).
- A holiday allowance of 8% of the gross annual salary and a year-end bonus of 8.3%;
- A solid pension scheme;
- Minimum of 41 holiday days in case of full-time employment;
- Professional and personal development programs;
- Costs for moving to Enschede may be reimbursed.

With additional teaching obligations, a full-time position may also be considered. At ITC, SECBIVIT will be run jointly by the departments of Urban and Regional Planning and Geo-Information Management (PGM) and Natural Resources (NRS); the postdoctoral researcher will be based in the PGM department. The project contributes to ITC’s work on Ecosystem Services (itc.nl/ecosystem-services) with opportunities to collaborate on research papers and project proposals.