Earth Fellow: Forest and Peatland Programme research protocol development

University of Edinburgh; City of Edinburgh; On-site; GBP 30,000 - 34,000; Part time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive salary

Staff benefits and flexible work

Co-working space and networking

Job summary

University of Edinburgh invites a postgraduate Earth Fellow to develop and implement research protocols for monitoring innovative ecosystem trials at Forest and Peatland sites. This part-time, fixed-term role spans 9 months from November 2026, with a pro rata salary and 9 hours per week commitment.

The Earth Fellow will join a diverse team addressing climate change through research-led impact, collaboration, and global solutions, with access to co-working space and professional development

Qualifications

• Postgraduate student currently enrolled at University of Edinburgh.
• Experience in environmental science, ecology, or related fields.
• Ability to develop and implement experimental methods.

Responsibilities

• Develop research protocols for ecosystem trials.
• Monitor four interventions with potential control plots and observations.
• Engage in data collection and analysis for climate-related research.

Skills

Research protocol design

Data collection

Interdisciplinary collaboration

Teamwork

Scientific writing

Education

Postgraduate student (Masters) at University of Edinburgh

Job description

Grade UE05: £29,588-£33,951 per annum, pro rata

Edinburgh Earth Initiative / Department for Social Responsibility and Sustainability

Part-time: 9 hours per week

Fixed-term: 9 months from November 2026

The Opportunity

The Department for Social Responsibility and Sustainability is looking for a postgraduate student to develop research protocols for monitoring innovative ecosystem trials at one of the University’s Forest and Peatland programme planting sites. This 9-month project will monitor four different innovative interventions, potentially using control plots, plant growth observations and remote sensing data.

As an Earth Fellow, you will be joining a diverse, fun and dynamic team of researchers, students and staff all working together to address the global climate emergency. As part of the Earth Fellows programme, you will have access to co-working space, exciting networking and personal development opportunities and opportunities to contribute towards partnerships and solutions for climate change on a global scale.

Earth Fellows work on individual and team-based projects which contribute to the University of Edinburgh and Edinburgh Earth Initiative’s work on climate change research-led impact, innovation, engagement, and teaching.

Please refer to both the project brief and job description when outlining your skills and experience in your application.

This post will be appointed at Grade UE05, step 1 which is £29,588 per annum, pro rata (£16.21 per hour).

Earth Fellowships are only open to current postgraduate and PhD students at the University of Edinburgh based in the UK. Please do not apply if you are not a current University of Edinburgh student.

Your skills and attributes for success:

• Current University of Edinburgh postgraduate (masters) student in the ‘26/’27 academic year.
• Background in environmental science, chemistry, ecology and/or biology.
• Knowledge of soil nutrient cycles, soil structure, and soil-microbe interactions.
• Knowledge of agronomy and/or forestry: experience in plant science, specifically relating to trees and forest ecology.
• Understanding in how to develop scientific methods/approaches to assess different land managements in relation to forestry, woodland creation, crops and/or vegetation.
• Evidence of strong collaborative skills for interdisciplinary work.
• Expertise in scientific protocol development and implementation (desirable).
• Demonstrable skills for data collection and interpretation (desirable).
• In-depth understanding of experimental methodologies linked to ecosystem services (desirable).
• Knowledge of biochar and mycorrhizal systems (desirable).

As a valued member of our team you can expect:

• A competitive salary.
• An exciting, positive, creative, challenging and rewarding place to work.
• To be part of a diverse and vibrant international community.
• Comprehensive Staff Benefits, including generous annual leave entitlement, a defined benefits pension scheme, a wide range of staff discounts, family-friendly initiatives, and flexible work options. Check out the full list on our staff benefits page (opens in a new tab) and use our reward calculator to discover the value of your pay and benefits.

Championing equality, diversity, and inclusion

The University of Edinburgh holds a Silver Athena SWAN award in recognition of our commitment to advance gender equality in higher education. We are members of the Race Equality Charter and we are also Stonewall Scotland Diversity Champions, actively promoting LGBT equality.

Prior to any employment commencing with the University you will be required to evidence your right to work in the UK. Further information is available on our right to work webpages (opens new browser tab).

The University is unable to sponsor the employment of international workers in this role. International applicants will therefore be unable to apply for and secure a Skilled Worker visa. They will only be able to take up this role if they can demonstrate an alternative right to work in the UK.

Key dates to note

The closing date for application is 27 October 2026.

Unless stated otherwise the closing time for applications is 11:59pm GMT. If you are applying outside the UK the closing time on our adverts automatically adjusts to your browser’s local time zone.

Interview dates to be confirmed.