PhD Candidate in Biodiversity Value Assessment for Energy Transition

Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU); Trondheim; On-site; NOK 520,000 - 600,000; Full time

Job summary

NTNU invites applications for a three-year PhD position at the Gjærevoll Centre for Biodiversity Foresight Analyses. The project links biodiversity modelling, renewable energy and social-ecological systems, with supervision across faculties and NOTRAP.

The candidate will conduct interdisciplinary research, applying field studies, modelling and foresight approaches, and will collaborate with NTNU Energy and the NOTRAP centre to shape policy-relevant insights.

Responsibilities

• Complete the doctoral education until obtaining a doctorate
• Conduct high-quality research within the framework described above
• Produce a high-quality PhD thesis, comprising manuscripts suitable for publication in international peer-reviewed journals
• Disseminate research results to academic and non-academic audiences

Job description

About The Position

A three-year PhD position is available at the Gjærevoll Centre for Biodiversity Foresight Analyses at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU). The position is funded by NTNU Energy and also linked to the VISTA Centre for Norwegian Transformative Energy Policy Development (NOTRAP). The PhD project will explore the societally relevant intersection of biodiversity modelling, renewable energy and social-ecological systems.

About The Project

Holistic efforts to address climate change and biodiversity loss are needed. A major research objective today is to inform a transition to renewable energy that protects areas of high biodiversity value, and the diverse and irreplaceable values nature holds for human society. This work is strengthened by a community-engaged research framework.

The Gjærevoll Centre brings together researchers from the natural sciences, mathematics and statistics, informatics, environmental engineering, economics and the social sciences to understand how biodiversity is affected by human use of land and water. By combining ecological field studies, biodiversity modelling and foresight analyses with perspectives on societal values and governance, the centre aims to produce knowledge and tools that can inform policies and actions to halt biodiversity loss.

The NOTRAP centre contributes to this aim with a focus on the nexus of energy transition and democracy, establishing Energy Policy Incubators for the co-construction of transformative energy policies. Within the PhD project, it is expected that the candidate will link assessment of biodiversity impacts of energy transition pathways with perceived importance of natural habitats by local populations. The position is funded under NTNU Energy's Focus Area 1, The Renewable Revolution. NTNU Energy is NTNU's strategic research area on energy and aims to strengthen energy research that contributes to securing climate-friendly, nature-friendly and fair energy.

The PhD project will investigate synergies between biodiversity value and societal value in areas with contested land or water use related to the energy transition. As an integrative project, it may combine approaches such as ecological fieldwork, biodiversity modelling, participatory and citizen-based mapping of biodiversity and societal values, and social-ecological systems analysis. The candidate will work with the NOTRAP centre to identify and develop links to its activities, including the Energy Policy Incubators.

The main supervisor will be Researcher Irja Ida Ratikainen (Gjærevoll Centre, NTNU). The candidate will have an interdisciplinary supervision team with co-supervisors from the Faculty of Natural Sciences, the Faculty of Engineering and the Faculty of Social and Educational Sciences.

Duties of the position

• Complete the doctoral education until obtaining a doctorate
• Conduct high-quality research within the framework described above
• Produce a high-quality PhD thesis, comprising manuscripts suitable for publication in international peer-reviewed journals
• Disseminate research results to academic and non-academic audiences