Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU) PhD Scholarship 2021 for International Students

Are you interested in dynamic bio-economic modeling? Apply now for this PhD Scholarship.

Application Deadline: 23rd October 2020

About the Award: Faculty of Environmental Sciences and Natural Resource Management (MINA) at Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU) has a vacant 3-year PhD–position related to bio-economic modeling for a sustainable management of dry forests.

The successful candidate will be part of a team of researchers in the project “Towards a climate-smart policy and management framework for conservation and use of dry forest ecosystem services and resources in Ethiopia”.

Dry forests, on which millions of the world’s poorest and most marginalized people depend, are among the most threatened and neglected ecosystems globally.

These forests are the dominant features of the landscapes of most countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, including Ethiopia. Dry forests are under constant threat due to human, natural and climate change-induced factors. On the other hand, conflicting demands for their ecosystem services have been growing.

The aim of this PhD project is to design an integrated analytical framework and develop a decision support tool that enable ex-ante assessments of policies, management measures, resource use plans, and trade-offs and synergies between global environmental, national economic and local livelihood objectives related to dry forest ecosystem services in Sub-Saharan Africa, mainly Ethiopia.

Type: PhD

Eligibility: The successful applicant must meet the conditions defined for admission to a PhD programme at NMBU. The applicant must have an academically relevant education corresponding to a five-year Norwegian degree programme, where 120 credits are at master’s degree level. The applicant must have a documented strong academic background from previous studies and be able to document proficiency in both written and oral English. For more detailed information on the admission criteria please see the PhD Regulations and the relevant PhD programme description. The applicant must document expertise and interest in the research subject.

Required Academic qualifications

• MSc level degree in operational research, economic modeling, natural resource management, applied economics (e.g., agricultural, energy, environmental, forest or natural resource economics), or related disciplines
• Basic knowledge of forestry
• Knowledge in numerical modelling

The following experiences and skills will be considered advantageous:

• Experience in forest or natural resource modelling
• Experience in dynamic programing/optimization
• Experience in the application of integrated assessment models
• Programming skills in GAMS, R or similar programming languages

In addition, the applicant should have the following:

• Capacity to work across scientific disciplines
• Good communication and collaboration skills
• Interest to travel to Ethiopia
• Excellent oral and written command of English
• Strong quantitative and analytical skills

Number of Awards: 1

Value of Award:

• The position is placed in government pay scale position code 1017 PhD. Fellow. PhD. Fellows are normally placed in pay grade 54 (NOK 479.600,-) on the Norwegian Government salary scale upon employment and follow ordinary meriting regulations.
• Employment is conducted according to national guidelines for University and Technical College PhD scholars.

Duration of Award: 3 years

How to Apply: Apply for this job

• It is important to go through the application guidelines and FAQ before applying for this Award
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