Postdoc in environmental risk assessment of pesticides

The Department of Agroecology at Aarhus University, Denmark, is offering a postdoctoral position in environmental risk assessment of pesticides, starting 15-02-2025 or as soon as possible thereafter. The position will be available for a 3-year period.

You will be part of a research environment focusing on multidisciplinary research developing agent-based system simulation models to predict impacts of management of landscapes, both agricultural and natural across Europe, undertaken by the Social-Ecological Systems Simulation (SESS) Centre. You will be contributing to specifically the area of development of regulatory tools for environmental risk assessment, working within a dynamic and collaborative research environment. And the main focus of your position will be to support the development of a comprehensive repository of mechanistic effect models (MEMs) tailored for use in regulatory environmental risk assessment (ERA). This work is part of the EUBA-EFSA-PREV-2023-01 PERA - Advancing the ERA of Plant Protection Products towards a system-based approach project funded by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA).  The main focus for the position will be to support: 1) Collection and evaluation of existing MEMs (gather and evaluate model suitability for ERA), 2) Categorization of models (classify MEMs into toxicokinetic/toxicodynamic, population and systems models), 3) Assessment and analysis (assess models against criteria guidelines, perform detailed model analyses), 4) Development of protocols (develop updated evaluation criteria), 5) Training and skill development (conduct training courses on the use of MEMs in regulatory risk assessment of pesticides).  

We expect that you will be an important part of the research environment and that you will contribute positively to the social working environment. We also expect that you will report research results in high-impact scientific journals.

Your profile

We are searching for a highly motivated candidate who has

• A PhD in mechanistic effect modelling, regulatory environmental risk assessment, or related fields
• Collaborative skills and ability to participate actively in teams
• A fondness of taking the initiative and the motivation to pursue a scientific career
• Documented experience in scientific writing and publication in peer-reviewed scientific journals
• Research experience in some of the areas of ecology, ecotoxicology or related subjects is expected

• Interest and preferably experience in developing competitive national and international research applications
• Proficiency in programming, including object-oriented paradigms is advantageous, C++ and Python are our main programming languages incorporated in all our research development
• Working in a multidisciplinary and multi-institutional setting requiring good English skills

At SESS, there will be a team focus on subsequent scientific publication that the candidate will need to support. The candidate will also be welcome to participate in other research activities (existing data or new projects) in the local research environment and is encouraged to apply for new projects within SESS research area.

Who we are

At the Department of Agroecology, our main goal is to contribute to sustainable solutions to some of the world’s biggest problems within the areas of soil, plants, animals, humans, and the environment. We want to make a difference by contributing to both fundamental knowledge generation and the attainment of sustainable production systems via innovative research, contracted policy advice, and education. We offer professional laboratories, greenhouses, semi-field, and field-scale research facilities, advanced computing capacities as well as an extensive national and international researcher network.  The department consists of eight research sections with around 320 highly dedicated employees, of which approximately 50% are scientific staff. More information can be found here.

We believe in encouraging inclusion, acceptance, and understanding by employing staff who bring unique perspectives to our department.

What we offer

• An informal and multicultural research environment with high professionalism, where accountability, commitment, helpfulness, flexibility, and close collaboration is a prerequisite solving the core tasks
• A good social environment with activities and routines that make it possible to talk across and strengthen the inclusive relationship, and where mutual trust, respect, kindness, and professional sparring are emphasized
• A flexible workplace with a good work-life balance
• A workplace where we work actively with diversity, equity and inclusion
• An exciting and varied working environment, where two days rarely resemble each other. We are often busy, and we work creatively for solutions to societal challenges

Special benefits when working in Denmark

• Subsidized preschool childcare and a free education system from primary school up to university level
• Universal health insurance as a resident of Denmark, including family members officially residing in Denmark
• Five weeks paid holiday per year
• In connection with childbirth: the right to have a total of 52 weeks shared maternal/paternal leave with full or partial salary pay

Place of work

The place of work is Aarhus University, Campus Aarhus.  The affiliation will be with the Department of Agroecology.

More information can be obtained from Christopher John Topping, cjtecos.au.dk, +4587158845, +4593522503.

Application procedure

Shortlisting is used. This means that after the deadline for applications – and with the assistance from the assessment committee chairman, and the appointment committee if necessary, – the head of department selects the candidates to be evaluated. All applicants will be notified whether or not their applications have been sent to an expert assessment committee for evaluation. The selected applicants will be informed about the composition of the committee, and each applicant is given the opportunity to comment on the part of the assessment that concerns him/her self. Once the recruitment process is completed a final letter of rejection is sent to the deselected applicants.

Letter of reference

If you want a referee to upload a letter of reference on your behalf, please state the referee’s contact information when you submit your application. We strongly recommend that you make an agreement with the person in question before you enter the referee’s contact information, and that you ensure that the referee has enough time to write the letter of reference before the application deadline.

Unfortunately, it is not possible to ensure that letters of reference received after the application deadline will be taken into consideration.

Formalities and salary range

Technical Sciences refers to the Ministerial Order on the Appointment of Academic Staff at Danish Universities under the Danish Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation.

The application must be in English and include a curriculum vitae, degree certificate, a complete list of publications, a statement of future research plans and information about research activities, teaching portfolio and verified information on previous teaching experience (if any). Guidelines for applicants can be found here.

Appointment shall be in accordance with the collective labour agreement between the Danish Ministry of Taxation and the Danish Confederation of Professional Associations. Further information on qualification requirements and job content may be found in the Memorandum on Job Structure for Academic Staff at Danish Universities.

Salary depends on seniority as agreed between the Danish Ministry of Taxation and the Confederation of Professional Associations.

Aarhus University’s ambition is to be an attractive and inspiring workplace for all and to foster a culture in which each individual has opportunities to thrive, achieve and develop. We view equality and diversity as assets, and we welcome all applicants.

Research activities will be evaluated in relation to actual research time. Thus, we encourage applicants to specify periods of leave without research activities, in order to be able to subtract these periods from the span of the scientific career during the evaluation of scientific productivity.

Aarhus University offers a broad variety of services for international researchers and accompanying families, including relocation service and career counselling to expat partners. Read more here. Please find more information about entering and working in Denmark here.

Aarhus University also offers a Junior Researcher Development Programme targeted at career development for postdocs at AU. You can read more about it here.

The application must be submitted via Aarhus University’s recruitment system, which can be accessed under the job advertisement on Aarhus University's website.

Aarhus University

Aarhus University is an academically diverse and research-intensive university with a strong commitment to high-quality research and education and the development of society nationally and globally. The university offers an inspiring research and teaching environment to its 38,000 students (FTEs) and 8,300 employees, and has an annual revenues of EUR 935 million. Learn more at www.international.au.dk/