PhD Position: Quantification of marine ecosystem services in connection with marine nature restoration

Application deadline: 15 July 2024 at 23:59 hours local Danish time
A 3-year PhD position is available at the Department of Biology, University of Southern Denmark, Denmark. The start date is September 15, 2024.

The PhD position is part of a newly funded Aage V. Jensen project: Quantification of marine Ecosystem Services in connection with Marine nature Restoration (QESMAR). The overall aim of the QESMAR project is to develop a standardized assessment framework to efficiently quantify achieved ecosystem services (ES´s) and make them comparable across different restored habitats. To support this, three PhD projects will be initiated which in collaboration will develop tools to efficiently monitoring and quantify a range of ES’s associated with marine restoration project.

Healthy coastal ecosystems support higher trophic levels through food availability, habitat structures, and physical shelters and support human well-being through food and energy resources, as well as by providing cultural and recreational services. Important ecosystem services (ES’s) provided by marine habitats includes immobilization and transformation of carbon and nutrients, stabilizing sediment, improving the light intensity and water quality, and coastal protection. For Danish waters, primarily eutrophication, but also intensive fisheries, damming, extraction of raw materials, and invasive species have caused severe damage to most coastal waters. Over recent decades, significant efforts have been made to recover coastal marine areas, and restoring marine life is considered doable if major human pressures are mitigated. There is however limited information on the effects of restoration efforts, as long-term monitoring is rarely undertaken. The choice of sampling design and metrics varies between projects making it difficult to compare the success of restoration efforts. It is therefore essential to apply coherent monitoring and reporting of restoration outcomes to enable reliable assessments of restoration success and improve restoration strategies for the future.

This PhD project will focus on ES’s associated with nutrient loading, nutrient storage, growth dependent nutrient uptake, dynamic and cycling coupled to oxygen availability and the development of biodiversity. The study should integrate measurement over extended eutrophication gradients to combine observations at different spatial and temporal scale to map the distribution and abundance of benthic species associated with eelgrass, boulder reefs and biogenic reefs.

Data collection and measurements will be in collaboration with the two other PhD student in the project to enable assessment of the importance of species and habitats for ecosystem health and functioning. Data collection will supplement ongoing restoration projects in Danish coastal waters and will be used to develop metrics for assessment of biodiversity status and rates of ecosystem recovery.

It will be considered as an advantage that the applicant has experience with marine restoration methods, monitoring, and data collection in eelgrass patches, on stone reefs and mussel reefs.

For further information please contact Professor Mogens Flindt: [email protected]
Application deadline: 15 July 2024 at 23:59 hours local Danish time

Application, salary etc.
Appointment as a PhD Research Fellow is for three years. Employment stops automatically at the end of the period. The holder of the scholarship is not allowed to have other paid employment during the three-year period.

The successful applicant will be employed in accordance with the agreement on salaried PhD scholars between the Ministry of Finance and AC (the Danish Confederation of Professional Associations). Please check links for more information on salary and taxation.

The successful candidate will be enrolled at this university in accordance with faculty regulations and the Danish Ministerial Order on the PhD Programme at the Universities (PhD order).

Further information about the PhD-study can be found at the homepage of the University.
The University wishes our staff to reflect the diversity of society and thus welcomes applications from all qualified candidates regardless of personal background.

Application must be in English and made in the form of a Declaration of Interest including the following:

• A research proposal/description of your approach to the above project (max one page excluding references).
• A letter stating your specific interest, motivation, and qualifications for the project in question (max. two pages) (please attach this under box “Application form”).
• Detailed CV, including personal contact information.
• Copies of diplomas, Bachelor as well as Master’s degree, including transcript of notes/grades.
• At least two signed reference letters. Should your referees wish to send their letters directly to us, please have them use e-mail: [email protected] mentioning your name and the title of the position in the subject line. And please note that these also need to reach us before deadline.

Shortlisting may be used in the assessment process.
Incomplete applications and applications received after the deadline will neither be considered nor evaluated. This also applies to reference letters.

Applications will be assessed by an expert assessor/committee. Applicants will be informed of their assessment by the university.

Applications should be sent electronically via the link "Apply now". The faculty expects applicants to read the information "How to apply" before applying. Please note that the application documents should be in pdf-format and attached as three documents: motivation letter, CV and the remaining documents.

We recommend that as an international applicant you take the time to visit Work in Denmark where you will find information and facts about moving to, working and living in Denmark, as well as the International Staff Office at SDU.

Placering: Odense, Denmark