PhD Position/Doctoral Fellowship Award - Pollution and food safety (RE-ADVERTISED)

United Nations University Objectives:

The United Nations University (UNU) is an international community of scholars, engaged in research, postgraduate teaching and capacity development and dissemination of knowledge in furthering the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations. The mission of UNU is to contribute, through research and capacity building, to efforts to resolve the pressing global problems that are the concern of the United Nations and its Member States. For more information, please visithttp://unu.edu.

United Nations University-Institute for Environment and Human Security (UNU-EHS):

UNU-EHS, established in December 2003, is part of the UNU system, a worldwide network of Research and Training Institutes. Its mission is to advance human security through knowledge-based approaches to reducing vulnerability and environmental risks. For more information, please visit www.ehs.unu.edu.

DeltAdapt Project

The DeltAdapt project is a BMBF (German Federal Ministry of Education and Research) funded project aiming to explore the socio-ecological sustainability of coastal agro-ecosystems in the Mekong and Red River Delta, Vietnam and their adaptation options to increasing salinity intrusion. The main focus is on management shifts between paddy rice, rice-shrimp farming, and saline aquaculture and the consequences of these on-farm adaptation processes to salinity intrusion on soil quality, biodiversity, climate, and livelihoods. UNU-EHS leads work package 4 on “Pollution and food safety”. The work is based on the assumptions that salinity intrusion as well as directly or indirectly salinity-driven changes in land use and irrigation patterns will influence the application (amount, timing, and spatial distribution) of pesticides and antibiotics in the coastal areas. The different levels of salinity intrusion as well as the related land use may alter the soil properties, and consequently also modify the fate and bioaccumulation processes of these chemicals in the environment.

Responsibilities:

Under the authority of the Director of UNU-EHS and the Head of the Environmental Vulnerability and Ecosystem Services (EVES) section, the successful candidate will be entrusted with the following tasks:

· Field research (e.g. questionnaires, interviews) to understand typical application rates of pesticides and antibiotics used in agriculture and aquaculture in coastal areas of both deltas and to determine recent changes in application rates in the context of increasing salinity intrusion and salinity driven land use changes.

· Field research (sampling, laboratory analysis) to determine typical current pesticide and antibiotic concentrations in coastal soils and sediments of both deltas.

· Research (Laboratory studies, analysis) to determine the effect of different salinity levels on the fate (dissipation, bioaccumulation) of selected, relevant pesticides and antibiotics.

· Research about the effect of land use change on the release and bioaccumulation of these pollutants.

Required qualifications and Experience

· Minimum Masters degree or equivalent in Environmental Sciences, Chemistry, Agricultural Sciences or related fields;

· Experience in analytical chemistry;

· Experience in empirical work linked to social sciences (questionnaire, household interviews) is an asset;

· Excellent command of oral and written English;

· Knowledge of Vietnamese is an asset;

· Willingness and ability to conduct extensive field research in Vietnam, sometimes in remote areas;

· Good team player with strong interpersonal skills demonstrated by the ability to work in a multi-cultural environment.

Stipend:

Stipend of 1,450 EUR per month

Duration of Contract:

The successful candidate will be based at UNU-EHS in Bonn on a full-time basis under the Doctoral Fellowship Award category for a period of 36 months with an initial settlement of 12 months. There will be an evaluation step (performance review of the state and of progress of the PhD studies) after 12 and 24 months. The extension of the contract after 12 and 24 months is based on the evaluation outcome. Extensive stays in Vietnam will also be required.

This is a locally recruited post; no relocation expenses or allowances apply. The successful candidate will be employed under a local contract and will not hold international civil servant status nor be a “staff member” as defined in the United Nations Staff Rules and Regulations.

Applications from suitably qualified women candidates are particularly encouraged.

Application Deadline: Open until position is filled.

Starting Date:as soon as possible

HOW TO APPLY:

Application Procedure:

Interested applicants should submit their applications by e-mail (to hrbonn@vie.unu.edu), and must include the following:

· A cover letter setting out how the qualifications and experience match the requirements of the position;

· A curriculum vitae and a completed and signed UNU Personal History (P.11) form downloadable from the UNU website. Please avoid using similar forms provided by other United Nations organizations;

· An indication of the reference number of the vacancy announcement (2014/UNU/EHS/PhD/09).