Project description: The aim of this project is to develop local valuations of coastal ecosystem services for marine habitats in southern Australia, and communicate these to stakeholders using spatial maps and other media. Quantifying the benefits people gain from natural systems will allow the potential impacts of alternative management scenarios to be evaluated, and assessments of the trade-offs between development and different ecosystem services. The project will: (1) develop a series of model-based spatial maps that quantify ecosystem services provided by temperate marine habitats such as saltmarsh, mangroves and seagrass; and (2) value these ecosystem services in terms of social and economic benefits to people using locally relevant valuation methodologies for coastal protection, fisheries, tourism and/or recreation. The project will focus on marine habitats in central Victoria and northern New South Wales. The projects rationale and methodologies are underpinned by the Global Mapping Ocean Wealth project developed by The Nature Conservancy (see http://oceanwealth.org/). This Project is the Australian component of the Global Mapping Ocean Wealth project.
Project environment: The project will be hosted by Deakin Universitys Centre for Integrative Ecology (CIE, http://cie-deakin.com/ ) the School of Life and Environmental Sciences, and supported by a multidisciplinary team including The Nature Conservancy, government agencies, private industry and community groups. The goal of CIEs research is to foster new conceptual understanding that advances fundamental science, while also making innovative contributions to applied conservation and natural resource management, particularly through protection of biodiversity and areas of high conservation value. The project is supervised by academics from Deakin University (Dr Daniel Ierodiaconou, Dr Emily Nicholson and Dr Peter Macreadie) and The Nature Conservancy (Dr Chris Gillies). Expressions of Interest (EOIs): We are seeking EOIs for two Postdoctoral Fellowships (Academic Level A or B) and two fully-funded PhD Scholarships from candidates with outstanding track records in environmental economics, spatial mapping and analysis, and/or ecological modelling, in particular with experience in valuation of ecosystem services and/or process-based ecosystem modelling. The Postdoctoral Fellowships are for 2 years, with potential for an additional 1 year extension. Applicants wishing to be appointed part-time are encouraged to apply. EOIs must consist of a 1-2 page cover letter describing your suitability for the position and track record relative to opportunity, as well as a 2 page CV and relevant questions relating to the position. EOIs can be emailed to nholl...@tnc.org and should be submitted by Wednesday 6 April 2016.
