I am seeking two graduate students to start Fall 2016 to work on questions in urban ecosystem ecology, green infrastructure, and urban ecosystem service assessment at the University of Maryland. I am seeking students for each of the following projects:
(1) A MS student to join an interdisciplinary team working on an NSF funded Dynamics of Coupled Natural and Human Systems project titled "Coupled Networks in Urbanized Landscapes: Linking Ecosystem Services and Governance for Water Sustainability. The project links ecohydrologic and social science approaches to understand and improve linkages between ecosystem services and governance for water sustainability and will evaluate the function and adoption of water harvesting systems in semi-arid cities. The candidate will develop maps and conduct assessments of ecosystem service supply and demand in cities in Arizona the student will use a variety of methods and data sources, including, surveys, literature review, and modeling approaches. There will be opportunities to work with stakeholders in semi-arid cities, to collaborate with hydrologists and policy experts, and to travel to Arizona for research purposes. This position requires a background in environmental science, ecohydrology, ecosystem ecology, environmental statistics, geography or related fields. Expertise in Geographical Information Systems (GIS), remote sensing, and explicit skills in data analysis and modeling is required; experience with ecosystem service assessment and stakeholder survey methods is desirable. (2) A PhD or MS student (PhD preferred) to develop field and lab research projects in the Chesapeake Watershed to answer questions about the drivers of ecosystem function in urban environments, with a particular emphasis on linking soil quality, urban hydrology, and ecosystem function and services. The lab investigates biogeochemical and ecohydrologic responses of green infrastructure, urban soils, and urban forests, and collaborates with hydrologists, engineers, landscape architects, geographers, and planners. These projects and positions will be part of a new University of Maryland Center for Sustainability in the Built Environment that links research in energy, environment, and water resources associated with the built environment. The candidate will connect observations of existing urban green infrastructure with new experiments to explore abiotic and biotic drivers of urban biogeochemistry and ecosystem service provision. Applicants should have a degree in ecology, environmental science, soil science, geography, or closely related field (an MS degree is required for the PhD program). Experience in soils, biogeochemistry, hydrology, use of sensors and data loggers, ecosystem service assessment, or remote sensing approaches are desired. Interest in interdisciplinary collaboration is also strongly desired. Successful applicants will be self-motivated and able to work well in teams. Experience in field data collection and analysis with spatial and statistical software (e.g., ArcGIS, SAS, R) is required. The students would be enrolled in the Department of Environmental Science and Technology at the University of Maryland. See program websites for more information on application and program details (http://enst.umd.edu and http://enst.umd.edu/graduate). Assistantships include a full tuition waiver, salary, and benefits - the students would start in Fall 2016. For details on the projects or assistantships, contact Dr. Mitchell Pavao-Zuckerman <mpzuc...@umd.edu> or visit http://pavao-zuckerman.wordpress.com/
