We are seeking applications for a 2.5 year postdoc position in the field of remote sensing of ecosystem fragmentation and scaling of spectral diversity to join us in the Section of Ecoinformatics and Biodiversity at the Department of Biology, Aarhus University, Denmark.
Biodiversity loss threatens ecosystem stability and function, vital for sustainable agriculture and ecosystem services. Failure to monitor and restore biodiversity jeopardizes food security, climate resilience, and societal benefits, prompting the need for advanced monitoring tools and interdisciplinary approaches. The successful applicant will be working on multispectral imaging and imaging spectroscopy across scales as part of the project SABiOS: guiding Sustainable Agriculture and Biodiversity management with earth Observing Satellites. This interdisciplinary research project aims to deepen our understanding of the spatial scale in ecological remote sensing with the aim to monitor biodiversity and sustainability in agriculture dominated landscapes.
This postdoc project is part of the Center for Landscape Research in Sustainable Agricultural Futures (Land-CRAFT).

JOB DESCRIPTION

This Postdoc position broadly aims at understanding the spatial scaling and fragmentation of vegetation spectral diversity across natural and human modified landscapes in Denmark and Europe. The goal is to quantify the typical length scales and multiscale variation of spectral diversity using multispectral imaging and imaging spectroscopy. The successful candidate will be addressing research questions such as:
Q1: What are the typical length scales of remotely sensed spectral surface properties and how do they vary across agricultural and natural ecosystems?
Q2: What does the spectral diversity based on local variation and spatial turnover across spatial scales tell us about ecosystem fragmentation and integrity?
To this purpose, the Postdoc will be expected to combine multiple remote sensing techniques across scales. Possibilities are to use a multispectral drone to characterize high-resolution (10-20 cm) spectral diversity at site-level in Denmark, and to work with upcoming acquisitions of airborne imaging spectroscopy data using AVIRIS-4 at about 1 m spatial resolution. These measurements at site-level could be calibrated and scaled with multispectral satellite data from Sentinel-2 (S2) at 10-20 m. The upscaling could first be applied across Denmark and then across Europe, for example using Google Earth Engine. Additional scaling and intercomparisons are expected to include the integration of spaceborne imaging spectroscopy, for example from EnMap and PRISMA. The postdoc is expected to investigate dimensionality reduction techniques of the spectral datasets, and to test the use of spectral indices, to select the 3-5 most important components to calculate spectral diversity.

YOUR PROFILE

We are seeking highly motivated Postdoc candidates interested in a scientific career. The applicant should hold an internal fascination for the topic, be independent, have excellent writing skills, and should be enthusiastic about working in an interdisciplinary and international academic environment.

Applicants should hold a PhD degree within Earth system science, geography, biology/ecology, computer science or similar, and have experience with:

• Geospatial and statistical analyses of remote sensing and ecological data.
• Good programming skills, ideally using R, Python, Matlab, or similar.
• Multispectral remote sensing, and ideally with imaging spectroscopy.
• Biogeography, ecosystem or biodiversity science, ideally including an understanding of the concept of vegetation spectral diversity.

We expect the candidate to have strong knowledge and/or strong interest in remote sensing, sustainability and biodiversity, data science and agricultural and natural systems in Danish or European landscapes.
Important personal qualities are to be creative, good at problem-solving, a team-worker, independent, well structured, and keen to work across disciplines and societal sectors. Very good oral and written communication skills in English (fluent English) are expected.
Holding a B driver’s license is an advantage.

WHO WE ARE

This Postdoc position will be part of the Center for Landscape Research in Sustainable Agricultural Futures (Land-CRAFT) with the vision to provide a novel framework that tests and assesses the sustainability of agricultural production, both within Denmark and globally. The candidate will be part of the Section for Ecoinformatics and Biodiversity (ECOINF), Department of Biology.
Assistant Prof. Fabian D. Schneider will be the main supervisor, who is the theme leader of Digital Landscape Analysis in Land-CRAFT, under guidance of Prof. Signe Normand, who is Co-PI of Land-CRAFT and director of the Center for Sustainable Landscapes under Global Change.
ECOINF harbours strong expertise in macroecology, remote sensing, multitaxon ecology, and broadly in ecology and biodiversity. The section constitutes an ambitious, collaborative, interdisciplinary, and highly international research community. Multiple local and international collaborators will be included where relevant. Postdocs and PhD students are encouraged to collaborate within the group, across departments, and with other universities.

CONTACT INFORMATION

Applicants seeking further information are invited to contact: Tenure-Track Assistant Professor Fabian D. Schneider, e-mail: fabian.schneider@bio.au.dk; or Professor Signe Normand, e-mail: signe.normand@bio.au.dk

Please refer the Job description for details