How healthy is the subtidal Wadden Sea ecosystem?
The Wadden Sea is a UNESCO world heritage site, renowned for the most extensive intertidal mudflat system in the world. In the ‘Wadden Mosaic’-project, we will investigate the status and functioning of the subtidal habitats and their associated communities of the Dutch Wadden Sea, and test the effectiveness of potential restoration actions. You will contribute to this, by elucidating the spatial structure and distribution of vital subtidal benthic habitats (e.g. biogenic reefs), and by reconstructing the associated food webs using stable isotope analyses. For identification and mapping of subtidal habitats, you will deploy a number of techniques, including side scan sonar and a towed video camera system. In addition to scientifically developing and performing this subproject, you will also co-supervise 4 PhD projects, integrate their results into clear management recommendations, and disseminate these overarching outcomes to a wide audience. All research will be conducted in close collaboration with nature managers.

• you have a PhD degree in marine biology or marine ecology
• you have experience with marine fieldwork and designing field experiments
• you are a real team player, willing to work with a diverse group of researchers, technicians and project stakeholders
• you are willing to co-supervise PhD students
• you have excellent communication skills and are motivated to disseminate results to both scientific peers and a broad audience
• you are willing to consider your research in a conservation perspective
• you have strong quantitative (statistical) and spatial (GIS) skills
• you have an excellent command of the English language (oral and written)
• we have a preference for Dutch-speaking candidates to enhance stakeholder communication.

Fixed-term contract: 12 months.

We offer you in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities:
• a salary of € 3,255 gross per month in the first year, up to a maximum of € 4,274 gross per month (salary scale 10)
• a full-time position (1.0 FTE)
• a holiday allowance of 8% gross annual income
• an 8.3% end-of-the-year allowance
• a temporary position of one year with the option of a three-years extension (4 years in total), conditional on sufficient progress in the first year.

Faculty of Science and Engineering

The University of Groningen is a research university with a global outlook, deeply rooted in Groningen, City of Talent. Quality has been our top priority for over four hundred years, and with success: the University is currently in or around the top 100 on several influential ranking lists.

The Faculty of Science and Engineering (FSE) is the largest faculty within the University. We offer exclusive education and research in a wide range of science and engineering disciplines, from classical disciplines such as mathematics, astronomy and mechanical engineering, to interdisciplinary fields such as artificial intelligence, pharmacy and nanoscience. Our community has an open and informal character with students and staff from around the world. Do you want to become part of it?

Research environment
Research will be performed in the Conservation Ecology group at the Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES), which comprises several other strong, internationally recognized research groups in the field of marine biology and ecology.

The research will be conducted in close collaboration with the Department of Coastal Systems (COS) of the Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research on Texel. The postdoc is also expected to spend considerable time at this world-leading marine institute which hosts a broad network of marine scientists and excellent facilities.

This postdoc is embedded within the “Wadden Mosaic/Waddenmozaïek” project, which is funded by Waddenfonds, Rijkswaterstaat and the three northern Dutch provinces. The project will, for the first time, completely map habitat diversity and biodiversity of the subtidal Dutch Wadden Sea and test conservation and restoration measures that may contribute to the natural recovery of the subtidal Dutch Wadden Sea, a world heritage site. In this project, a postdoc and 4 PhD students will closely collaborate to work towards these goals. Other collaborations will involve a broad range of stakeholders in the Wadden Sea area, incl. project leader Natuurmonumenten.