The Faculty of Science, the Institute of Environmental Sciences (CML) is looking for 

Assistant/Associate/Full Professors in Environmental Sciences

• 2-3 staff positions in research related to Industrial Ecology; themes Resilient resource supply, Material flows and stocks, Circular economy all related to energy transition
• 2-3 staff positions in research related to Environmental Biology; themes Future urban life, Biodiversity and Ecosystems and Resources.

We are looking for excellent candidates and we offer an attractive research and teaching environment, including scientific independence, a collaborative atmosphere, and the opportunity of a personal career-development track, including mentoring and support. We offer career paths based on a more academic teaching based track and on a more research based track. Also applicants from outside academia that have a track record making them suitable for an academic career, are welcome to apply.

Key responsibilities
The candidate will contribute to both research and teaching, and will also share in other responsibilities of the Institute of Environmental Sciences (CML). Natural science methods such as quantitative scenario based models and system analytical approaches are CML’s core methodologies. CML aspires to be a global leader in strategic, natural science based research on the efficient and circular use of natural resources, safeguarding biodiversity and natural capital while maximizing well-being and keeping emissions of the economic system within planetary boundaries. Creating societal impact in support of a sustainability transition is at the heart of our research activities.

Within the field of Industrial Ecology we look in particular for candidates with a proven track record in life cycle assessment, and/or material flow analysis, (environmental) input output analysis, and/or circular economy, environmental economics, and/or data science, artificial intelligence, and system analytical approaches supporting the understanding how to use materials and products in the most resource-efficient and circular way.

Within the field of Environmental Biology we look in particular for candidates with a proven track record in ecosystem responses to stress ecology, conservation biology, environmental toxicology, urban ecology, ecosystem services and/or proven knowledge on quantitative impact assessments, biodiversity assessments and with a focus on how human activities impact the natural system.

Candidates aspire to excel in their discipline, and have an inherent interest to collaborate within the institute(s) with complementary disciplines. CML has close collaborations established with a.o. the Institute of Biology Leiden, the Leiden Institute for Advanced Computer Sciences, the National Biodiversity Centre Naturalis, and partners in the Leiden-Delft-Erasmus Universities (e.g. https://www.centre-for-sustainability.nl/home that focuses on a circular economy). Candidates are expected to contribute to the teaching programs, which include the Minors Sustainable Development and Biodiversity, the MSc Industrial Ecology (with TU Delft), the MSc Governance and Sustainability (with the Leiden Faculty of Governance and Global Affairs), and the track Biodiversity and sustainability in the MSc Biology. The different positions have a variety of tasks:

Assistant Professor

• Uses her/his research experience to start (co-)supervising (post)doctoral research;
• Executes ambitious research projects, contributes to national and international grant proposals, and has the ambition to acquire personal grants;
• Teaches and improves course components that have already been developed for the curriculum; develops own course components;
• Is willing and able to undertake administrative, managerial and governance tasks within the Institute.

Associate Professor

• Uses her/his research experience to (co-)supervise (post)doctoral research;
• Develops ambitious research programs, writes national and international grant proposals; has the ambition and ideally a proven track record to acquire personal grants;
• Teaches and develops allocated courses of the curriculum; can be (co-)leading education programs;
• Supervises and manages her/his own research team and is willing and able to undertake administrative, managerial and governance tasks within the Institute and the Faculty.

Full Professor

• For the industrial ecology position: preference for a candidate with leadership capacities on integrating data science and artificial intelligence approaches in the industrial ecology field;
• For the environmental biology position: excellence on evaluating human-induced impacts on ecosystem functioning; topics can vary but should fit in the environmental biology field;
• Uses her/his wide-ranging research experience to supervise (post)doctoral research;
• Develops ambitious research programs, leads national and international grant proposals, and supports colleagues in developing their proposals;
• Takes responsibility for the quality of teaching and contributes to improvement and innovation of the BSc and MSc programs;
• Manages a professorial chair and research group and is willing and able to undertake administrative, managerial and governance tasks within the Institute, the Faculty and the University.

Selection criteria

• You hold a PhD degree in a relevant field;
• You have a strong natural science / quantitative profile;
• You show excellence in research, as proven by PhD thesis and publications;
• Depending on entry-level assistant/associate/full professor: you have proven experience with or excellence in academic teaching;
• Depending on entry-level assistant/associate/full professor:
  • you show potential for or proven people leadership;
  • you have potential or proven ability to obtain research grants; 
  • you are a talent in your own field of research / an established talent in your own field of research / an established authority in your own field of research.

Terms and conditions 
The appointment will be at the level of assistant, associate or full professor based on the career level of the candidate. Salary range from €3.974,- to €8.881,- gross per month (pay scales 11-H2), in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities.

Leiden University offers an attractive benefits package with additional holiday (8%) and end-of-year bonuses (8.3%), training and career development and sabbatical leave. Our individual choices model gives you some freedom to assemble your own set of terms and conditions. Candidates from outside the Netherlands may be eligible for a substantial tax break.

Research at our faculty
The Faculty of Science is a world-class faculty where staff and students work together in a dynamic international environment. It is a faculty where personal and academic development are top priorities. Our people are driven by curiosity to expand fundamental knowledge and to look beyond the borders of their own discipline; their aim is to benefit science, and to make a contribution to addressing the major societal challenges of the future.

The research carried out at the Faculty of Science is very diverse, ranging from mathematics, information science, astronomy, physics, chemistry and bio-pharmaceutical sciences to biology and environmental sciences. The research activities are organised in eight institutes. These institutes offer eight bachelor’s and twelve master’s programmes. The faculty has grown strongly in recent years and now has more than 2,300 staff and almost 5,000 students. We are located at the heart of Leiden’s Bio Science Park, one of Europe’s biggest science parks, where university and business life come together.

The environmental science research in CML is organized around two major research areas: ‘Industrial Ecology’ and ‘Environmental Biology’. This makes CML one of the few institutes covering both the circular, sustainable economic use of natural resources and natural capital, as well as assessing the environmental impacts of economic activities on natural resources, biodiversity and natural capital. The various research topics carried out within these themes and in LDE-Centre for Sustainability are ideal for executing interdisciplinary research from a strong monodisciplinary basis.