A PhD project is available at the Blue Carbon Lab at Deakin University’s School of Life and Environmental Sciences to work with A/Prof Peter Macreadie, Dr Paul Carnell and Dr Melissa Wartman.
We are seeking a highly motivated candidate interested in developing an understanding of best practices for Wetland Restoration. Open to international applicants. Successful students will be accepted into the Deakin Doctoral Program. The candidate will be offered a scholarship ($27, 596 p.a. tax free) for three years.
Project Description
The Wetland Restoration project aims to rehabilitate more than 100 ha of our coastal zones, while developing and testing key conservation strategies. It will be delivered over the next 3 years and bring together more than 10 Academic Institutions, NGOS, Catchment Authorities, Government agencies, and Traditional Owners.
The project will look at:
- Successes and failures of previous wetland restoration examples, completing a review of wetland restoration projects
- Carbon accumulation in different salt marsh types
- Before/after restoration biodiversity surveys of flora and fauna
- Integration of hydrological models with ecosystem services
Field work for wetland restoration will take place across Victoria, including Gippsland Lakes, Western Port and Avalon. The candidate will be working on both private and public land, and alongside traditional owners and volunteer groups. This project provides a great opportunity for the candidate to gain experience working with different government agencies and NGOS to develop a network for after the PhD. The student will be based at Deakin University’s Burwood Campus.
Requirements
- The candidate should have a solid work ethic, a deep curiosity about blue carbon and wetland ecology, proven ability to work independently and in a team and strong communication skills.
- Preference will be given to candidates with strong analytical and quantitative skills, and field experience conducting vegetation surveys and identifying plant species.
- Previous experience, publishing in peer-reviewed journals, with statistical analysis of ecological data and GIS and/or database scripting is desirable.
Download PhD position description (pdf) > here
Application Guidelines
Please prepare the following documents, merge them into a single PDF, and email to Dr Melissa Wartman (mel.deakin.bcl@gmail.com).
- CV (2-pages max)
- Brief cover letter (1-page max) outlining your research interests and motivations for applying
*Informal inquiries are welcome and should be directed to Dr Melissa Wartman (mel.deakin.bcl@gmail.com).
Review of applications will begin immediately and be on-going until the right candidate is found. Short-listed candidates will be contacted to set up an interview.
Ideally, the candidate would start as soon as possible, but no later than mid-2019. Unfortunately due to the amount of applications we will receive, we will not provide individual feedback if you are not selected.
