Postdoctoral fellowship in climate science/decision making under uncertainty

Postdoctoral Position in Earth System Analysis to Inform Decisionmaking Department of Geosciences The Pennsylvania State University

A postdoctoral position is available in the Department of Geosciences at the Pennsylvania State University. The successful candidate will join an interdisciplinary research team that analyzes two main questions:

(i) How can paleoclimatic and instrumental records improve our mechanistic understanding of the climate system and inform climate predictions?

(ii) How can this scientific information be used to improve the design of climate-risk managing strategies? The ideal candidate would have a strong background in a field such as Earth system science (e.g., atmospheric science, geosciences, oceanography), Bayesian statistics, or applied mathematics. Interests in decisionmaking under uncertainty and in collaborations involving Earth scientists, statisticians, decision-analysts, economists, and philosophers would be further advantages.

The candidate will have considerable freedom to collaboratively design the research within the scope of the broad questions outlined above.

Possible example projects include uncertainty analysis of climate model projections, decision-analysis of climate change adaptation and mitigation strategies, and risk analysis of proposed geoengineering strategies. The postdoctoral research associate will enjoy opportunities for transdisciplinary research collaboration and professional mentoring by a team of experts in relevant disciplines through the recently-formed Network for Sustainable Climate Risk Management (http://scrimhub.org).

The position is available immediately and will remain open until filled. Initial appointment will be for a period of one year, with excellent possibility of renewal for one or more additional years. The salary will be competitive, commensurate with experience, and will comply with Penn State University guidelines. Successful completion of a background check is required prior to employment. To apply, please email a single PDF file (maximum 10 MB) containing a letter of interest, a CV, reprints of two manuscripts, and contact information for three references to Klaus Keller ( klaus@psu.edu).

The Pennsylvania State University is committed to affirmative action, equal opportunity, and the diversity of its workforce.