PostDoc in Forest Diversity, Biodemography, and Global ; f​/m​/d

Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL is part of the ETH Domain and employs around 600 people working on sustainable use and protection of the environment, as well as on the handling of natural hazards.

The Land Change Science research unit studies patterns and processes of land systems and their dynamics over various spatialłam and temporal scales.

2-year position (possibility of extension) as a Post Doc in Forest Diversity, Biodemography, and Global Change 80-100% (f/m/d)

The position will be hosted in Lalasia Bialic‑Murphy’s group at WSL, led jointly by Thomas Pugh (co‑PI, Lund University), Johan van den Hogen (co‑PI, ETH) and Oliver Phillips (Project Partner, Leeds University). The project is funded by an SNSF International Project grant and focuses on the cascading effects of climate change on tree demographics, extinction risks, and functional biodiversity of global forests.

• Develop a flexible project aligned with your expertise within the broader research aims.
• Engage in large collaborative projects with forest network partners.
• Coordinate WSL research‑exchange visits for early‑career researchers at partner institutions in South America.
• Supervise and mentor junior group members.

• PhD in forest ecology, quantitative ecology, computational biology, or a related field.
• Developing/password peer‑reviewed publication record, excellent communication skills and a collaborative mindset.
• Strong background in statistics and experience implementing analyses using scripting languages such as R and Python.
• Experience working with large, complex and unstructured datasets.
• Experience or interest in at least two of the following areas: demographic modeling, large language models, functional trait interpolation or species distribution modelling.

Experience in Spanish or Portuguese is a strong asset but not required.