Job Description

The Associate Research Scientist will focus on interactions between Holocene land use and land cover change in the tropics, with an emphasis on reconstructing interdisciplinary maps of pastoral land use and associated land cover change on Madagascar (c. 2000 BP to present). The Associate Research Scientist will be expected to perform original research in collaboration with a Madagascar-based team, present the results of the research at scientific meetings and to local communities in southwest Madagascar, and publish collaborative first-author and co-authored papers in peer-reviewed journals. The Associate Research Scientist will also co-lead the development of proposals for external research funding.The Associate Research Scientist should have extensive expertise in the development of species distribution models using paleoecological, archaeological, and land use information; advanced understanding of human livelihoods and their interactions with vegetation change, with a specific focus on disturbance dynamics such as fire, and herbivory patterns. The Associate Research Scientist should have a willingness to collaboratively design and implement social science field surveys, novel modeling techniques, and mixed-media approaches to scientific communication and outreach (English, French, Malagasy).