Postdoc in Modelling System Science and Complexity

About the Position

The Basque Centre for Climate Change (BC3) offers a full-time postdoctoral scientist position to support the research activities of Research Line (RL) 5 on Integrated Modelling of Coupled Human-Natural Systems, supported by the IKUR programme of the Basque Government on Supercomputing and Artificial Intelligence (HPC/AI).

The RL generates multidisciplinary scientific knowledge from human-nature interdependence to address complex sustainability problems through artificial intelligence (AI). The goal of the RL is to provide environmental data, models, and understanding by retrieving, evaluating, and integrating existing information to support effective policy-making where nature counts. Besides Ecosystem Services, the RL also tackles Natural Capital Accounting, Food Security, Marine Spatial Planning, and Renewable Energy.

During the past decade, the RL has envisioned and built the ARIES (ARtificial Intelligence for Environment and Sustainability) platform, a technology that integrates network-available data and model components through semantics and machine reasoning. Its underlying open-source software (k.LAB) handles the full end-to-end process of integrating data and with multiple model integration types to predict complex change. It also supports selection of the most appropriate data and models using cloud technology and following an open data paradigm: the resulting insight remains open and available to society at large, and becomes a base for further computations, contributing to an ever-increasing knowledge base. For the first time, it is possible to consistently characterize and publish data and models for their integration in predictive models, building and field-testing technologies that have eluded researchers to date.

We are looking for an individual who can support strategic activities related to integrated data science and collaborative, integrated modelling on the semantic web (semantic meta-modelling).

Responsibilities

• Contribute to the ARIES platform, a semantic web infrastructure that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to build computational solutions to environmental, policy, and sustainability problems.
• Work as part of a team to develop and test new models that expand the breadth of ARIES’ model library, including ecosystem services and other social-environmental models at scales from local to global.

Requirements

• Experience with one or more of the following modelling approaches:
  • Data-driven modelling
  • Agent-based modelling
  • System dynamics
  • Stochastic processes, dynamical systems, and complex systems
  • Complex Networks
• Awareness of optimization techniques and experience with different problems and domains, ideally in spatial applications.
• Familiarity with traditional Machine Learning models (k-means, KNN, decision trees, SVM, Bayesian/graphical models, Gaussian process, etc.).
• Ability to work in different coding environments (local, notebooks, containers) and familiar with software engineering workflows (testing, code management/Git) – candidates with experience using multiple toolkits or platforms are preferred.
• Handling of large data sets and models on distributed file systems.
• A PhD in Computer Science, Physics, Mathematics, Statistics, Theoretical Ecology, Computational Economics, Engineering, Geography, or other fields relevant to the position.
• Strong analytical skills and an ability to learn quickly and to think outside the box.
• Programming ability in any language, particularly Java, is considered an asset.
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills.
• Excellent written and oral command of English.
• Ability to work independently, with a diverse, multi-location, and multi-lingual team.

We Offer

• A contract initially offered for a period of at least 2 years starting in 2023.
• A salary of 31.500€ gross/year.
• Work at the Basque Centre for Climate Change, Leioa, Spain.
• Opportunity to work in a HR Excellence awarded institution committed to conciliate research-academic requirements and family duties.
• Equality opportunities for people. Women with relevant qualifications are strongly encouraged to apply.

About the Company

BC3 is committed to creating equality opportunities for people and is particularly concerned with creating a diverse and inclusive work environment. As a HR Excellence awarded institution, BC3 is dedicated to supporting the conciliation of research-academic requirements and family duties.

Application Procedure

Fill the form below and upload one PDF document with the following information:

1. 2-page CV
2. One-page motivation letter
3. Contact details of two referees

Deadline: 30 April 2023

Informal enquiries can be made to Prof Ferdinando Villa ([email protected]) and Stefano Balbi ([email protected]) noting in the subject of the message “ARIES Complexity IKUR”.

Please consider that only applications sent through the form included at the bottom of the BC3 web page will be considered (https://info.bc3research.org/job-offers/).