Research Assistant position on assessing the water footprint impact of Spanish cattle farming

About the Position

The Basque Centre for Climate Change (BC3) offers a full-time Research Assistant (RA) position for 12 months, linked to the project "Assessing the water footprint impact of Spanish cattle farming" funded by PROVACUNO and led by Dr. del Prado and Dr. Pardo. The research assistant will join the BC3 Agro-group within the Terrestrial Ecosystems research line at BC3.

About the Project

The main objective of VACUNWATER is to quantify the water footprint of beef cattle in Spain using different metrics. The specific objectives include:

• Obtaining a representative water footprint for beef cattle in Spain according to the most up-to-date official methodologies possible.
• Analyzing the relationships between management variables, climatic context, and the water footprint.

Responsibilities

• Selection of different cattle farms to analyze
• Development of a data collection framework to gather empirical data to characterize the chosen farms
• Survey the farms
• Analysis of the water footprint using different methodologies
• Impact assessment for each farm. Analysis and processing of the data collected for the quantification of water footprints. For each of the farms, an analysis will be carried out to obtain the green, blue, and grey water footprint. Additionally, the water scarcity footprint related to each farm will be calculated.
• Support the preparation of scientific publications and reports to validate the methods in the application.

Requirements

• Main requirements/skills:

  • University degree in natural sciences or related engineering disciplines

• Desirable requirements/skills:

  • Experience in some of these aspects:
    • Knowledge in livestock systems
    • Water impacts
    • LCA methodology
    • Creation of databases
    • Technical analysis of data

We Offer

• Interdisciplinary and inspiring work environment
• Quiet and spacious workspaces
• Possibility of participating in internal training and academic activities of the center
• 35-hour week work calendar
• 30 days of vacation per year

Term of Contract

Starting on 1st February, 2025, the position will be for 12 months (linked to the end of the project), with a six-month probation period.

Salary

The position will carry a competitive salary, matching the academic and professional profile of the applicant, and excellent work conditions.

Location

Basque Centre for Climate Change, Leioa, Spain.

About the Company

As an HR Excellence awarded institution, BC3 is committed to conciliating research-academic requirements and family duties. BC3 is particularly concerned with creating equal opportunities for people independently of gender, culture, and race. Anyone with relevant qualifications is therefore strongly encouraged to apply for the position.

Application Procedure

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

1. Letter of motivation of a page
2. Curriculum Vitae (free extension)

Deadline

21 January 2025

Informal enquiries can be made to Prof [email protected] or Dr. [email protected] noting in the subject of the message "Assessing the water footprint impact of Spanish cattle farming– Research Assistant".

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/).