Postdoctoral position at the Centre for Middle Eastern studies - Hiring in process/Finished, not possible to apply

The Center for Middle Eastern Studies is looking for a post-doc that will be part of the research area regarding groundwater as a natural resource in the arid Middle East and how the use of satellite data and advanced machine-learning algorithms can be used to solve complex water supply problems. The groundwater is rapidly dwindling as a natural resource in the Middle East. At the same time population increase requires increasingly larger volumes of water for drinking and food production purposes. On average, agriculture represents about 70-90% of total water use in the Middle East. As surface water resources gradually are dwindling, a continuously increasing pressure on groundwater results in rapidly decreasing groundwater levels with land subsidence and sinkholes throughout the region. As geology is complex and lack of information on groundwater levels are common, new sources of data and techniques to solve complex modeling of groundwater quantity and quality transport are needed. Thus, advanced machine-learning algorithms in combination with satellite data have been developed as a technique to solve groundwater use problems. The position will be at the Center for Middle Eastern Studies but will have close cooperation with the department of Water Resources Engineering at the Faculty of Engineering.

Duties:
The position is full-time and will be spent on research directly linked to the area mentioned above. Supervision and administration duties can be included up to 20% of full-time.

Requirements and assessment:
- PhD in the field of civil engineering, environmental engineering, water resources engineering, natural resources engineering, informatics or equivalent within the past three (3) years at the time of the application deadline (exceptions can be made only under special circumstances). The PhD requirement must be fulfilled at the time of submission of the application.

- Programming knowledge such as MATLAB, Python, and/or R is required.

- Satellite data are used as an input for the machine learning and data mining application, hence the applicant needs to show strong interest in Remote Sensing and/or GIS techniques. 

- Very good oral and written proficiency in English is required.

The basis for assessment is the ability to develop and carry out highly qualified international research and supervision ability. The applicant must be able to provide a good publication record related to the topic.

Application:
The application must include the following:
- Research plan that clearly shows how the research relates to the topic, maximum 4 pages.
- CV and copies of PhD degree certificate.
- List of publications.
- Up to three (3) representative publications.
- Contact information for three (3) references.

Applications that do not include all five items above will not be considered.

Terms:
A postdoc fellowship is a career development position specializing in research, and is to be an initial step in the applicant’s career following his or her PhD degree. The employment is limited for two years.

Please note that a person who has previously been employed as a postdoc at Lund University for more than a year cannot be employed as a postdoc again within the same or similar subject at the university.