Postdoc: Agent-based modelling for revitalised Dutch peatlands

Nieuwe Universiteitsgebouw (NU)

Amsterdam

0,8 / 1

Faculteit der Bètawetenschappen

Onderzoeker / Postdoc

Postdoctoraal

Sluit op

15-08-2025

Publicatiedatum

22-05-2025

Solliciteer direct

Do you have experience with agent-based modelling? Do you have interest in sustainable land management, and keen to contribute to societally relevant research? Are you keen to work in a multidisciplinary environment? Then we are looking for you!

Jouw functie

The Postdoc will work within the transdisciplinary VeenVitaal project (https://veenvitaal.info/ ), which has been running for about 2.5 years now, and will run until the end of 2027. The project aims to contribute to revitalised peatlands in The Netherlands, and you will contribute to this by: (1) designing socio-economic-ecological scenarios in which peatland farmers and other land managers transition to nature-inclusive farm and land management practices, and (2) model the consequences of such scenarios in terms of behaviour, land management and ecosystem services (e.g. biodiversity, carbon emissions, water quality). For this, you will make use of the wide variety of already available resources, e.g. the insights obtained from the various VeenVitaal work packages and the knowledge and experiences from the wide variety of societal actors represented in our consortium. You will work closely with the PhD student in work package 4 (socio-economics), who will conduct a choice experiment on farmer preferences and incentives for alternative ways of managing their land, aiming for recovery of biodiversity and ecosystem health. This choice experiment may act as central input to the agent-based model. You will be supervised by Dr Mark Koetse (VU-IVM) and Dr Natalie Davis (VU-IVM).

Your duties

you construct future scenarios for the Dutch peatlands, building on existing scientific knowledge and regional insights from key societal actors
you build and implement an agent-based model that can explore the main societal consequences of these future scenarios
you publish results in high-quality scientific journals, and present main findings at various regional, national and international events

Jouw profiel

you have a PhD degree in a social science and/or an environmental science
for your dissertation research (or while working at a similar level) you have constructed and implemented an agent-based model, preferably on a land-management related topic
you have experience with and are enthusiastic about working in multi-disciplinary teams, and preferably you have experience with co-design of research and scenarios through interactive methods (e.g. focus group discussions, participatory mapping)
your understanding and speaking Dutch is an advantage.

We realise that each individual brings a unique set of skills, expertise and mindset. Therefore we are happy to invite anyone who recognises themselves in the profile to apply, even if you do not fully meet all the requirements.

Wat bieden wij

An exciting postdoc position in a socially-engaged organisation (IVM-VU) and a great project (VeenVitaal), in which you will contribute to education and research that are aimed at having societal impact. So in return for your efforts, we offer you:

a salary of minimum € 3.378 (Scale 10.0) and maximum € 5.331,00 (Scale 10.12) gross per month, on a full-time basis. This is based on UFO profile Researcher 4. The exact salary depends on your education and experience.
a position for at least 0.8 FTE. Your employment contract will initially be for 12 months. Depending on other sources of funding and if there is sufficient perspective the contract may be extended after that period. Expected starting data of the position is 1-1-2026.

We also offer you attractive fringe benefits and regulations. Some examples:

A full-time 38-hour working week comes with a holiday leave entitlement of 232 hours per year. If you choose to work 40 hours, you have 96 extra holiday leave hours on an annual basis. For part-timers, this is calculated pro rata.
8% holiday allowance and 8.3% end-of-year bonus
solid pension scheme (ABP)
contribution to commuting expenses
optional model for designing a personalized benefits package

Over ons

Institute for Environmental Studies (IVM)
Established in 1971, IVM is a leading environmental research institute that is internationally recognised for its high quality research output in a range of environmental disciplines, as well as for its interdisciplinary work. The mission of the institute is to contribute to sustainable development and care for the environment through scientific research and teaching. IVM aims to do excellent problem-oriented research that is useful to a wide range of stakeholders in the Netherlands and internationally. A unique strength of our research is to understand sustainability problems in their social and economic context. IVM’s research community works within four departments: Environmental Economics; Environmental Geography, Environmental Policy Analysis; and Water and Climate Risk. Since 2001 IVM has been part of the Faculty of Science at VU Amsterdam (legal name Stichting VU).

The department of Environmental Economics (EE) leads the institute’s efforts in improving insights into the interaction between the environment and the economy. The department is one of the main groups of environmental economists in Europe, consisting of around 35 scientific staff and PhD researchers. The department strategy is to consolidate and further strengthen its position as a major player in the European field of environmental economics. Important fields of application include climate change, energy, circular economy, water, ecosystem services, and environmental and natural resource management. The philosophy of the EE department is to closely integrate its research projects with its teaching programme and to initiate and conduct research jointly with stakeholders and collaborating institutes. In the coming years, the EE department will further explore new research fields related to climate economics, economics of sustainable energy, and economics of natural capital.

Faculty of Science
Researchers and students at VU Amsterdam’s Faculty of Science tackle fundamental and complex scientific problems to help pave the way for a sustainable and healthy future. From forest fires to big data, from obesity to malnutrition, and from molecules to the moon: we cover the full spectrum of the natural sciences. Our teaching and research have a strong experimentally technical, computational and interdisciplinary nature.

We work on new solutions guided by value-driven, interdisciplinary methodologies. We are committed to research, valorisation and training socially engaged citizens of the world who will make valuable contributions to a sustainable, healthy future.

Are you interested in joining the Faculty of Science? You will join undergraduate students, PhD candidates and researchers at the biggest sciences faculty in the Netherlands. You will combine a professional focus with a broad view of the world. We are proud of our collegial working climate, characterised by committed staff, a pragmatic attitude and engagement in the larger whole. The faculty is home to over 11,000 students enrolled in 40 study programmes. It employs over 1,600 professionals spread across 10 academic departments.

Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam stands for values-driven education and research. We are open-minded experts with the ability to think freely - a broader mind. Maintaining an entrepreneurial perspective and concentrating on diversity, significance and humanity, we work on sustainable solutions with social impact. By joining forces, across the boundaries of disciplines, we work towards a better world for people and planet. Together we create a safe and respectful working and study climate, and an inspiring environment for education and research. Learn more about our codes of conduct

We are located on one physical campus, in the heart of Amsterdam's Zuidas business district, with excellent location and accessibility. Over 6,150 staff work at the VU and over 31,000 students attend academic education.

Diversity
Diversity is the driving force of VU Amsterdam. VU wants to be accessible and receptive to diversity in disciplines, cultures, ideas, nationalities, beliefs, preferences and worldviews. We believe that trust, respect, interest and differences lead to new insights and innovation, to sharpness and clarity, to excellence and a broader understanding.

We stand for an inclusive community and believe that diversity and internationalisation contribute to the quality of education, research and our services.

Therefore, we are always searching for people whose backgrounds and experience contribute to the diversity of the VU community.

Interesse

Are you interested in this position and do you believe that your experience will contribute to the further development of our university? In that case, we encourage you to submit your application.

We foresee two rounds of job interviews which will take place in September and October, so please take this into account when applying for the position. Submitting a diploma and a copy of your dissertation is a requirement in the application process. Also a reference check is part of the application process; reference letters can either be uploaded with your application, or you can list the contact information of two references in your CV or cover letter.

Applications received by e-mail will not be considered.

Acquisition in response to this advertisement is not appreciated.