Assistant research fellow / research fellow position available

Description of research focus:

Both the intensification of agriculture and increasing urbanisation lead to the degradation of natural habitats, negatively impacting wildlife and their ecosystem functions. However, these effects not only occur locally but can also be measured much further away, i.e. on a landscape scale. That is why it is impossible to conserve wildlife only in protected areas, but we need landscape-level conservation strategies, including our cultivated and built environment. The main goal of our interdisciplinary, theoretical research is to understand how the complexity of the landscape structure influences wildlife, their function and thus the ecosystem services vital to humans. Therefore, this research's theoretical and practical experience can significantly contribute to practical nature conservation, from developing agri-environment schemes to protecting urban biodiversity.

Further information: Batáry et al. 2015 Conservation Biology; Batáry et al. 2017 Nature Ecology & Evolution; Batáry et al. 2018 Global Change Biology; Chamberlain et al. 2020 Global Ecology and Biogeography; Tscharntke et al. 2021 Trends in Ecology & Evolution.

The “Lendület” Landscape and Nature Conservation Ecology Research Group (https://lace.ecolres.hu), launched in the fall of 2018, carries out extensive research based on the above research focus within the framework of national and international collaborations, during which the members of the group mainly collect botanical, zoological and ecological field and literature data. The data are analysed using various multivariate and meta-analytical statistical methods, and the work results are published in leading high-impact journals. The research topic should fit in with this and can be linked to our Frontline Excellence programme (https://ecolres.hu/en/projektek/biodiversity- in-the-grips-of-agriculture-and-urbanisation/).

Duration and location:

• one year (01.09.2022-31.08.2023), with the possibility of continuation

• location: National Botanical Garden, Vácrátót near Budapest, Hungary (remote work partly possible)

• suggested salary: depending on professional experience, around 1.500-2.200 €/month

Application conditions:

• assistant research fellow: MSc degree in biology or related disciplines at a foreign university, with a few years of ecological research experiences

• research fellow: PhD degree in biology or related disciplines at a foreign university, with a few years of ecological research experiences

• interest in ecological and nature conservation research

• very good knowledge of English

• driving license

• thorough knowledge of statistics and/or GIS

• thorough knowledge of a larger organism group (e.g. plants, a group of arthropods, birds)

pdf documents to be submitted as part of the application:

• CV (max 2 pages)

• over letter (max 1 page)

• one or max two recommendations suggested

Application deadline:

25.07.2022, at the following e-mail address: batary.peter@ecolres.hu (Dr. Péter Batáry)