Postdoctoral Research Associate - Farming Systems Trial

Essential Duties & Responsibilities

• Conduct and coordinate research on soil health indicators, carbon and nitrogen dynamics, and management impacts in long-term field trials
• Calibrate and validate process-based biogeochemical models (e.g., DayCent, DNDC) using multi-year experimental datasets
• Perform statistical and multivariate analyses of soil, plant, and environmental data using R
• Integrate field measurements, laboratory data, and simulation outputs to improve understanding of soil carbon sequestration, GHG emissions, and nutrient turnover
• Collaborate with a multidisciplinary team of soil scientists, agronomists, and data scientists to publish findings in high impact peer-reviewed journals
• Contribute to field work, proposal development, outreach, and data visualization for soil health and climate-smart agriculture initiatives
• Work closely with the Research Technician and Farm Operations team for timely data collection and field management

Qualifications

• Ph.D. in Soil Science, Environmental Science, Agronomy, Biogeochemistry, or a related field
• Demonstrated expertise in soil carbon/nitrogen cycling, soil health assessment, or agricultural management systems
• Experience with process-based models such as DayCent, DNDC, or related ecosystem models
• Proficiency in R (data analysis, statistics, visualization, and model-data integration)
• Strong quantitative and analytical skills; ability to manage and interpret large datasets
• Excellent written and oral communication skills, with a track record of scientific publication
• A growth mindset, enthusiasm for learning new approaches, and willingness to tackle challenges and innovate
• Experience working in a field setting to collect and coordinate data
• Experience with scripting for data preprocessing, model validation, and geospatial analysis or Digital Soil Mapping (DSM)
• Experience with Lifecycle Assessment (LCA) of agricultural production systems or Economics of Soil Health Management
• Familiarity with soil health and microbial data, GHG measurement, or regenerative soil health management
• Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively in interdisciplinary research teams