Postdoctoral position OT-23088
Post-doctoral researcher in automated learning of soil food webs from ecological abundance data - M/F
21000 Dijon
INRAE presentation
The Institut national de recherche pour l'agriculture, l'alimentation et l'environnement (INRAE) is a public research establishment bringing together a working community of 12,000 people, with more than 200 research units and 42 experimental units located throughout France. INRAE is one of the world's leading institutions in agricultural and food sciences, plant sciences and animal sciences. Its research aims to develop solutions for multi-performance agriculture, high-quality food and sustainable management of resources and ecosystems.
Work environment, missions and activities
You will be based at the UMR Agroécologie at INRAE Bourgogne-Franche-Comté in Dijon (Pôle GestAd, Équipe BiodiverSE), as part of an EU HORIZON MISSION project called SOB4ES. There are currently no sufficiently informative indicators of soil biodiversity, ecosystem functioning and ecosystem services, which limits our ability to achieve the objective of the EU Mission on Soil Health and Food, to return to good health, 75% of soils by 2030 and all soils by 2050. The SOB4ES project will contribute to this “Soil Deal for Europe” by: (1) quantifying soil biodiversity, ecosystem functioning and services for the main land uses and land use intensity changes; (2) testing the validity of existing indicators for soil biodiversity, ecosystem functioning and services; and, (3) assessing how policy incentives can improve the protection, sustainable management and restoration of soil functioning and health.
As part of work packages 2 and 3 of SOB4ES, you will construct and analyse ecological networks for above- and below-ground soil communities. Statistical and logic-based machine learning will be used to reconstruct ecological interaction networks. Machine learning methods for reconstructing ecological interaction networks are at a very early stage of development. Some methods show promise, but it is also clear that there are still many problems to be overcome, particularly in moving from purely correlational networks to true ecological networks where the interactions have ecological and functional significance. As part of this, you will test the effect of biodiversity, and network parameters and characteristics on ecosystem services, and where possible link these analyses to matrices for the capacity of different ecosystem types (land uses) to deliver ecosystem services.
More specifically, you will be responsible for :
- Developing existing machine learning methods for the structure of ecological networks;
- Reconstructing ecological networks from data on soil and above-ground plant abundance, through the main land uses and changes in land use intensity;
- Processing ecological data to analyse the structure of networks between land uses and their effect on ecosystem services and biodiversity;
- Helping to build ecosystem type x ecosystem service matrices in co-creation with soil experts ;
- Publish and communicate the results of the project.
The work will be carried out as part of a large-scale European project, requiring travel and collaboration with the project partners' teams in different countries. It will also be necessary to attend the project's biannual meetings (in person and/or by videoconference).
Training and skills
- Recommended training: PhD in ecology (defended less than three years ago)
- Preferred skills: logic programming in ProGol and PyGol, and statistical machine learning
- Preferred experience: Bioinformatics
- Skills required: statistical modelling, statistical and logical machine learning, ecological networks, ability to communicate orally and in writing in English. A good knowledge of French is required.
INRAE's life quality
By joining our teams, you benefit from (depending on the type of contract and its duration):
- Up to 30 days holiday + 15 RTT per year (for full-time employees)
- Skills development programmes: training, career guidance, etc.
- Social support: counselling and listening, social assistance and loans
- Social benefits: CESU, etc.
- Holiday, leisure, sports, cultural and family services: Holiday vouchers, preferential accommodation; preferential tickets (ADAS)
- canteen with picnic area
- Partial reimbursement of commuting costs by the employer
- authorised teleworking, subject to the conditions laid down by current legislation
- partial reimbursement of supplementary social security contributions
- SNC annual leave card
- Easy access to the INRAE Dijon Centre by tram, bus + bike, car park, etc.
- Access to the Dijon FMR² association (Freshly and Temporarily Recruited in Research)
How to apply
Send a cover letter and CV to : Dr David A. Bohan
- By e-mail: david.bohan@inrae.fr
- By post: INRAE, Centre Bourogne-Franche-Comté, UMR Agroécologie, 17 rue Sully, 21065 Dijon, France
All persons employed by or hosted at INRAE, a public research establishment, are subject to the Civil Service Code, particularly with regard to the obligation of neutrality and respect for the principle of secularism. In carrying out their functions, whether or not they are in contact with the public, they must not express their religious, philosophical or political convictions through their behaviour or by what they wear. > Find out more: fonction publique.gouv.fr website (in French)