Post-doc: Modeling micrometeorology in agroforestry systems

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INRAE presentation

The French National Research Institute for Agriculture, Food, and Environment (INRAE) is a major player in research and innovation. It is a community of 12,000 people with 272 research, experimental research, and support units located in 18 regional centres throughout France. Internationally, INRAE is among the top research organisations in the agricultural and food sciences, plant and animal sciences, as well as in ecology and environmental science. It is the world’s leading research organisation specialising in agriculture, food and the environment. INRAE’s goal is to be a key player in the transitions necessary to address major global challenges. Faced with a growing world population, climate change, resource scarcity, and declining biodiversity, the Institute has a major role to play in building solutions and supporting the necessary acceleration of agricultural, food and environmental transitions.

Work environment, missions and activities

• Agroforestry, which combines trees and crops, is becoming increasingly popular in Europe. This practice offers numerous environmental benefits in a context marked by climate change and declining biodiversity. Agroforestry is particularly seen as a strategy for mitigating the effects of climate change on crops, by buffering extreme temperatures and limiting water loss. However, the benefits of agroforestry on the microclimate remain difficult to quantify experimentally and numerically due to the spatial variability of the microclimate within an agroforestry system and the existence of antagonistic processes. Nevertheless, successfully predicting the microclimate within an agroforestry system is essential for optimizing tree distribution, with the aim of maximizing yields while limiting inputs and mitigating the environmental dispersion of contaminants.
• The objective of this postdoctoral fellowship is to study the impact of shade trees in agroforestry systems on wind, turbulent exchanges, etc. in order to predict the microclimate, the dispersion-propagation processes of biotic/abiotic particles, etc., and thus quantify the capacity of agroforestry systems to mitigate extreme weather events (heat waves, droughts, storms) and limit the spread of disease. To do this, the postdoc will use innovative modeling based on the coupling of (1) a meteorological model adapted to the fine spatial scales of these systems and explicitly simulating turbulent structures, and (2) a multilayer model estimating mass (water, CO2) and energy fluxes in plant cover. One of the main challenges of this modeling will be to take into account radiation within a complex three-dimensional canopy, where tree distribution varies greatly in space.
• You will be welcomed in the ISPA unit (Soil-Plant-Atmosphere Interactions), which conducts research on the interactions of soil, plants, and the atmosphere within agricultural and forest ecosystems affected by disruptions due to global changes. Within the unit, you will join the YSYS (PhYSique à l'interface des EcoSystèmes) team, whose research deals with issues involving turbulent wind, micro-meteorology, and material transfers (water vapour, CO2, biotic and abiotic particles), as well as energy transfers on various spatial scales, including landscape, ranging from a few meters to several kilometres. The YSYS team relies on field experiments and numerical models of atmospheric flow. YSYS has gained considerable expertise in modelling micrometeorology on a landscape scale with high spatial resolution by explicitly simulating turbulent exchanges using an LES approach (Large-Eddy Simulations).

Training and skills

• Recommended training: PhD in physics of the atmosphere
• Knowledge required: programming under Linux environment
• Appreciated experience: radiation modelling in complex environment, Fortran programming
• Skills sought: Rigorous, autonomous, creative and motivated by working in a research environment; Excellent writing skills, fluent in English

INRAE's life quality

By joining our teams, you benefit from (depending on the type of contract and its duration):

- up to 30 days of annual leave + 15 days "Reduction of Working Time" (for a full time);
- parenting support: CESU childcare, leisure services;
- skills development systems: training, career advise;
- social support: advice and listening, social assistance and loans;
- holiday and leisure services: holiday vouchers, accommodation at preferential rates;
- sports and cultural activities;
- collective catering.

How to apply

I send my CV and my motivation letter