Fundação Gaspar Frutuoso, opens a Postdoctoral Fellowship (BPD), in the research area of Biodiversity – Ecological Modelling to work in the Project MACDIV - Macaronesian Islands as a testing ground to assess biodiversity drivers at multiple scales (ref. FCT PTDC/BIABIC/0054/2014). This project is funded by Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (FCT), with financial support under Project 3599 - Promoting Scientific Production, Technological Development and Innovation - Non-Co-financed., under the following conditions:
Scientific area: Biological Sciences/Biodiversity Patterns, ecological modelling.
Admission requirements: The post-doc fellowship is suitable for candidates of any nationality holding a PhD degree in biology, ecology, environmental sciences or related fields. The candidate should demonstrate knowledge of and experience in the fields of biogeography, ecology or biodiversity and proficiency in quantitative analyses (preferably in R). Further preferred skills include ecological modelling in the fields of macroecology, functional diversity and molecular ecology, and excellent oral and written communication skills. A proven ability to carry work through the publication in internationally recognized scientific journals is required.
Project overview: The project MACDIV intends to dissect the taxonomic, evolutionary and functional basis of spatial heterogeneity in diversity, providing also opportunities to better understand some of the key processes that have led to the great diversification of life on oceanic islands. MACDIV will focus on Macaronesia Islands as model systems (including Azores, Canaries, Madeira and Cape Verde) and spiders as model organisms. Further, given that the ‘biodiversity crisis’ is nowhere more apparent and need of urgent actions on oceanic islands, we expect that MACDIV will provide part of the basis for the development of future conservation strategies for this unique ecosystem.
The candidate will join a dynamic team led by Paulo A.V. Borges (University of Azores) working on island macroecology and will cooperate with François Rigal (Université de Pau et des Pays de l’Adour, France) working with functional diversity modelling; Pedro Cardoso (Natural History Museum of Helsinki, Finland), working on biodiversity modelling, Brent Emerson (IPNA-CSIC, Canary Islands) working on molecular biology; Octávio Paulo (Univ of Lisbon) working with phylogeography; and Miquel Arnedo (Univ. of Barcelona) working on spider phylogenetics.
Legislation applicable: Statute of the Scientific Research Grant, approved by Law nº 40/2004, from 18th August, changed and republished by the Decreto-Lei nº 202/2012, from 27th august and changed by Decreto-Lei nº 233/2012, from 29th October, by the Law nº 12/2013, from 29th January and by the Decreto-Lei n.º 89/2013 of 9th July.
Research Fellowships Regulation from FCT, I. P., approved by the Regulation nº 234/2012, from 25th of June, changed by the Regulation nº 326/2013, from 27th august of 2013, in force (www.fct.pt/apoios/bolsas/regulamento.phtml.pt).
Work place and supervision: Work will be conducted at University of Azores (Terceira Island) in the Azorean Biodiversity Group –cE3c Lab (http://gba.uac.pt/) under supervision of Prof. Paulo A. V. Borges (http://gba.uac.pt/member/paulo-a-v-borges), François Rigal (http://frigal.weebly.com/) and Pedro Cardoso (http://www.biodiversityresearch.org). The candidate will spend most time in the Azores but may have the opportunity to visit the other two labs for joint work.
Fellowship: The duration of the fellowship is 6 months, renewable up to a maximum of an additional year and cannot surpass the end of the project MACDIV (April 2019).
Salary: Monthly stipend is €1495 according to the stipends established by FCT, I.P. in Portugal (http://alfa.fct.mctes.pt/apoios/bolsas/valores). Payment will be made by bank transfer on a monthly basis. The grant holder will be insured against personal accidents and, if not covered by any social protection scheme, can guarantee the exercise of the right to social security by joining the voluntary social insurance scheme, under the terms of the Code of Tax Regimes Social Security System.
Application: The call for applications is open between 25th May and 8th June of 2018 (24:00 GMT).
Applications should be submitted by email to paulo.av.borges@uac.pt and will include:
a) Curriculum vitae (including a publication list and other relevant information in the context of the project research goals);
b) Motivation Letter (including a brief description of research experience and why you are suitable for the announced position);
c) Proof that the applicant meets the requirements for the respective grant - Original or certified copy of the Certificate of PhD;
d) Other documents that the applicant considers relevant to assessing the curriculum, including letters of recommendation;
e) Photocopy of Identity Card or Passport.
Selection criteria: The jury panel will select the best candidate based on his/her merit, through the analysis of: overall appreciation of the Curriculum Vitae, particularly the publication record (60%); specific experience in research projects related to the call (40%); The best candidates will be invited for an interview (typically ca. 25%), in person or by videoconference, to establish the final ranking.
Jury Panel: Paulo A.V. Borges (Chair), Pedro Cardoso (vowel), François Rigal (vowel), and Rosalina Gabriel (reserve).
Results announcement: Candidates will be directly informed by email about the result of their application. The ranking of the candidates will be published at a visible and public area of Departamento de Ciências Ciências e Engenharia do Ambiente da Universidade dos Açores, sito Campus do Pico da Urze, Rua Capitão João D'Avila, 9700-042 Angra do Heroísmo.
