Stellenangebot

GFZ is Germany's national centre for solid Earth research. We advance the understanding of dynamic processes to address global challenges, from mitigating the impacts of natural hazards and sustaining our habitat amid global change to responsibly managing georesources. We are part of the Helmholtz Association, the largest German scientific organisation. With around 1,200 employees as well as ca. 500 guest researchers, we contribute to the Helmholtz Research Field Earth and Environment, aligning cutting-edge research with societal relevance and international collaboration. Our work integrates multidisciplinary studies across Earth's system components, leveraging advanced technologies and infrastructure to research solutions and to transfer our knowledge to society. We are doing this in line with our vision: “Taking the pulse of our Earth to safeguard a habitable planet”.

For section 1.4 "Remote Sensing and Geoinformatics" (department "Geosystems") we are looking for a:

The work will be related to the R&D Component of the Global Forest Observations Initiative (GFOI). GFOI addresses methodological and technical challenges that interfere with progress in forest and land-use monitoring and subsequent greenhouse gas (GHG) accounting efforts for reporting countries. The primary aim is to foster a community of experts to highlight scientific advancements and emerging technical methods that can enhance the efficiency of forest and land use monitoring systems. The research focuses on tropical forests, Earth Observation-based forest monitoring, REDD+ reporting requirements, AFOLU reporting, and capacity building in tropical partner countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean. 

Your responsibilities:

• Development and application of innovative large-scale/global remote sensing methods for the routine monitoring of forest ecosystems
• Coordination of projects within the framework of the Global Forest Observation Initiative (GFOI)
• Analysis, interpretation and visualisation of remote sensing and in-situ data
• Development of operational products and services on a global scale, with a focus on tropical forest carbon emissions and emission reductions
• Publication of scientific results in international journals and presentation of research results at national and international conferences, as well as policy forums
• Participation in the application process for national and international research projects
• Establishing and maintaining scientific collaborations with national and international partner institutions, including government agencies and international development organisations
• Professional supervision of students, interns and doctoral candidates

About You:

Essential Qualifications: 

• Experience in the assessment of the maturity of novel methods using Earth Observation data, with knowledge of end-user requirements within national forest monitoring systems
• A completed Master`s degree (or equivalent) and a doctorate in the field of remote sensing, geosciences, geoinformatics, environmental sciences, data science or comparable disciplines
• In-depth knowledge of remote sensing, tropical forest monitoring and geospatial data analysis
• Experience in processing and analysing multi-temporal remote sensing datasets and spatial data
• Knowledge of carbon accounting, MRV systems and the analysis of emissions and emission reductions from deforestation and forest degradation in tropical forests
• Programming skills in R and/or Python
• Experience in scientific work and publishing
• Knowledge of project management and experience in the acquisition and management of third-party funding projects
• Very good English skills, both spoken and written

Desirable Qualifications:

• Experience in an international scientific environment, including collaboration with tropical partner countries
• In-depth knowledge of REDD+, AFOLU reporting (IPCC guidelines, UNFCCC frameworks) and cooperation with tropical partner countries
• Experience with cloud computing and big data technologies
• Working knowledge of additional languages relevant for cooperation with partner countries (e.g. Spanish, Portuguese, French) 
• German language skills (intermediate or higher) are an advantage.
• Experience representing scientific or technical work in international policy processes (e.g. UNFCCC, GFOI, SilvaCarbon, FAO)
• Strong communication and teamwork skills