Job Offer as an Assistant in the NCN Project: " Climate warming negatively affects submerged aquatic vegetation through shading by periphyton".
About the Project:
The research is conducted under the SONATINA 7 programme of the National Science Centre (NCN) at the Department of Ecology and Environmental Protection of the Poznań University of Life Sciences, led by Dr Michał Brzozowski. The project aims to investigate the impact of global warming on aquatic vegetation, with a particular focus on shading by periphyton. Climate warming threatens submerged aquatic vegetation by increasing water fertility and shading by periphyton, which limits light availability for macrophytes. It is projected that the average global temperature will rise by 0.5-3.5°C by the end of the century, affecting water ecosystems and increasing the risk of lakes transitioning from clear to turbid states. The project hypothesises an increase in periphyton biomass in warmer waters, negatively affecting aquatic plants. It examines the impact of warming on vascular plants and Characeae, predicting that temperature rise will harm their growth and lakebed colonisation due to increased shading. Field and laboratory experiments aim to verify this hypothesis, crucial for future lake management and protection under warming conditions.
Duties:
- Preparing and calibrating measuring equipment.
- Supporting the implementation of field and laboratory work planned in the project.
- Participating in field research, sampling, and performing standard field measurements.
- Laboratory work, including analyses of periphyton and aquatic plants, weighing samples, measuring chlorophyll-a and phosphorus concentrations.
- Digitising, cataloguing, and preliminary analysis of collected data.
Requirements:
- Status as an undergraduate (Bachelor's or Master's) or doctoral student. Preferred fields of study: biotechnology, biology, environmental protection, environmental engineering, bioinformatics, climate protection engineering, applied biology.
- Experience in field and laboratory work will be an additional asset.
- Basic knowledge of aquatic ecosystems.
- Very good command of Polish and English. Familiarity with Microsoft 365 and software such as R, Statistica, QGIS is welcome.
We Offer:
- An 18-month participation in an NCN research project.
- Salary: 1500 PLN gross per month.
- Work in a dynamic team.
- The opportunity to gain valuable scientific experience.
- Professional and scientific development, including the chance to co-author publications. • Mentoring by the project leader.
- The possibility to conduct a thesis.
- Support in applying for grants and scholarships.
Recruitment Process:
- Applications (CV, cover letter, optional recommendation letter) are accepted until 6 March 2024.
- A two-stage selection process, including interviews (7-8 March 2024).
- Collaboration starts: 11-12 March 2024.
Additional Information:
The prospect of continuing collaboration in future projects. Interested candidates are invited to send their applications to the email address: michal.brzozowski@up.poznan.pl by 6 March 2024.
Join us and contribute to research that is crucial for the future of our aquatic ecosystems!
