We currently have one opening at the post-doctoral level (one year, with a possible extension until Nov. 2025), to work on the development of spatial indicators to monitor processes at the biodiversity/disease interface in space and under climate change scenarios.

By working closely with the GEO BON secretariat, and the viral emergence research initiative, this work will support the development of a methodology to provide information on optimal Essential Biodiversity Variables (EBV) for disease monitoring, with a specific focus on the monitoring of host-virus systems.

Ultimately, this project will result in an assessment of the feasibility of multi-purpose spatial networks of locations that can inform on statuses and trends for biodiversity, with a special interest for zoonotic diseases, showing how the methodology of ecosystem sciences translates to ecosystem conservation and global health.

Details on the position

The position will be hosted at the Université de Montréal, and includes a travel allowance as well as budget for a laptop, both on a per-need basis. Université de Montréal is a francophone institution; the Computational Ecology Research Group is a multi-lingual laboratory.

Post-doctoral researchers at Université de Montréal are part of a union with a set salary scale; the yearly salary for this position is 59241 CAD annually, which corresponds to the maximal allowed amount, with union-mandated yearly increases. Overtime is paid at 1.5 times the hourly rate (but is not expected to be required as part of this project).

The position is a one year (renewable) appointment, with a starting date to be discussed (ideally July/August). We are specifically aiming to hire a junior post-doc (i.e. within a year of defending their Ph.D.). Because of the deadlines of this specific grant, priority will be given to applicants that are already eligible to work in Canada (including US citizens who can apply for a work permit rapidly), and have already defended their Ph.D..

Required qualifications

Required qualifications are used to triage applications – applicants who do not possess these qualifications will not be considered.

• strong quantitative background in disease ecology or spatial ecology
• above average programming skills
• Ph.D. in disease ecology or wildlife epidemiology or spatial/landscape ecology

Desired qualifications

Desired qualifications for the position are listed below. Desired qualifications means that it would be nice for the applicant to have them, but they can be picked up rapidly by a motivated scientist.

The desired qualifications, listed in no specific order, are:

• development, maintenance, or significant contributions to software packages, showing good practices in software engineering
• contribution to a “Software Note” or “Application” article
• experience in using distributed computing systems (CPU and/or GPU)
• expertise in using a version control system (git in particular)
• knowledge of the Julia programming language, or strong willingness to learn
• global understanding of contemporary issues in biodiversity governance
• a commitment to open science as a practice – because we recognize that not everyone can safely contribute to open science, this will be assessed both by looking at realizations, or by the narrative in the letter of presentation

How to apply

Applications should be send by email directly to timothee.poisot@umontreal.ca, with the subject line “Ecosystems post-doc: FIRST AND LAST NAMES”. Applications will be reviewed starting immediately and continue until the position is filled.

The application should contain a two-pages letter of presentation (name-letter.pdf) containing a brief overview of past research, a description of how you meet the required and desired qualifications, and a statement of interest for the position and the project. The application should also contain a short resume (name-resume.pdf; no more than three pages), focusing on professional accomplishments (grades and funding history, as they are strongly biased against under-represented minorities, will not be evaluated, and do not need to be mentioned).

The interview process involves three steps that are typically completed within two weeks:

• a one-hour discussion with Timothée to talk about qualifications and motivation
• a discussion with self-nominated current and former group members, to get a sense of what life is like in the lab, the department, the university, etc.
• a discussion to go through the logistics and to prepare the offer.