Post-doctoral position in remote-sensing application to forest ecological modelling – Assessing live fuel moisture content spatio-temporal dynamics in Mediterranean shrublands and woodlands with remote-sensing and vegetation modelling – Open from July 2023 at INRAE URFM, Avignon, France

Mission

Fuels dryness is a key driver of fire occurrence and spread. However, most models of wildfire occurrence rely on drought indices computed from meteorological variables, overlooking the specific dynamics of live fuels. Different options exist to assess the spatio-temporal dynamics of live fuel moisture content (LFMC) including satellite remote sensing data and vegetation models based on hydraulic traits. The goal of this post-doctoral project is to evaluate and combine remote sensing and vegetation modelling methods for mapping the fuel moisture content of shrublands and open woodlands in Mediterranean areas. First, a reference database for LFMC at canopy scale will be produced in collaboration with the research group from a database of LFMC measurements on plant foliage and a hydraulics-based model for plant water dynamics. Then, a data-driven model of canopy-scale LFMC trained on the reference database will be estimated from reflectance data and co-variables characterizing the vegetation structure. The post-doctoral fellow will work in close collaboration with researchers in fire science, statistics and ecophysiology and PhD students of the group, with the global aim to improve operational models of fire occurrence and size.

Skills

• Remote sensing, ecological modelling, forest ecology
• Machine learning or plant hydraulics appreciated
• R, Java and/or Python languages 
• Excellent writing skills in English

Context

The position is open to the Mediterranean Forest Research Unit, Avignon, France (https://www6.paca.inrae.fr/ecologie_des_forets_mediterraneennes/). The post-doctoral fellow will join a group specialized in forest ecology, ecophysiology and forest fire science (including Jean-Luc Dupuy, Nicolas Martin, François Pimont).The position is funded through a joint venture agreement between INRAE and the USDA Forest Service in the frame of a five years research project supported by the US Department of Defense (SERDP Project #RC20-1025). Funding is available for 12 months and can be extended for up to 24 months. Funding could be completed thanks to the FIRE-RES H2020 European project. Position open from July 1st, 2023. Gross Salary : €2600-3300 per month depending on experience. Starting date: July to October 2023.

Application

Candidates should send a cover letter and a CV by June 20th, 2023 to:

jean-luc.dupuy@inrae.fr

nicolas.martin@inrae.fr

A shortlist will be established for subsequent interviews and final selection.

Post-doctoral position in remote-sensing application to forest ecological modelling – Assessing live fuel moisture content spatio-temporal dynamics in Mediterranean shrublands and woodlands with remote-sensing and vegetation modelling – Open from September 2023 at INRAE URFM, Avignon, France