Post-Doctoral Associate in the Arabian Center for Climate and Environmental Sciences, Coral Reef

Description

The Burt Lab at New York University Abu Dhabi (NYUAD) seeks a Post-Doctoral Associate to lead the United Arab Emirates (UAE) National Coral Reef Monitoring Program and develop research integrating both current and three decades of historical survey  records from across the region. Situated on the Persian/Arabian Gulf, NYUAD provides a unique natural laboratory to study organismal responses to extreme and variable environmental conditions, including annual sea temperatures exceeding 35 °C in summer and dropping below 20 °C in winter, high salinity levels (44 PSU), and moderate turbidity. Furthermore, NYUAD is within a 3-hour drive to the biogeographically linked Sea of Oman, offering unparalleled opportunities for comparative studies, particularly in climate change research.

 The candidate will operate under the supervision of Prof. John Burt, head of the NYUAD Marine Biology Lab, and will be affiliated with the recently established Arabian Center for Climate and Environmental Sciences (ACCESS). In this interdisciplinary research center, which focuses on regional environmental change and where Burt serves as co-PI, the candidate will collaborate closely with researchers across NYUAD units including ACCESS, the Marine Biology Laboratory, the Center for Genomics and Systems Biology (CGSB), the Water Research Center (WRC), and the CITIES Center, thus integrating into a diverse and dynamic team with research spanning genomics and molecular biology to ecosystem-level ecology.

 Responsibilities include leading the UAE’s National Coral Reef Monitoring Program, which encompasses monitoring reef benthos and fish populations at 25 sites across the Emirates through standardized methods. The candidate will also coordinate the regional coral reef monitoring program with collaborators in neighbouring countries, ensuring methodological and data consistency. This will involved organizing and leading annual regional data-sharing and capacity building workshops to ensure consistency in survey methods, data and metadata standards, and analyses and archival. Through this leadership role, the candidate will oversee and direct the writing of the regional assessment for the 2025 Global Coral Reef Monitoring Program (GCRMN) status report, a venture under the International Coral Reef Initiative (ICRI). The candidate is also expected to develop a research portfolio leading to first-author publications by leveraging historic and current monitoring data, or by introducing new research directions.

 Required Qualifications and Experience:

• Completed PhD in marine biology or a related field
• Certified SCUBA diver with a minimum of 50 dives
• Expertise in coral reef field surveys, specifically in both benthic and fish identification
• Proficiency in univariate and multivariate analyses of ecological data
• A record of first-author publications that include reef survey data

Desired Qualifications and Experience:

• Rescue diver and/or dive instructor qualifications
• Drivers license in home country
• Small craft/boat operators license/certification
• Competency in benthic image analyses, particularly with CoralNet or ReefCloud
• Experience or familiarity with MERMAID (datamermaid.org)
• Experience in size estimation of fish for biomass calculation
• Previous work on reefs in the western Indian Ocean/Arabian region
• Training and lead capacity-building experience in reef monitoring
• Versatility in writing and presenting for diverse audiences
• Commitment to the principles of open science

 Applications must be submitted via Interfolio by 15 November 2023 and should include a 1-2 page cover letter detailing background and research interests, as well as how the candidate meets each criterion. A curriculum vitae with a link to a Google Scholar profile, a complete publication record (with DOIs or online links for each publication), and contact information for three references should also be included. Merge the cover letter and CV into a single PDF file before uploading to Interfolio. If you have any questions, please send them to Dr. Burt at jb3532@nyu.edu

 Employment is contingent upon successful completion of security, health, and reference checks, among other HR processes. This is a two-year fixed-term contract, potentially renewable subject to performance and funding. The compensation package is highly competitive and fully tax-free, featuring benefits such as housing allowance, annual flights, healthcare, and provisions for dependents. An annual research budget managed by the candidate is also part of the package.

 About NYUAD

 NYU Abu Dhabi is a degree-granting research university with a fully integrated liberal arts and science undergraduate program in the Arts, Sciences, Social Sciences, Humanities, and Engineering. NYU Abu Dhabi, NYU New York, and NYU Shanghai, form the backbone of NYU’s global network university, an interconnected network of portal campuses and academic centers across six continents that enable seamless international mobility of students and faculty in their pursuit of academic and scholarly activity. This global university represents a transformative shift in higher education, one in which the intellectual and creative endeavors of academia are shaped and examined through an international and multicultural perspective. As a major intellectual hub at the crossroads of the Arab world, NYUAD serves as a center for scholarly thought, advanced research, knowledge creation, and sharing, through its academic, research, and creative activities.

 EOE/AA/Minorities/Females/Vet/Disabled/Sexual Orientation/Gender Identity Employer

UAE Nationals are encouraged to apply

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