Postdoctoral positions: Climate-smart afforestation and integrated climate impacts Full-time

Opticforest Postdoctoral Researcher Positions

Afforestation is widely promoted as a nature-based solution for climate change mitigation, and the Danish government has initiated an ambitious afforestation programme to transform 250,000 ha of agricultural land to forest over the coming 20 years. However, the total climate impact of afforestation depends not only on carbon uptake, but also on a range of interacting biogeophysical and biogeochemical processes, including emissions of non-CO2 greenhouse gases (GHGs), changes in the energy balance (e.g., changes in surface albedo or evapotranspiration), and impacts on cloud interactions and aerosol formation. These processes and their interactions are poorly quantified under Danish conditions, creating major uncertainties for policy and land-use planning.

The Department of Geosciences and Natural Resource Management invites applications for two postdoctoral researcher positions within the research project OptiCForest – Optimizing climate change mitigation of afforestation on agricultural lands, a Nordic collaborative project addressing the full climate impact of afforestation beyond carbon sequestration alone. The postdoctoral researchers will be key contributors to the development of guidelines to maximize the climate benefits of afforestation on agricultural lands, and to the assessment of climate impacts of CO2 sequestration and other biogeophysical and biogeochemical impacts related to afforestation.

Postdoc Projects

Postdoctoral position 1 will particularly focus on eddy covariance and auto chamber measurements of CO2 and other GHGs.

Main tasks include:

• Establish and maintain two new eddy covariance stations and calculate/analyze the CO2 and CH4 fluxes, including footprint and wind sector analysis.
• At one station, also calculate and analyze fluxes of CO2, CH4, and N2O from six automatic chamber measurements.
• Use the information on CO2, CH4, and N2O flux measurements to calculate the GHG budgets at the two sites and impacts of land use change.
• Participate in reviewing and synthesizing existing literature and datasets on the climate impacts of afforestation on agricultural land, including carbon, forest structure, tree species composition, biodiversity considerations, and management practices influence climate forcing and ecosystem services.
• Participate in the integration of individual climate drivers into a compound assessment of total climate impact, identifying trade-offs, synergies, and key knowledge gaps and contributing to the development of practical guidelines and policy-relevant recommendations for climate-smart afforestation in Denmark and Europe.

The work will involve field work and data analysis and extensive interaction with an interdisciplinary team of forest scientists, atmospheric scientists, and climate modelers.

Postdoctoral position 2 will particularly focus on model development and scenario analysis of the impacts of afforestation and forest management on the climate system with the process-based model LPJ-GUESS.

Main tasks include:

• Site simulations and regional simulations of afforestation in Denmark with the LPJ-GUESS model.
• Analysis of simulation results and preparation of relevant vegetation inputs from the simulation results as input for model simulations on boundary layer dynamics and cloud processes.
• Participate in reviewing and synthesizing existing literature and datasets on the climate impacts of afforestation on agricultural land, including carbon, forest structure, tree species composition, biodiversity considerations, and management practices influence climate forcing and ecosystem services.
• Participate in the integration of individual climate drivers into a compound assessment of total climate impact, identifying trade-offs, synergies, and key knowledge gaps and contributing to the development of practical guidelines and policy-relevant recommendations for climate-smart afforestation in Denmark and Europe.

The work will involve data analysis and advanced modelling, and extensive interaction with an interdisciplinary team of forest scientists, atmospheric scientists, and climate modelers.

Qualifications

We seek highly motivated candidates with:

• A PhD in climate science, forest ecology, biogeochemistry, environmental science, atmospheric science, or a related discipline.
• Strong experience in literature synthesis, data analysis, and/or integrative assessments across disciplines.
• Strong skills in data analysis (position 1 and 2), specifically analysis of eddy covariance data (position 1), and vegetation/forestry modelling (position 2)
• Familiarity with climate change mitigation, land-use change, and ecosystem–atmosphere interactions.

Our Research Groups and What We Offer

The positions are mainly located within the Biogeochemistry group (position 1) and the Terrestrial Ecosystem Analysis group (position 2). Both positions will collaborate with the Silviculture, Trees and Bioresources group in the initial phases of the project. The groups are part of the Department of Geosciences and Natural Resource Management, Faculty of SCIENCE, University of Copenhagen.

We offer:

• Stimulating postdoctoral positions in a high-impact, policy-relevant research project.
• Close collaboration with leading Nordic research groups in forestry, climate science, and atmospheric research.
• Opportunities to contribute to scientific publications, policy briefs, and stakeholder-oriented outputs.
• A dynamic international working environment with strong links to policymakers and practitioners.

Principle supervisors are Associate Professor Klaus Steenberg Larsen, ksl@ign.ku.dk (position 1) and Associate Professor Guy Schurgers, gusc@ign.ku.dk (position 2). Inquiries about the position can be made to the two supervisors. Further information on the Department is linked at https://ign.ku.dk/.

Terms of Employment

The position is open from June 1st 2026 or as soon as possible thereafter.

Employment is full-time and for 2 years.

The position is covered by the Memorandum on Job Structure for Academic Staff. Terms of appointment and payment accord to the agreement between the Ministry of Finance and The Danish Confederation of Professional Associations on Academics in the State. Negotiation for salary supplement is possible.

Application

The application, in English, must be submitted electronically by clicking APPLY NOW below. The deadline for applications is 27 March 2026, 23:59 GMT +1.

We reserve the right not to consider material received after the deadline, and not to consider applications that do not live up to the abovementioned requirements.

Please include:

1. Motivated letter of application (max. one page) – please relate your application specifically to one of the two positions and describe how the above required abilities are represented in your past work experiences.
2. Curriculum vitae including information about your education, experience, language skills and other skills relevant for the position.
3. Original diplomas for Bachelor's or Master's and PhD and transcript of records in the original language, including an authorized English translation if issued in another language than English or Danish. If not completed, a certified/signed copy of a recent transcript of records or a written statement from the institution or supervisor is accepted.
4. Publication list.
5. Reference letters (if available).

After the expiry date, the authorized recruitment manager selects applicants for assessment on the advice of the Interview Committee. We reserve the right not to consider material received after the deadline, and not to consider applications that do not live up to the abovementioned requirements.

Interviews with selected candidates are expected to be held in week 17 2026.