PhD Student Vacancy – Department of Geography of Vrije Universiteit Brussel

Who: Vrije Universiteit Brussel

What: The Department of Geography of the Vrije Universiteit Brussel seeks a motivated candidate for a PhD position on urban ecosystem service assessment. The research will be carried out in the frame of an Innoviris Anticipate project (CO-NATURE) on the co-production of scenarios for nature-based urban regeneration with a focus on the Brussels Capital Region. The project is a collaboration between the Cartography and GIS Research Group (CGIS) of the Vrije Universiteit Brussel and the Building, Architecture and Town Planning Department (BATir) of the Université libre de Bruxelles.

Deadline is very short: 25th October 2018, and the candidate is supposed to start from 1st December 2018.

Green infrastructure and, more broadly, nature-based solutions, and the ecosystem services which they supply, make cities more resilient to pressures related to demographic growth and environmental change. While much research has focused on assessing the supply of urban ecosystem services, the impact that nature-based solutions and ecosystem services have on urban populations is less well understood. Interactions between supply, demand, and benefits of ecosystem services for urban citizens are complex and depend on multiple factors, including densities of population and of the built-up area, layout, physical characteristics and accessibility of open spaces. Social practices and cultural context also affect the way in which people use, experience and value their contacts with nature and, as such, will also determine the impact of green spaces and nature-based solutions on the well-being of urban residents. The CO- NATURE project will focus on: i) deepening our understanding of the complex relationships between ecosystem service supply and benefits and how this relationship is mediated by social inequalities, people’s use of urban spaces and how they value these spaces; ii) using the insights obtained from this research to define which nature-based solutions are needed where in Brussels and which co-benefits they deliver; iii) co- production of alternative scenarios for nature-based urban design and urban regeneration with local stakeholders and experts through research-by-design.

Your tasks will include:

•  Definition of a neighborhood typology for Brussels, based on the presence of urban green spaces and the services they offer, as well as socio-demographic characteristics; 
• Observation and questionnaire-based survey work and statistical analysis on selected neighborhoods to unravel the main factors and dependencies controlling the relation between supply, demand and benefits that residents obtain from ecosystem services in different morphological and socio-cultural settings; 
• Participation in the setting up of a Living Lab for stakeholder interaction in collaboration with a postdoc hired on the project; 
• Translation/customization of research results in support of research-by-design workshops for co-production of nature-based solutions and urban design scenarios; 
• Communication of project outcomes to project partners, stakeholders, at scientific conferences and through peer-reviewed journal publications.

Qualifications: 

• You hold a MSc degree (or equivalent) in geography, urban design/spatial planning, architecture or a related field, and graduated with a degree of at least distinction; 
• You have experience in spatial data management (GIS) and a good background in statistical data analysis; 
• You are a team player, ready to actively contribute to collaborative research; o - You are fluent in written/spoken English, good knowledge of French is a plus; 
• You are responsible, you show initiative and you can get things done. Female candidates are particularly encouraged to apply.

For additional information about this opportunity visit: http://we.vub.ac.be/nl/vacancy-phd-student-field-urban-ecosystem-service-assessment