Postdoc on terrestrial carbon cycle under global change

Postdoc in AI-Driven Design and Modelling of Bio-Based Adhesives

SVERIGES LANTBRUKSUNIVERSITET

Department of Forest Bioeconomy and Technology Do you want to help shape the future of sustainable materials? We are seeking a highly motivated postdoctoral researcher to advance the design of next-generation bio-based adhesives that meet both sustainability targets and industrial performance requirements. In this project, you will combine cutting-edge approaches in polymer science and AI-driven modelling to develop predictive frameworks and high-performance adhesive systems for furniture, construction and packaging industries. You will work at the interface of fundamental science and real-world application, contributing to the transition toward a more sustainable materials economy. If you have a strong research background and a drive for innovation, this position offers an exciting opportunity to take the next step in your academic career! The recruitment is done within the BioGlue-Centre “Competence Centre for Bio-based Adhesives”, which is a Vinnova Competence Centre in Sustainable Industry and Digital Transformation. The vision of the Centre is to significantly reduce the dependency on fossil-based materials in the adhesive industry by developing paradigm-shifting knowledge of bio-based adhesives and becoming a world-leading research environment in Sweden. It is built around a network of top-scientists with expertise in polymer science, adhesives, technology, and sustainability located at the Department of Forest Bioeconomy and Technology at SLU (https://www.slu.se/en/about-slu/organisation/departments/department-of-forest-bioeconomy-and-technology/), the Department of Fibre and Polymer Technology at KTH (https://www.kth.se/fpt/fibre-and-polymer-technology-1.778696), and the Department of Forestry and Wood Technology at Linnaeus University (https://lnu.se/en/meet-linnaeus-university/Organisation/faculty-of-technology/meet-the-faculty-of-technology/forestry-and-wood/). The Centre unites 13 companies along the value chain in furniture, packaging and construction sectors that share the same research questions around adhesives and adhesive bonding. About the position The development of bio-based adhesives is currently limited by a lack of predictive understanding of how formulation chemistry translates into material performance. This project addresses this challenge by establishing a data-driven framework for the rational design of high-performance bio-adhesives. As a postdoctoral researcher, you will work on integrating experimental formulation, molecular-level characterization, and machine learning to develop predictive models linking chemical descriptors to adhesive properties. The work includes the development of a structured formulation library, systematic mapping of key performance indicators, and the implementation of data-driven optimization strategies to identify high-performing systems. Machine learning approaches will be used to uncover structure-property relationships and guide formulation design. The project combines experimental and computational approaches and includes validation of selected formulations on industrially relevant substrates. You will collaborate closely with academic and industrial partners and contribute to the development of a transferable predictive toolbox for next-generation sustainable adhesives. Your profile We are seeking a highly motivated postdoctoral researcher with a doctoral degree obtained within the last three years in materials science, polymer science, chemistry, chemical engineering, or a closely related field. The ideal candidate has strong expertise in polymer formulation and structure-property relationships, particularly in the modification and crosslinking of bio-based or functional polymers for adhesive or related applications. Experience with advanced material characterisation techniques is expected. A strong interest in data-driven research is essential. Experience with modelling approaches, data analysis, or machine learning applied to materials or chemical systems is considered a strong merit. You are expected to have excellent communication skills in English, both written and spoken, and a clear motivation to pursue an academic career. The ability to work independently, take initiative, and collaborate effectively in an interdisciplinary and international research environment is essential. In the evaluation of candidates, particular emphasis will be placed on (1) scientific excellence in polymer and materials science, (2) experience or demonstrated potential in applying machine learning and data-driven approaches to materials or formulation design, and (3) the ability to contribute to and expand ongoing research activities within the group. About us The Department of Forest Bioeconomy and Technology at SLU brings together expertise in technology, natural and social sciences. The department provides world-class interdisciplinary environment for research and education in the circular bioeconomy, with activities at the campuses in Umeå and Uppsala, and nationally and internationally. Our work spans the entire value chain of the forest-based bioeconomy – from analysing how resources can be used and governed to developing technologies, materials, and industrial processes for sustainable bio-based products and systems. The Department is responsible for education at the bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral levels and collaborates closely with both industry and academia nationally and internationally. With us, you can help shape a more sustainable bio-based society. For more information about the department or division visit: https://www.slu.se/om-slu/organisation/institutioner/skoglig-bioekonomi-och-teknologi/?gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=21086656031&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIwMj3yOmalQMVdluRBR3n7yxAEAAYASAAEgKD_fD_BwE Read more about our benefits and working at SLU by visiting: https://www.slu.se/en/about-slu/work-at-slu/ Location: Uppsala Form of employment: Temporary employment 24 months, with the possibility of extension. Scope: 100% Start date: The position may start as agreed between both parties but not later than January 1, 2027. Application: Please submit your application before deadline 16 August 2026. You can submit your application by clicking the button below. Union representatives: https://internt.slu.se/en/my-employment/employee-associations/kontaktpersoner-vid-rekrytering/

Postdoctoral Researcher in Computational Social Science

SVERIGES LANTBRUKSUNIVERSITET

Department of Ecology The Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU) is one of Northern Europe largest academic hubs for ecological research and offers a dynamic and excellent research environment with modern infrastructure. The Department of Ecology has about 150 employees, of whom around 40 work at the Grimsö Research Station in Bergslagen. Together, the SLU Ecology Centre and Grimsö Research Station conduct research on sustainable agriculture and forestry, plant protection, nature conservation, and wildlife management, and provide scientific knowledge to inform Sweden and Europe’s environmental policies.   About the position Project Can we foresee the outcomes of public policies, political choices and other decisions? We are finding out by developing serious games and running them using AI. We are building large-scale simulations of societal processes (environmental negotiations, nature conservation policies, and hybrid-threat scenarios) in which every actor is an autonomous AI agent powered by Large Language Models (LLMs). These agents simulate real-world stakeholders, from government ministers to interest groups, and interact through natural language in complex strategic settings. We then run thousands of iterations to map the distribution of outcomes. This effort is part of a new research program Articulating Complexity ( https://www.slu.se/articulating-complexity/). We are looking for an ambitious post-doc to join this effort. Tasks and duties You are the person who makes the simulations meaningful. The technical infrastructure produces outputs in the form of thousands of LLM-generated texts from prompts. Your job is to ensure that these outputs are grounded in real human behavior, real political dynamics, and real institutional logic. Concretely this means: Scenario architecture. Each simulation is defined by a scenario with an initial world state, a cast of agents, communication channels, institutional constraints, document corpora. You will design scenarios focusing on negotiations of nature conservation policies and socio-ecological hybrid warfare. Agent persona construction. For each agent you will define the identity prompt, ideology vector, personality traits, decision mode weights, and the affect parameters that govern when agents escalate beyond their default moderation. This means extracting positions, rhetorical styles, strategic preferences, and psychological profiles from real-world sources. Analysis and validation of simulation outputs. After Monte Carlo runs, you will analyze the distribution of outcomes (e.g. which policies emerge) and will also design behavioural signature validation (e.g. verifying that simulated agents exhibit the expected action distributions when compared against empirical baselines). Publication and dissemination. You will co-author scientific publications from the project. The research will produce papers at the intersection of computational social science, ecology, security studies, and AI, a space with very few competitors and high visibility.  You will work closely with the PI (Guillaume Chapron https://www.slu.se/en/profilepages/c/guillaume-chapron/%20) and a research engineer in AI (recruited concurrently). The three of you will form the core team. Your profile Required A PhD in computational social science (or political science, psychology, behavioural economics, evolutionary anthropology or a related field) with strong quantitative skills. The PhD must be completed by the start date. Ability to reflect about strategic behaviour, political dynamics, or social processes in a structured, analytical way, whether through formal models, experiments or quantitative analysis. Willingness to work with AI and LLMs. You should be comfortable working critically with AI-generated outputs, interpreting how LLMs respond to instructions, and contributing to the design, testing, and refinement of prompts. Strong writing skills: clarity, precision, and the ability to communicate across disciplinary boundaries. Desirable Experience with agent-based modelling, game theory, simulation, or experimental methods in the social sciences. Experience with LLMs and their capabilities for simulating human behaviour such as the emerging literature on "silicon samples" and next-generation social simulations. Understanding of institutional design, legislative procedures, or multi-level governance. The simulation enforces procedural constraints, and designing these correctly requires knowing how real institutions actually work. Reading proficiency in Swedish, not required but an advantage. Assessment criteria Applications will be assessed on the following: Intellectual depth and originality. We are looking for someone who has demonstrated the ability to produce genuinely novel ideas, not incremental extensions of existing work. Your PhD thesis, publications, or research statement should show that you think independently and are drawn to hard, underexplored scientific problems. Interdisciplinary range. The ideal candidate is not easily captured by a single disciplinary label. If your work connects political behaviour, psychology, strategic interaction, and computational methods, even in an unconventional way, you are more interesting to us than a narrow specialist with a longer publication list. Fit with the project’s ambition. This is a project that aims to pioneer a new field and we want someone who finds that proposition thrilling rather than risky. Your application should make clear why this project, not just why a postdoc. Because the research area is new, you also need to be able to work in relative isolation. Cross-discipline disposition. You will work daily with questions from very different disciplines: computer science, AI, ecology, political science, geopolitics. The ability to communicate across disciplinary silos is essential. Interpersonal skills will form an important part of the assessment. Location: The position is based either at Grimsö or at Uppsala, with a possibility to be partly based at another Swedish academic institution with a core expertise in computational social science. Form of employment: Fixed-term employment 24 months, with possibility of extension. Scope: 100%. Start date: As agreed, as soon as possible after recruitment. Application: Please submit your application before deadline 14 July 2026. You can submit your application by clicking the button below. Application requirements are available on the SLU website.

Postdoctoral position Aquatic Ecosystem Resilience and Climate Adaptation

SVERIGES LANTBRUKSUNIVERSITET

Department of Aquatic Resources (SLU Aqua) Climate change is impacting aquatic ecosystems worldwide, creating an urgent need for management strategies that strengthen ecological resilience and support sustainable use of aquatic resources. In this two-year postdoctoral project, you will use quantitative  evidence-based syntheses to identify how aquatic management can enhance ecosystem resilience to the impacts of climate change. This position offers opportunities for career development at the interface between ecological research and practical management through scientific publishing, conference participation, and stakeholder engagement.  About the position We are looking for a postdoctoral researcher with a strong interest in evidence-based conservation and restoration ecology. The project combines fundamental ecological and evolutionary research with applied management science to address: Which management interventions most effectively increase resilience to climate change in aquatic ecosystems? How do dispersal, ecological interactions and evolutionary adaptation influence the success of climate adaptation measures? How can evidence synthesis be translated into practical decision support for environmental managers? You will apply systematic reviews, meta-analyses and other evidence synthesis methods to answer these questions. The work includes close collaboration with practitioners to ensure scientifically robust and practically relevant guidance for climate adaptation. The project is expected to result in scientific publications while directly informing evidence-based environmental policy and management. We offer a collaborative research environment with strong links between fundamental ecological research and environmental management. The successful candidate will have opportunities to publish in leading international journals, present their work at international conferences, collaborate with practitioners and policy makers to develop an independent research profile. Your profile You must hold a PhD in Biology (ecology/evolution), Environmental science or similar discipline. Systematic reviews, meta-analyses or other relevant evidence-synthesising methods should have formed a central part of your thesis or academic career. Experience of research relevant for environmental management, decision support or governance of aquatic resources, and collaborating with practitioners, especially in coastal and marine areas, is an advantage. Applicants with experience in one or more of the following areas are encouraged to apply: systematic reviews/meta-analysis or other evidence synthesis conservation planning/restoration ecology climate change research and climate adaptation aquatic ecology We are looking for a candidate with excellent analytical and problem-solving skills, who can work both independently and collaboratively and has a demonstrated ability to publish scientific research. Good written and oral communication skills in English are a requirement. We will also place particular emphasis on personal qualities relevant to the position. The position is intended for an early-career researcher. Candidates should have obtained their PhD no more than three years ago from the starting date. Under some circumstances, the degree may have been obtained earlier, which includes leave of absence due to illness, parental leave, positions of trust within unions, service in the armed forces, or other similar circumstances. About us The successful candidate will work closely with a group of ecologists- and evolutionary biologists from SLU and the Swedish Natural History Museum. All researchers in the team work in close collaboration with authorities and managers. The Department of Aquatic Resources (SLU Aqua), hosting the postdoc is an inspiring environment where you can contribute to knowledge for the sustainable use of seas, lakes and watercourses. We combine ecological, biodiversity, and fisheries research with environmental monitoring and assessment, and advice for national and international management. With over 200 employees, we are the largest knowledge hub on aquatic ecosystems and fisheries in Sweden, providing access to associated research infrastructure and research opportunities of high societal relevance. Our head office is in Uppsala (Ultuna), and our three other main locations are Lysekil, Öregrund and Stockholm (Drottningholm)., Read more about SLU Aqua: https://www.slu.se/en/about-slu/organisation/departments/aquatic-resources/ Read more about our benefits and working at SLU by visiting: https://www.slu.se/en/about-slu/work-at-slu/ Location: Uppsala Form of employment: Temporary employment 24 months. Scope: 100% Start date: Upon agreement but no later than 1 January 2027. Application: Applicants are welcome to submit their application using the button below, at the latest by the 17th of August 2026. The application should be written in English and contain 1) a cover letter describing your motivation for the position, your skills and qualifications in relation to the advertised profile, and contact details for two reference persons, 2) a CV documenting your academic career and education with a publication list (including submitted manuscripts), and 3) a PhD degree diploma and transcripts of academic records. Union representatives: https://internt.slu.se/en/my-employment/employee-associations/kontaktpersoner-vid-rekrytering/     The Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU) has a key role in the development for sustainable life, based on science and education. Through our focus on the interaction between humans, animals and ecosystems and the responsible use of natural resources, we contribute to sustainable societal development and good living conditions on our planet. Our main campuses are located in Alnarp, Umeå and Uppsala, however, the university also operates at research stations, experimental forests and teaching sites throughout Sweden. SLU has around 4,000 employees, 6,000 students and doctoral students and a turnover of over SEK 4,5 billion. We are investing in attractive environments on all of our campuses. We strive to provide a work environment characterised by inclusivity and gender equality, where different experiences generate conversations between people and pave the way for science, creativity and development. Therefore, we welcome applications from people with diverse backgrounds and perspectives.