*PhD or MS Opportunity: Landscape and Fire Ecology*
*Location: *University of Florida IFAS West Florida Research and Education Center *Anticipated Start:* May 2025 or Fall 2025 *Anticipated Salary: *$30,000 per year at 0.5 FTE plus tuition waiver *Application Deadline:* Jan 30th or until position is filled. *Position Description: *The Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) helps protect watersheds, enhance habitat and air quality, and conserve soils. However, with increasing large wildfires across many regions of the U.S., it is unclear how CRP lands might be mobilized to reduce wildfire risk and contribute to fire resilient landscapes. The Donovan lab is seeking a motivated PhD or MS student to assess of the role that CRP lands have played in historical wildfire risk and their potential to enhance or reduce wildfire risk in the future. Specifically, the student will generate models of wildfire risk and the relative contribution of CRP lands using remotely sensed information and test alternative future scenarios of wildfire risk based on climate and landscape configurations of CRP lands. The student will be expected to lead quantitative statistical analyses, present their findings at scientific conferences, complete relevant course work, and publish their findings in the peer-reviewed literature. Moreover, the student will be expected to collaborate with a team of students and scientists at the University of Florida and Texas State University. *Qualifications:* The successful candidate will preferably have a BS (MS position) or BS and MS degree (PhD position) in ecology or a related field, a valid driver’s license, and experience with R and/or GIS and/or Google Earth Engine for spatial analysis (or in the case of the MS candidate, a strong willingness to learn). In addition, they will have strong writing, communication, leadership, and organization skills, and the ability to work independently and as part of a team. Please submit a cover letter explaining why you are pursuing a graduate degree and why you believe this position is the right fit for you, plus a CV, unofficial transcript, and the contact information for two references to Victoria Donovan at *victoria.dono...@ufl.edu <victoria.dono...@ufl.edu>*. Submit documents as a *single PDF file* named “[your last name]_PhD_CRP.pdf” or “[your last name]_MS_CRP.pdf” *About us:* The Donovan Lab <http://www.victoriamdonovan.org/> focuses on understanding the patterns and processes that promote ecological resilience of populations, communities, and ecosystems from local to landscape scales, with a particular focus on fire. We combine field data with remotely sensed information to quantitatively answer research questions that bridge ecological theory and application. We are based out of the West Florida Research and Education Center (WFREC) in Milton, FL and offer a collaborative and inclusive environment for both education and research. Surrounded by extensive forest lands managed with fire along with white sand beaches that line the Gulf of Mexico, the region offers numerous opportunities to study natural resource conservation. __________________________________________________ Victoria M Donovan, PhD Assistant Professor of Forest Management School of Forest, Fisheries, and Geomatics Sciences University of Florida IFAS | West Florida Research and Education Center 5988 Highway 90, Building 4900, Milton, FL 32583 | 402-540-0678 To unsubscribe from this list please go to https://community.esa.org/confirm/?u=RhPWqPxFwODKvbkiT32nkIqRrsiSgulp
