• Are complementary to those of current research staff and existing research foci in community and historical ecology, environmental history, conservation biology, dendrochronology and paleoecology, landscape ecology, ecosystem dynamics, ecosystem services, and conservation policy;
  
• Augment ongoing externally-funded research and education programs (NSF-REU and NASA-NICE Site).
• Capitalize on 100+ years of records and extensive geographical, cartographic, and historical databases;
• Use or add to the infrastructure base provided by existing research labs and long-term studies in biogeochemistry, molecular/microbial ecology, paleoecology, dendrochronology, and spatial analysis
•  Make full use of the rural setting and the Harvard Forest’s focus on studies at a site (e.g. 1500 hectares of Harvard land), sub-region (e.g. central Massachusetts, coastal New England, and adjoining New York), and regional (New England and adjacent areas) levels.
• Have a commitment to translating science into meaningful contributions to policy and management.
  

Basic Qualifications:  PhD required.  Additional Qualifications:  Excellent history of complex collaborative research, publication, and funding. Post-doctoral experience and engagement with broader audiences a plus.

Additional Information:  The competitive salary for this endowment-funded position will be determined by background and experience. The initial appointment of three years will be renewable subject to review. The Harvard Forest offers an excellent field, laboratory, and academic environment, and will assist the incumbent in developing proper research facilities.  Excellent benefits package.  All formal offers will be made by FAS Human Resources.  

Applications should include: 1) CV; 2) Cover letter with contact information for three recommenders; and 3) Supporting material describing research experience and directions, and the fit between the individual's expertise, interests, intellectual history, and ongoing activities at the Harvard Forest. These supporting materials are especially critical, as the desire is to identify an individual whose research directions effectively complement the physical, cultural, and collaborative scientific environment of the Harvard Forest. See http://harvardforest.fas.harvard.edu/ for background on the activities, facilities and context of the Forest.

Please submit PDF of CV, cover letter and supporting materials via (http://employment.harvard.edu/) Choose Administrative/Staff Jobs (External Candidates) Search for openings via requisition number 30253BR.   Applications will be accepted through 9/27/2013.

For additional information please contact: 

Aaron Ellison ([email protected]), David Foster ([email protected]), Kathy Lambert ([email protected]), Jonathan Thompson ([email protected]), or Dave Orwig ([email protected]).

Congratulations to Hawaii Experimental Tropical Forest! 

The USDA Forest Service (USFS) Pacific Southwest Research Station manages the HETF in Hilo, Hawaii.  Melissa Dean, HETF Coordinator, wrote

"Hawaii is a melting pot of nationalities and cultures. Two-thirds of Hawaii Island residents identify themselves as native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders (12%), Asians (22%), Hispanics or Latinos (12%), and other ethnicities and mixed race individuals (30%)...[yet] the USFS employs very few professional grade scientists who are of Hawaiian or other local ethnic majority descent (Filipino, Korean, Japanese, etc.) which we hope to change by offering K-12 forest experiences that include opportunities to see natural resource managers and scientists in action, undergraduate experiences...and other local internship opportunities."

Please join us to congratulate HETF at the annual OBFS meeting in September.  

Cheers,
Stacy McNulty
OBFS Human Diversity Committee Chair


OBFS Diversity Committee:

Tom Arsuffi, Peggy Turk Boyer, Jeff Brown, Faerthen Felix, Susan Flowers, Brian Kloeppel, Nancy Lowe, Deedra McClearn, Stacy McNulty, Teresa Mourad, Amy Whipple, and Dawn Wilson

Vanity Fair recently published an article covering communities wrestling with erosion. As background, the Nantucket Field Station has sponsored several forums and speakers on coastal erosion, and the UMB-NSF Director chairs a Coastal Management Plan workgroup which is helping the Town of Nantucket write a coastal management plan to deal with sea level rise, increasing storm damage, and erosion impacting town resources and infrastructure.

http://www.vanityfair.com/society/2013/08/end-of-malibu-nantucket-erosion

Sarah's comments:

This is a long article that only partially conveys the 5 hours of interviewing and site tours and 4 hours of photography that went into it. The author has a home that is only perhaps 20-30 feet from the edge and is obviously dealing with some tough decisions. I feel that Field Station directors have a role to play in connecting the public to experts on sometimes with controversial topics in addition to providing scientific information directly and supporting the state and federal agencies attempting to do the same thing (connect people with information).

Sarah Oktay
Director
University of Massachusetts Boston Nantucket Field Station
Grace Grossman Environmental Center

The UCLA La Kretz Center for California Conservation Science invites applications for its Postdoctoral Fellowship in California Conservation Science. Consistent with our mission, we seek a postdoctoral scholar who simultaneously conducts innovative research and interfaces with the conservation and management agencies that direct and lead California conservation. Our emphasis is on biological conservation, and the successful candidate could work in any discipline that provides the scientific underpinnings for the preservation, protection, management, or restoration of at-risk species, environments, or ecological communities. We will consider candidates who have recently completed their PhD, or will have completed it by the start date for this position. We envision hiring one Fellow each year, building a team of conservation scientists with a passion for California and its biodiversity.

The La Kretz Fellowship is for two years, subject to review after the first year. Our start date is as early as October 1, 2013.  The successful applicant will be expected to conduct research that bridges the interests of at least one UCLA faculty member who is also a La Kretz affiliate with priority science concerns of resource management agencies in the Santa Monica Mountains or Greater Los Angeles area (e.g. National Park Service, CA State Parks, Mountains Recreation and Conservation Agency); we strongly encourage applicants to contact their faculty mentor to develop a research plan. We also anticipate that the Fellow will also work with Brad Shaffer, Director of the La Kretz Center, to help develop collaborative research projects that further the mission of the Center. The position has an annual salary of approximately $40,000 plus full benefits, and the Fellow will have the option to reside at the newly renovated La Kretz Field Station, located in the Santa Monica Mountains about 25 miles from campus.

Interested candidates should submit a cover letter, CV, short (1-2 page) description of research  and management accomplishments, short (1-2 page) description of proposed research including potential faculty mentor(s), and copies of two publications, all as a single PDF format, to Mario Colon, administrative assistant, at [email protected] You should also have three letters of recommendation, including one from your Ph.D. advisor, sent under separate emails. The deadline for completed applications is 20 August, 2013.

E-mail questions to Brad Shaffer (Director of the La Kretz Center) at [email protected]