The University of Namur is seeking a PhD candidate to study how changes in forest tree species composition affect soil carbon storage, biodiversity, and ecosystem functioning in ancient forests of Wallonia.
Description:
The University of Namur (Belgium) is seeking a highly motivated PhD candidate in theoretical and computational ecology to join the newly funded SHIFT project ‘How does a shift in forest tree species composition affect soil organic carbon storage in ancient forests of Wallonia: site conditions, biotic interactions, and reversibility’.
This interdisciplinary project, led in collaboration with UNamur, UCLouvain, and ULiège, investigates how historical forest conversion and ecological restoration affect soil biodiversity, carbon storage, and ecosystem functioning in ancient forests of Wallonia.
The PhD position at the University of Namur will focus on the modelling and integration components of the project. The successful candidate will use empirical data from a large-scale field campaign across ancient forest stands to reconstruct soil ecosystem carbon budgets and develop dynamic models of complex soil ecosystems based on the literature. The goal is to understand how changes in tree species composition affect the functioning, stability, and reversibility of forest soil ecosystems.
What the PhD project involves:
The candidate will work on:
- integrating data on soil carbon pools and fluxes, microbial communities, soil fauna, and ecosystem functioning.
- estimating carbon budgets of forest soil ecosystems using quantitative and probabilistic methods.
- developing dynamic models to study ecosystem stability, resilience, and the possibility of irreversible change.
- investigating how biodiversity and soil conditions jointly determine whether restored ecosystems can return to the state of unconverted ancient forests.
- collaborating closely with researchers in forest ecology, soil science and microbial ecology across the three partner institutions.
Qualifications required:
Applicants should have:
- a Master’s degree or equivalent in Ecology, Environmental Science, Computational Biology, Theoretical Biology, Applied Mathematics, Physics, Statistics, or a related field
- strong interest in theoretical and computational ecology, ecosystem stability, resilience, biodiversity, and ecological networks
- good quantitative and analytical skills
- experience with programming and data analysis, preferably in R; knowledge of Python, Julia, Matlab, or similar is also useful
- good English communication skills, written and spoken
- ability to work independently and in an interdisciplinary team
Preferred experience:
Experience with one or more of the following is an advantage:
- ecological modelling,
- dynamical systems,
- network analysis,
- Bayesian statistics or probabilistic modelling,
- mathematical biology,
- multivariate data analysis.
Funding and employment details:
- Full-time, 4 years
- Starting date: 1st October 2026, flexible by agreement
Application:
Applications should be sent by email to Prof. Frederik De Laender (frederik.delaender@unamur.be) and should include:
- a motivation letter,
- a CV,
- a copy of the Master’s thesis or equivalent,
- the names and contact details of three referees who may be contacted for their opinion.
Application deadline:
1st August 2026, 12:00 (Europe/Brussels).
More information about the PhD position can be found on EURAXESS