Wednesday, June 24, 2009

GIS: PhD opportunities, fellowships at ITC

Looking for PhD opportunities in the the Netherlands? Look no further. ITC, currently, has five PhD and one Post Doctoral positions for nationals from East Africa under the research project "EOIA: an Earth Observation and Integrated Assessment approach to the Governance of Lake Naivasha."

EGERTON UNIVERSITY
Egerton University in collaboration with International Institute of Geoinformation Science and Earth Observation (ITC, Netherlands) invites applications for the following scholarships in the Academic Year 2009/2010.

FULL SCHOLARSHIPS: FIVE (5) Ph. D. AND ONE (1) POST DOCTORAL POSITIONS AVAILABLE FOR
NATIONALS FROM EAST AFRICA

These scholarships are offered under the research project "EOIA: An Earth Observation‐ and Integrated Assessment approach to the Governance of Lake Naivasha" is funded by the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research under the WOTRO ‐Global Science for Development Programme.

The project will be implemented jointly by Egerton University (Kenya), and the International Institute of Geoinformation Science and Earth Observation (ITC, The Netherlands) and the University of Twente (The Netherlands). Collaborating partners are the University of Nairobi (Kenya), University of Leicester (UK) and the University of Bournemouth (UK). The main stakeholders in the project are Water Resources Management Authority (WRMA), Lake Naivasha Growers Group (LNGG), Lake Naivasha Riparian Organisation (LNRA), World Agroforestry Center (ICRAF) and the World Wildlife Fund ‐ East Africa Regional Programme Office (WWF‐EARPO), all based in Kenya.

The research aims at enhancing sustainability in management of water resources and the environment using Lake Naivasha as a pilot case and adopting Integrated Assessment approach to generate lessons and best practices which can be replicated in other catchments in Kenya and in the East Africa region. Major inputs to the assessment include participatory processes and physical and economic models combined with data derived from remote sensing techniques.

In the framework of this project 5 PhD candidates will be recruited for the following projects.

1. Quantifying the effect of landuse change in upper catchments of Lake Naivasha on water quantity and quality of the Lake ‐ Tenable at ITC/Twente
2. Impact of exogenous and endogenous changes on limnology, fisheries and piscivorous birds – Tenable at Egerton University Kenya
3. Hydrological impacts on terrestrial fringe biodiversity‐Tenable at ITC/Twente
4. Water governance – Tenable at University of Nairobi
5. Socio‐economic linkages – Tenable at ITC/Twente

For a detailed description of the project interested candidates may consult the project document at www.itc.nl/EOIA.

The project also offers 1 Post Doctoral Position The candidate for this position will take up the challenge to integrate the results from the five subprojects and build the Integrated Assessment framework. Applicants, not necessarily African, with a strong background in multidisciplinary modelling and systems integration may contact the PI's /coordinators on this position.

Requirements and modalities.
The positions 1, 3 and 5 are PhD positions for 4 years at ITC with a Doctoral Degree awarded by the University of Twente.

Position 2 entails a PhD position for 4 years at Egerton University with an internship at ITC. Doctoral degree awarded by Egerton University.

Position 4 entails a PhD position for 4 years at University of Nairobi with an internship at ITC. Doctoral degree awarded by University of Nairobi.

Candidates should be nationals of East Africa and hold a Master of Science/Arts degree from a recognized university. All candidates will spend approximately two years in the Netherlands and two years in Kenya and are co‐supervised by the research consortium. Candidates who are below 45 years are preferred. Female candidates are encouraged to apply.

From all candidates a broad and multidisciplinary attitude is required. Candidates for position 1,2,3 should have a strong background in Engineering and Environmental Sciences, and preferably with knowledge of modeling and earth observation as well as earth sciences.

Candidates for position 4 should have a strong background in (environmental/ecological) economics.

Candidates for position 5 should have a strong background in public policy and administration, and capable of closely collaborating with more technical and economic researchers.

Candidates have a period of 6 month to fully develop their research proposals and qualify for the graduate programme. The appointment will be for a period of four years and the fellowship awarded to the successful candidates comprises:
• Medical insurance.
• Waiver of tuition fees.
• Limited resources for research materials and logistics.
• Monthly Personal Maintenance Allowance
• While at ITC‐The Netherlands: Single‐status hotel accommodation will be provided

All candidates interested in the announced positions have to apply online at http://www.itc.nl/research/phd/graduate_registration_application.aspx.

Project title: See above (1‐5); Research theme: GISA; No Project proposal needed;

Funding: WOTRO; Please do not upload large files (max 2MB) and use correct file type as indicated on the registration form.

The closing date of the application is 15 July 2009.

ONLY shortlisted applicants will be invited for an interview either in Kenya or by teleconferencing. Further information can be obtained from the PI's: veen@itc.nl or mathookoj@yahoo.com /Coordinators: becht@itc.nl or jonyando@yahoo.com.

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