11 PhD positions in project on impacts of functional traits on ecosystem functioning in European forests

The Research Training Group (RTG) 2300 ‘Enrichment of European beech forests with conifers: impacts of functional traits on ecosystem functioning’ (EnriCo) at the Georg-August-University Göttingen in Germany, is currently inviting applications for 11 PhD Positions (f, m, d) starting on October 1, 2023. The salary is based on TV-L E13 and amounts 65 % of a full position for PhD candidates in life science and associated topics and 75 % in statistics. The positions are funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG) for 3 years.

The interdisciplinary Research Training Group 2300 was established in 2017. The PhD students enrolled in this program investigate ecological challenges and societal demands on forests in a changing climate. The program focuses on European temperate forests. A central goal is to uncover the impact of mixed compared to monospecific forests on ecosystem functions and processes with a special focus on the importance of functional traits. Our research approaches involve field studies in European beech, Norway spruce and Douglas fir forests and their mixtures, experimental studies to uncover cause-effect relationships, and statistical as well as economic analyses. We hypothesize that mixtures of European beech with conifers show higher functional diversity than pure European beech stands, resulting in higher resilience and providing multiple ecosystem services.