Position Description

The University of Washington (UW) Center for Health and the Global Environment (CHanGE) seeks one postdoctoral researcher to support a 3-year international project to elaborate the narratives and quantifications of health in the Shared Socioeconomic Pathway (SSP). The SSPs are used with Representative Concentration Pathway (RCP) emissions scenarios to model and project possible futures under a range of socio-environmental assumptions. The elaborated SSPs will be used to support projections of the magnitude and pattern of future health risks globally, regionally, and at national and subnational levels, accounting for other drivers of these risks.

CHanGE is an interdisciplinary center in the UW Schools of Medicine and Public Health with the mission of prioritizing health in climate change mitigation and adaptation options and incorporating climate resilience into all health sector activities. CHanGE collaborates with a wide range of partners domestically and globally in pursuit of its mission.

Specifically, CHanGE seeks one scholar to support a new project in collaboration with the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA). The project will convene experts in climate change and health, demography, sustainability, migration, systems science, econometrics, and integrated assessment modeling to develop and implement a strategy for integrating health into the SSP narratives and quantifications.

The ideal candidate is analytical, organized, and collaborative with expert knowledge related to climate change health risks, associated indicators and metrics, demographic modeling, integrated assessment modeling, and related areas. A passion for research, a demonstrable capacity to work in highly interdisciplinary environments, creativity, and collegiality are essential. The successful candidates must be prepared to support developing and maintaining large, international collaborative scientific networks.

The ideal candidate is familiar with the SSPs and RCPs and their application in integrated assessment modeling; have experience in developing narratives of possible socio-environmental futures; have facility in scenario-based projections of demographic and health data; and are trained in documentation and archival of qualitative and quantitative data.

The Department of Global Health encourages and supports the multiple identities of staff, faculty and students including, but not limited to, socioeconomic status, race, ethnicity, language, nationality, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, culture, spiritual practice, geography, mental and physical disability, and age. The Department strives to become a local, national, and international leader in developing and maintaining increased representation and recognition of each of these dimensions of diversity among its faculty, staff, and students.

Responsibilities

• Work closely with the UW and IIASA teams as an academic leader, providing support and structure through coordination of meetings, agenda setting, note taking, and dissemination for productive intellectual engagement; identifying areas for alignment across activities within CHanGE and across the efforts of its collaborators domestically and globally; and enabling equity in the contribution of CHanGE partners in all activities.
• Work closely with the UW and IIASA teams to implement a strategy for elaborating the SSP narratives and quantifications to include population health, upstream drivers of health outcomes, and health systems
• Organize and support annual reporting for the project and drafting and revision of research products including posters, presentations, papers, reports, videos, websites, datasets and repositories, and other products from the work
• Provide input regarding guidance, training, analysis, and dissemination of the SSP narratives and quantifications to support rapid global uptake of research products, with particular attention to partnerships and capacity building in lower- and middle-income countries, and to support integrated assessment modeling
• Coordinate activities with graduate student researcher(s) and supervise as needed
• Carry out other duties within the scope, spirit, and purpose of the job as requested

Qualifications

Minimum

• MD, PhD, or foreign equivalent in environmental health, epidemiology, health metrics sciences, implementation science, public health, demographics or other quantitative social sciences, or related discipline
• At least two years related experience or equivalent combination of education and experience

Additional

• Excellent analytic, critical thinking, and quantitative skills
• Understanding of scenario-based modeling and use of scenarios in integrated assessment modeling of possible climate futures and impacts
• Experience of processing, integrating and analyzing large quantitative or qualitative data sets
• Ability to think laterally and integrate knowledge from different disciplines
• Articulate, quick learner, and problem-solver
• Commitment to equality, diversity, and inclusion
• Good interpersonal skills and ability to work as part of a team and to work independently with minimal direction when required
• Record of devising and executing research projects
• Record of successfully developing and coordinating communities of practice and professional networks
• Record of developing training platforms and supporting dissemination and implementation of novel processes with large groups of stakeholders
• Excellent written and oral communication skills, including track record of success in co-authorship on multiple scientific papers, presenting results, and representing research at meetings
• A long-term interest in contributing to the overall mission of our research

Desired

• Demonstrated expertise with optimization, data science, and analytic techniques, including time series analysis.
• Record of mentoring and developing junior employees on soft and technical skills.
• Advanced experience with climate and health modeling
• Demonstrated expertise with project management methods.
• Peer-reviewed publication record
• Successful completion of several high-quality research projects

Conditions of employment:

This position is eligible for visa sponsorship through the UW.

Postdoctoral Scholar appointments are initially for 12-months with opportunities to renew. Appointment not to exceed 5 years, including postdoctoral experience(s) at other institutions. The salary range for this position is $68,460-$82,000 annually, commensurate with experience and qualifications, or as mandated by a U.S. Department of Labor prevailing wage determination.

This position is a Seattle-based role, and the office is in Seattle, Washington. The work schedule must adhere to UW office hours, between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. Pacific Standard Time as agreed by the employee and supervisor. The employee will be supervised by Dr. Kristie Ebi and Dr. Jeremy Hess (UW) and will collaborate with colleagues at IIASA, among others. Weekend and evening/early morning work is sometimes required, as is occasional domestic and international travel.

Postdoctoral scholars are represented by UAW 4121 and are subject to the collective bargaining agreement, unless agreed exclusion criteria apply. For more information, please visit the University of Washington Labor Relations website.

Please contact Dr. Kris Ebi ([email protected]) for more information about this position.

Instructions

Applicants should submit a curriculum vitae, a list of three professional references, and a brief statement (500-word limit) outlining their interest in the position and highlighting relevant experience.

If you have any questions about this position, please send to Dr. Kris Ebi ([email protected]).

Equal Employment Opportunity Statement

University of Washington is an affirmative action and equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, creed, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, pregnancy, genetic information, gender identity or expression, age, disability, or protected veteran status.

Benefits Information

A summary of benefits associated with this title/rank can be found at https://hr.uw.edu/benefits/benefits-orientation/benefit-summary-pdfs/. Appointees solely employed and paid directly by a non-UW entity are not UW employees and are not eligible for UW or Washington State employee benefits.

Commitment to Diversity

The University of Washington is committed to building diversity among its faculty, librarian, staff, and student communities, and articulates that commitment in the UW Diversity Blueprint (http://www.washington.edu/diversity/diversity-blueprint/). Additionally, the University's Faculty Code recognizes faculty efforts in research, teaching and/or service that address diversity and equal opportunity as important contributions to a faculty member's academic profile and responsibilities (https://www.washington.edu/admin/rules/policies/FCG/FCCH24.html#2432).

Privacy Notice

Review the University of Washington Privacy Notice for Demographic Data of Job Applicants and University Personnel to learn how your demographic data are protected, when the data may be used, and your rights.

Disability Services

To request disability accommodation in the application process, contact the Disability Services Office at 206-543-6450 or [email protected].