Wisconsin Great Lakes Climate Change and Coastal Wetlands Fellow - Postdoc or Post MS

Wisconsin Sea Grant

Madison, WI, USA 🇺🇸

Seeking postdoctoral and post-master’s applicants for the J. Philip Keillor Great Lakes – Wisconsin Sea Grant Fellow focused on climate change and coastal wetlands

Application Deadline: March 5, 2023

The Wisconsin Sea Grant College Program (housed at the University of Wisconsin-Madison Aquatic Sciences Center) and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR) Office of Great Waters Program seek postdoctoral and post-master’s candidates interested in tackling science and policy challenges related to climate change and Lake Superior coastal wetlands. Together, these programs will fund this state Science-Policy Fellow position, named in honor of a longtime Sea Grant coastal engineering expert J Phillip Keillor, to celebrate his legacy in providing science to help build resilience in Wisconsin’s coastal communities. The Fellow will work closely with WDNR staff and work groups, other state and federal agencies, and researchers from a variety of fields to tackle the important challenge of connecting science related to climate change with natural resource managers. The fellowship mentor team will include Dr. Madeline Magee, Cherie Hagen, and Lacey Hill-Kastern (WDNR Office of Great Waters) and Drs. Titus Seilheimer, Natalie Chin, and Jennifer Hauxwell (Wisconsin Sea Grant).

This Fellow position provides a unique educational and career opportunity for a recent graduate interested in climate change, coastal wetlands, and the policy decisions affecting those resources in Wisconsin. This fellowship places a recent master’s or doctoral graduate within the WDNR full-time for 18 months, with the Fellow bringing technical skills to address coastal wetland and climate change issues while receiving valuable real-world science-policy experience from the resource professionals who serve as mentors. These mutually beneficial partnerships advance science to support policy decisions and provide valuable training opportunities for new professionals entering the work force. This fellowship opportunity emphasizes personal and professional growth through significant flexibility as the fellow develops their project goals and approach and gains experience with community-engaged science and research. Community-engaged science and research relies on building a relationship with a community, developing trust, and practicing in the co-production of science that can benefit the community in decision-making. Each fellow gains experience working at this interface, experimenting with approaches that may be effective (and also learning through those that might not be), and learning how best to translate their strengths into science that is actionable.

Wisconsin DNR has identified the following priority area in which we are seeking assistance. While the bulk of the fellow’s work will focus on this research question, there will be opportunities to assist with field projects, attend trainings and conferences, participate in policy discussions, and work groups, and generally collaborate with DNR staff. The candidate will be expected to produce at least one lead-authored manuscript, mapping products, and contribute to internal and external reports.
• The proposed project will build on prior and ongoing work assessing and predicting climate change effects on coastal wetlands to develop a simplified framework for climate change-based prioritization of wetlands for conservation or restoration action. Information developed in this project will be used to implement management and restoration projects in the Lake Superior basin. The project will develop (a) a series of maps summarizing climate change sensitivity of Lake Superior coastal wetlands; (b) generate general climate adaptation strategies for Great Lakes coastal wetlands; and (c) recommend specific actions for a subset of wetlands to increase climate resilience. Additionally, the fellow will make recommendations on how to transfer the project for subsequent phases in other Great Lakes basins.

This Fellow is intended to be stationed in downtown Madison at the WDNR, and will work with researchers from across the state, region and country, as well as stakeholders and policy-makers in Wisconsin. The position requires occasional travel, including overnight stays.

UW-Madison is an Equal Employment, Equal Access Employer committed to increasing the diversity of our workforce. Diversity is a source of strength, creativity, and innovation for UW-Madison. We value the contributions of each person and respect the profound ways their identity, culture, background, experience, status, abilities, and opinion enrich the university community. We commit ourselves to the pursuit of excellence in teaching, research, outreach, and diversity as inextricably linked goals. The University of Wisconsin-Madison fulfills its public mission by creating a welcoming and inclusive community for people from every background-people who as students, faculty, and staff serve Wisconsin and the world.

More detail on the fellowship is below. If you have any questions, please contact:
Dr. Jennifer Hauxwell at jennifer.hauxwell@aqua.wisc.edu or
Dr. Madeline Magee at madeline.magee@wisconsin.gov

Eligibility
Any student or postgraduate who will have graduated in the past five years with a degree in an applicable field (see above) and is eligible to work in the United States is eligible to apply. Fellows must have completed all degree requirements before starting the fellowship. Please note that successful applicants are responsible for ensuring their eligibility to work in the United States (i.e. a citizen or national of the United States, a lawful permanent resident, a foreign national authorized to work in the United States without need of employer sponsorship) on or before the effective date of appointment.

Stipend and Expenses
Annual stipends are dependent on the Fellow’s academic background, with post master’s Fellows earning $40,000 and postdoctoral Fellows earning $55,000, both with additional benefits (see – http://www.ohr.wisc.edu/benefits/new-emp/grad.aspx). Fellows will be allotted up to $2,000 to cover fellowship-related travel and can include conferences. Additional travel associated with the fellowship may be covered by the host agency at the agency’s discretion.

Application Requirements
Application packages should be sent to jennifer.hauxwell@aqua.wisc.edu at the University of Wisconsin Sea Grant Institute and should include:
1. A personal statement that describes your background and abilities, your expectations from the fellowship experience, and how this experience fits with your career goals (2 pages or fewer)
2. Curriculum vitae with relevant educational, professional and volunteer experience (no length limit)
3. Copies of all undergraduate and graduate student transcripts
4. Up to 4 writing samples, both formal and informal (e.g., journal articles or other technical documents, popular articles, web resources, etc.)
5. Contact information for two professional references, including a faculty member from your graduating institution familiar with your academic record
Please use the naming convention “Last name – description of file” for all files associated with the application (e.g. “Yang – cover letter”, “Yang – cv”, “Yang – transcripts”, etc.).

Selection Process
Wisconsin Sea Grant and Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources staff will identify a short list of candidates for interviews. Interviews will be conducted by a panel with representatives from both programs to determine the best fit for the position. It is expected that applicants will possess a strong aquatic sciences and water resources background, strong analytical skills, an ability to manage projects and work independently, and excellent written and verbal communication skills.

Length of Assignment
The length of assignment is 18 months with an anticipated start in summer 2023. This timeline may be adjusted to accommodate academic semester needs or the needs of the candidates or funding institutions.

Timeline
March 5, 2023 – Deadline for submission of applications
Late March – Interviews
June (approx.) – Fellowship begins


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