About IRRI

The International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) is dedicated to reducing poverty and hunger through rice science; improving the health and welfare of rice farmers and consumers; and protecting the rice-growing environment for future generations. IRRI is an independent, nonprofit, research and educational institute, founded in 1960 by the Ford and Rockefeller foundations with support from the Philippine government. The institute, headquartered in Los Baños, Philippines, has offices in 17 rice-growing countries in Asia and Africa, and over 1,000 staff.

Working with in-country partners, IRRI develops advanced rice varieties that yield more grain and better withstand pests and disease as well as flooding, drought, and other harmful effects of climate change.

Job Purpose

Climate Change impacts rice production but rice fields are also a large source of greenhouse gas (GHG) emission. In Asian countries, rice production contributes significantly to the national GHG budgets and, in several of them, is the largest source in the agriculture sector. Many rice producing countries emphasize on reducing GHG emissions from rice production, often reflected in the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs). One current gap, however, is the accurate monitoring of progress towards reduction goals and particularly interesting is the use of remotely sensed data and biogeochemical models.

Under the general direction of the Senior Scientist for Climate Change, the Postdoctoral Fellow will support project activities related to climate change mitigation with an emphasis on methane reduction in rice farming. The Fellow will engage and strategize with partners from the government and private sectors to conduct or support research and assessments on GHG emissions, improve Monitoring, Reporting and Verification (MRV) systems, and provide technical GIS support for the implementation of IRRI’s agricultural projects in the region. This includes but is not limited to GHG measurements in rice-based systems, the collection and analysis of farm management data, piloting tools, and assessing the use of innovative instruments, equipment and approaches for GHG monitoring. The incumbent is further expected to assist general office activities relating to capacity building, policy advisory, and scientific articles.

This position will be based at the IRRI Thailand Office, Bangkok, Thailand and is open for international applications.

Roles and Responsibilities

• Plan, design and implement experiments, surveys and/or research studies in or related to agriculture, greenhouse gas emissions, monitoring, reporting, and verification (MRV), and climate change in rice production.
• Manage the implementation of the experiments and other related research studies in alignment with internal and external stakeholders to effectively.
• Support the design, development and piloting of MRV tools at dedicated pilot sites.
• Support the analysis of data derived from field surveys and geographic information systems (GIS).
• Contribute to research communication in a broad range of research products, such as peer-reviewed journals, communication materials, reports, policy briefs and presentations for national and international conferences
• Coordinates with IRRI staff and stakeholders.
• Consult and coordinate with supervisors, project partners, local and international staff, and other national and international collaborators in the implementation of research activities.
• Ensure smooth execution of all activities following timely and results-oriented implementation of all activities.
• Consolidate, verify and analyze collected data using the appropriate advanced statistical tools and draw conclusions by interpreting the results of the data as per the defined objective of the study/survey/experiment
• Lead or provide significant contributions to the writing of scientific papers, articles, or posters for publications and presentations.
• Contribute to general office activities, such as workshops, meetings and capacity building events.

Qualifications

• A PhD in a relevant research area such as agriculture, rice cultivation, environmental sciences, geography, or other discipline related to GHG analysis
• A demonstrable research background in measuring greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture, and therein preferably rice cultivation, including knowledge of rice straw management, irrigation practices, land preparation.

Skills Required

Mandatory

• Practical knowledge of low-emission practices in rice cultivation (or related agricultural fields)
• An understanding of Monitoring, Reporting, Verification (MRV) in agriculture, including using household/farm survey data and/or remote-sensing data (GIS) for greenhouse gas emission modelling
• Experience of capacity-building/training governmental or similar high-level stakeholders
• Proven ability to write up research papers for publication
• Demonstrated ability to carry out both independent and collaborative research
• Excellent organization, prioritization, and time management skills, requiring minimal supervision.

Preferred

• Practical experience in calculating GHG emissions from agriculture, specifically rice
• Practical experience in jointly developing strategies for reducing greenhouse gas emissions from rice or related agricultural fields

IRRI offers a highly extensive employee benefits package inclusive of globally-covered medical insurance, retirement plan, life and accident insurance and other allowances.

Join our team and be part of our story!

Please note that only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

This position will remain open until filled.

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