Recruitment & Admissions

Team Introduction

The CEADs team brings together outstanding scholars from research institutions in China, the United Kingdom, and other countries. The team has long focused on frontier research in greenhouse gas emission accounting and climate change governance, providing a solid data foundation and technical support for global low-carbon transition and sustainable development. The research group led by Associate Professor Yuli Shan at the University of Birmingham, as part of the China-Europe Climate Change and Biodiversity Flagship Initiative cooperation project, is recruiting two postdoctoral researchers.

Project Introduction

The appointed postdoctoral researchers will work on the EU Horizon and China Ministry of Science and Technology China-Europe Climate Change and Biodiversity Flagship Initiative cooperation project - EU-CHINA BRIDGE: Building Roadmaps to Industrial Decarbonisation and Green Economy through EU-China Cooperation. They will work closely with the University of Birmingham, Tsinghua University, Renmin University of China, the University of Kassel, the Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Environment and Energy, China Coal Group, E3-Modelling AE, the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), and other partners to advance technological innovation and low-carbon transition pathways for emission-intensive industries, aiming to provide feasible roadmaps for China and Europe to achieve carbon peaking and carbon neutrality on schedule.

Position Introduction

Postdoctoral Researcher Position 1:

The position starts on December 1, 2024, with a contract of up to 28 months. The main responsibility is to build datasets of greenhouse gases and short-lived climate pollutants for more than 100 countries and key emitting sectors. Specifically, the role will compile a comprehensive, multi-sector, long time-series global emissions inventory of carbon dioxide, methane, and other non-CO2 greenhouse gases based on localized emission factors applicable to different countries and sectors; estimate point-source emissions from the steel and chemical industries at the firm level using life-cycle analysis, machine learning, and other methods; and validate the scientific robustness and reliability of the project emissions dataset through cross-checks with existing emissions inventories.

Postdoctoral Researcher Position 2:

The position starts on December 1, 2024, with a contract of up to 24 months. The main responsibility is to build datasets of greenhouse gases and short-lived climate pollutants for more than 100 countries and major emitting sectors, with a focus on gridded emissions inventories. Specifically, the role will couple bottom-up and top-down emissions accounting methods to compile carbon dioxide and methane emissions inventories, and will introduce multidisciplinary methods such as satellite inversion models and machine learning algorithms to build gridded greenhouse gas emissions inventories.

Responsibilities

1. Conduct goal-oriented research and complete the proposed deliverables for Work Package 2 of the EU-CHINA BRIDGE project, Building GHG short-lived pollutant emission inventories and dataset, on schedule;

2. Conduct research related to greenhouse gas emissions accounting and climate change governance;

3. Develop modeling techniques and methods;

4. Work closely with project members and research group colleagues to translate research outputs into policy recommendations;

5. Collect data, analyze results, and publish outputs in forms such as high-level journal papers, reports, and policy briefs;

6. Actively participate in academic conferences and promote project outputs;

7. Support and assist other team members in related research;

8. Guide students in research-related work and provide supervision for PhD students assisting with the project;

9. Assist with subsequent project funding applications and related work.

Application Requirements

1. Have obtained, or expect to obtain before December 1, 2024, a PhD degree in climate change, environmental science, economics, or a related discipline;

2. Have independent data analysis skills and research experience in acquiring, applying, and developing datasets;

3. Be proficient in relevant models, techniques, or methods, and have the ability to learn or develop new models or methods. Position 1: emissions accounting, machine learning, and integrated assessment models for climate change. Position 2: satellite inversion models, machine learning, and integrated assessment models for climate change;

4. Have a strong publication record in leading international journals;

5. Have the ability to develop research plans and manage projects;

6. Be able to use English as a working language and communicate effectively with other researchers in the project.

Supervisory Team

Associate Professor Yuli Shan

Associate Professor at the School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Birmingham, and discipline lead for sustainable development. He is a Highly Cited Researcher, a contributor to the IPCC Sixth Assessment Report, and the first overseas executive council member of the China Input-Output and Big Data Research Association. He has received more than 20 academic honors, including the German Green Talents Award and the Chinese Government Award for Outstanding Self-financed Students Abroad, and serves as an editor for journals including Scientific Data and Applied Energy. His long-term research focuses on interdisciplinary studies related to carbon emissions accounting, regional sustainable development, and climate change economics. His research outputs have provided foundational data support for government management practices related to carbon peaking and carbon neutrality. He has published more than 100 SCI/SSCI papers in leading domestic and international journals including CNS sub-journals, Science Bulletin, and National Science Review, with 18 papers selected as ESI hot papers and 27 selected as ESI highly cited papers.

Professor Zongbo Shi

Professor at the School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Birmingham. He is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and a member of the European Association of Geochemistry. His research mainly focuses on air pollution, global geochemical cycles, and related fields, and he has published more than 160 high-level papers. He is the overall coordinator of the UK-China major collaborative research programme on air pollution and human health in Chinese megacities. He leads active projects totaling more than GBP 5 million, including one major project from the UK Natural Environment Research Council and one Wellcome Trust major project, and has participated in major projects totaling more than GBP 10 million. He serves as chair of a review panel for the Natural Environment Research Council under UK Research and Innovation, and as an editor for Environmental Chemistry.

Professor Roy Harrison

Professor at the School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Birmingham. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society, the Royal Society of Chemistry, the Royal Meteorological Society, and the Academy of Medical Sciences, and is a recipient of the Order of the British Empire. His research mainly focuses on air pollution, atmospheric science, environmental health, and related fields. He has published more than 400 high-level papers and participated in more than 100 research projects. He previously served as honorary vice president of Environmental Protection UK and currently serves as an editor for Particuology, Toxics, and AIMS Environmental Science.

Professor Zhu Liu (Chinese Project Partner)

Zhu Liu is a professor in the Department of Earth System Science at Tsinghua University, a senior researcher at Harvard University, and a researcher at the California Institute of Technology and the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory. He is a Highly Cited Researcher and a Giorgio Ruffolo Fellow at Harvard University. He has received multiple honors, including MIT Technology Review Innovators Under 35, the Qiushi Outstanding Young Scholar Award, the German Green Talents Award, and the Special Award of the President of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. His main research areas include global greenhouse gas monitoring based on satellite remote sensing, inversion models, and geographic information systems; quantitative assessment of the global carbon budget; and quantification of carbon data, carbon emissions, and carbon footprints. He has published more than 200 SCI/SSCI papers in leading domestic and international journals including Nature, Science, CNS sub-journals, and PNAS.

University Introduction

The University of Birmingham was founded in 1900 and is located in Birmingham, the second largest city in the United Kingdom. As a member of the Russell Group, the University of Birmingham is a world top 100 university and the first red-brick university in the United Kingdom. Its alumni and faculty include 11 Nobel Prize winners, 3 British prime ministers, and 5 heads of foreign governments.

The School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences at the University of Birmingham has an international reputation for research and teaching. Geography, geology, and environmental science are all ranked among the world top 100 subjects in QS 2024, and Earth Systems and Environmental Sciences ranked third in the United Kingdom in REF. Li Siguang, a founder of geomechanics in China and a first-generation leader of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, graduated from the School.

Key Recruitment Information

University: University of Birmingham

Location: Birmingham, United Kingdom

Project title: EU-CHINA BRIDGE: Building Roadmaps to Industrial Decarbonisation and Green Economy through EU-China Cooperation

Application deadline: August 25, 2024, UK time

Expected interview date: Mid-September 2024

Start date: No later than December 1, 2024

Application websites:

Position 1:

https://www.jobs.ac.uk/job/DIX114/research-fellow-eu-china-bridge?uuid=00b889fe-4af1-11ef-84bd-027e9b1da9c1&campaign=jbe20240726&source=jbe

Position 2:

https://www.jobs.ac.uk/job/DIX126/research-fellow-eu-china-bridge-2?uuid=00b889fe-4af1-11ef-84bd-027e9b1da9c1&campaign=jbe20240726&source=jbe

For more information, please contact:

Associate Professor Yuli Shan (y.shan@bham.ac.uk)

Personal website:

www.shanyuli.com

https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/schools/gees/people/profile?Name=dr-yuli-shan&Reference Id=199763