Postdoc in soil biodiversity analysis across Europe

At the Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW), you will contribute to research on soil biodiversity across Europe within the EU-SOB4ES project.

What you will be doing

Soils host most of the world’s biodiversity and deliver important ecosystem services, however, many soils are currently considered unhealthy. The European Soil Monitoring Directive aims at improving soil health by careful EU-wide monitoring. The scientific challenge is to provide information about soil biodiversity across the European Union that makes soil monitoring effective in assessing changes in the status of soil health. This requires further insights into patterns of soil biodiversity in time and space. In the EU-SOB4ES project, samples have been collected and analysed during consecutive years for soil biodiversity and physicochemical parameters across a range of land use types and pedo-climatic conditions in Europe.

With your expertise in soil ecology and statistical analyses, you will analyse soil biodiversity patterns of both microorganisms and fauna across time and space using the databases built in the SOB4ES project. You will analyse these data, write scientific publications and present your research at conferences and scientific meetings, and make them accessible for a wider audience. Opportunities to mentor students and possibly also early career stage researchers exist.

What you will be contributing

We are looking for a motivated and organized candidate with a PhD in soil ecology or a related discipline. We expect you to have strong background in multivariate and complex statistical analyses, to be familiar with amplicon sequencing data, to have experience with developing and analysing large datasets, including quality control procedures, and to have good writing and presentation skills. The candidate should be fluent in English, both in speaking and writing and demonstrate the potential to guide and mentor students, to coordinate tasks and to foster a positive and productive team environment. Experience in linking soil biota to environmental and pedological parameters and using biogeography are important assets. We highly value open communication, adaptability, and independent problem-solving. We expect you to integrate well into the EU-SOB4ES project consortium and into the department of Terrestrial Ecology of NIOO-KNAW, to be open to collaboration, and to exchange knowledge with colleagues.

What do we offer?

A one-year position (1.0 FTE) in the dynamic department of Terrestrial Ecology, with a preferred starting date in October 2026 and a possibility to work 0.8 FTE. You can become a member of the graduate school PE&RC through which you can follow courses on ecological subjects, research methods, statistical analyses, and transferrable skills. The department of Terrestrial Ecology (TE) and the Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW) organise weekly seminars, science lunches and journal clubs to stimulate scientific discussion and exchange ideas. Besides that, NIOO-KNAW offers various training opportunities to broaden your skill set during employment.

Your workplace

You will be based at the department of Terrestrial Ecology (TE) at NIOO-KNAW, consisting of a dynamic, interactive and collaborative group of researchers from diverse backgrounds. You will share an office space with other PhD candidates and postdocs in the department and join an active community of researchers, postdocs, PhDs, research assistants and internship students. At the department Terrestrial Ecology, we aim to understand, predict, and mitigate effects of climate change, biodiversity loss and land use change in land-based ecosystems. Our research focuses on interactions between plants, microbes, and (in)vertebrates, in the soil and aboveground. Our approach spans from conceptual to experimental, and ranges from evolutionary adaptation to community interactions and ecosystem processes.

About NIOO

The Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO) is a national research institute of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW). At NIOO we perform ecological research on biodiversity, climate change and sustainable use of land and water. We stimulate ecological research in the Netherlands and share our ecological knowledge with society.

Terms of employment

Depending on education and experience the minimum salary is € 3.546 and the maximum salary is € 5.538 gross per month for a full-time appointment (scale 10 cao Nederlandse Universiteiten/KNAW). This is exclusive of 8% vacation allowance, 8.3% year-end bonus, travel allowance, internet allowance, home working allowance and pension accrual with ABP.

The KNAW offers its staff an excellent package of secondary benefits. For example, by working an extra two hours a week, it is possible to increase the number of days off from 29 to 41 days a year (with full-time employment).