Postdoctoral Associate, Center for Sustainability Science and Strategy

MIT • Cambridge, MA

33d

About The Position

Two openings for a Postdoctoral Associate in the Center for Sustainability Science and Strategy. This role involves working within a multi-disciplinary team to develop a new framework for exploring the multi-sector implications of decarbonization pathways. The associates will collaborate with experts in economics, various modeling fields (energy, land, water, air, infrastructure), climate science, social science, statistics, and software engineering. The goal is to develop and apply a flexible, modular, multi-sector, cross-scale human-climate-impacts modeling framework to enhance understanding of multi-sector feedbacks and the implications of different decarbonization pathways under uncertainty. Responsibilities will include advancing methods and computational techniques for human systems models, sectoral impact models, and related Earth system models; developing, implementing, and testing approaches for integrating model components (e.g., efficient linkages, feedbacks, coupling); and advancing and applying individual/coupled model components to provide actionable information for energy and decarbonization planning. The role requires close collaboration with a sub-team and the broader full team.

Requirements

• Ph.D. in applied mathematics, computer science, software engineering, economics, energy systems, engineering, atmospheric or oceanic sciences, physics, statistics, or a related field by the date of hire.
• Expertise in at least one relevant domain area (e.g., Energy, economics, climate, water, land, agriculture, air quality, infrastructure, biodiversity, extreme events).
• Expertise in at least one relevant methodological skill set (e.g., statistics/ML/AI, software engineering, integrated assessment modeling, operations research/uncertainty analysis).
• Strong computational/modeling background.
• Coding skills in at least one general-purpose language (preferably Julia).
• Experience with GitHub and open-source programming.
• Experience with decision-making applications and/or integrated modeling.
• Demonstrated effective written and verbal communication skills.
• Self-motivation.
• Demonstrated ability to conduct independent research.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, communication, and interpersonal skills.

Responsibilities

• Advancing methods and computational techniques for human systems models, sectoral impact models, and related Earth system models.
• Developing, implementing, and testing approaches for integrating model components within the broader modeling framework (e.g., efficient and flexible model linkages, feedbacks, coupling).
• Advancing and applying individual/coupled model components to provide actionable information to advance energy and decarbonization planning.
• Collaborating with an interdisciplinary team of economists, modelers, climate scientists, social scientists, statisticians, and software engineers.
• Working closely with a sub-team and collaborating with the broader full team.
• Conducting independent research.
• Working on research proposals.
• Delivering results.
• Adapting to change.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level
• Education Level: Ph.D. or professional degree