Professor in climate attribution for Tropicical Cyclones in the South Pacific

Professor in climate attribution for Tropicical Cyclones in the South Pacific

Category: Academic Staff & Researchers

1 - Working at the VUB

For more than 50 years, the Vrije Universiteit Brussel has stood for freedom, equality and solidarity, and this is very much alive on our campuses among students and staff alike.

At the VUB, you will find a diverse collection of personalities: innovators pur sang, but above all people who are 100% their authentic selves. With some 4,000 employees, we are the largest Dutch-speaking employer, in the private sector, in Brussels; an international city with which we are only too happy to connect and where (around) our 4 campuses are located.

Add to this our principle of free research - in which self-reflection, a critical attitude and an open, creative mind around scientific and social issues are central - and you have a university that is fundamentally groundbreaking and pioneering in education and research. In short: the VUB all over again.

Moreover, the VUB is a member of EUTOPIA, an alliance of like-minded European universities, all ready to reinvent themselves.

The Faculty of Engineering, Department Hydrology and Hydraullic Engineering, is looking for a part-time professor.

More concretely your work package contains:

Education and Research domain:

• Water and Climate: climate attribution for hurricanes in data-scarce regions.
• You supervise MSc thesis.
• You ocasionally teach at the MSc level on topics linked to your expertise.

Research tasks:

• You will engage in interdisciplinary research linking physical climate science with socioeconomic impacts and societal applications, including climate justice, climate litigation, and loss-and-damage assessments. Mentorship of students in research practices, along with a commitment to disseminating findings at conferences and in publications, is essential.
• You have an interest in connecting climate attribution science to contemporary issues, with a focus on vulnerable and data-scarce regions.
• Your research will include:
  • Extreme weather attribution for tropical cyclones: quantifying the influence of anthropogenic climate change on tropical cyclones and other extreme weather events, particularly in data-scarce and underrepresented regions. The focus region will be the South Pacific Islands.
  • Climate justice, policy and legal applications: translating attribution research into robust and accessible evidence for climate litigation, loss-and-damage mechanisms, policymakers, affected communities, and other stakeholders, including policy and legal outputs.
• You support the recruitment of fundamental, strategic, and applied projects on the topic of climate attribution, extreme weather, artificial intelligence, and climate impacts at national and European/international level.
• You supervise and guide PhD students.
• You collaborate with relevant partners in Belgium and other EU countries.

Other tasks:

• You engage in public education through publications and lectures, emphasizing the importance of climate attribution science in understanding extreme weather and informing current climate, policy, and societal challenges. That way, you contribute to the visibility and the networking of the department and theuniversity.

For this function, our Brussels Humanities, Sciences & Engineering Campus (Elsene)will serve as your home base.

3 - Profile

What do we expect from you?

• You have attained a MSc degree of Geography, Physical Geography, Earth System Science or a closely related field.
• You hold a PhD in Geography, Climate Science, or a closely related field.
• You are a senior researcher with expertise in climate attribution science and extreme weather events, particularly through the analysis and modelling of tropical cyclones in data-scarce and underrepresented regions.
• You have proven expertise in the detection and attribution of extreme weather events and the influence of anthropogenic climate change on their physical characteristics and socioeconomic impacts.
• You should demonstrate experience in interdisciplinary research at the interface of climate science and human rights.
• You subscribe to the university’s vision of education. The full text in relation to this is available on the university website.
• Every first appointment is dependent upon the successful delivery of a teaching session.

Language regulations:

A member of the academic staff who is entrusted with a teaching assignment must also be able to demonstrate that the language of instruction is known at ERK level C1 through a qualification certificate or through an adequate diploma. The VUB also provides co