Position Descriptions
Agroecology/Forage Crops: The successful candidate will take an agroecological approach to production, management, utilization, and economic viability of forage and pasture crops on small diversified farms in cool climates. The research program will consider the agroecosystem as a whole, while specific foci could include community-, population- or individual-level interactions, including population regulation mechanisms, nutrient cycling, and/or the diversity of species and genetic variation within sustainable agriculture. Specific aims could include increasing forage yields and nutritional quality, extending the productive season for pasture and forage crops, and optimizing agronomic crop varieties and mixture for particular farm management systems. This research program might evaluate ecological impacts of new crops, or might study the use of forage crops for novel purposes such as phytoremediation, biodetection, or biofuels. We anticipate strong synergies with new and existing faculty in dairy and animal nutrition, genomics and molecular evolution, and sustainable ecosystems.
Applied Forest Ecology: The successful candidate will possess skills and background in traditional silvicultural techniques and/or emerging approaches to managing, quantifying and predicting the productivity and composition of forest ecosystems under conditions of increasing demands for fuel and fiber in a region where environmental quality is of primary economic and aesthetic importance. Key research areas might include forest management practices that balance growing interest in carbon sequestration and biomass energy generation with ongoing demands for wood, water, wildlife habitat and recreation. Given the interwoven nature of forests with agricultural and developed landscapes, this position is expected to add value to efforts across the college to enhance all aspects of land management.
Aquatic Biogeochemistry: The successful candidate will examine the impacts of emerging contaminants or identified environmental stressors on regional water quality, including impacts on freshwater, estuarine, or near-coastal biological resources and on the health and sustainability of aquatic ecosystems and regional water supplies. Many of these emerging stressors/contaminants - which include (but are not limited to) inorganic nutrients as well as organics such as endocrine disruptors, sex hormones, pharmaceuticals, and personal care products - are both agricultural and urban in origin, so this position should have a regional perspective. Research might include documenting the interactions of emerging stressors with basic biogeochemical cycles, the health of biota, or the human food chain.
Landscape Ecology: Understanding the impacts of the spatial patterning of human use of the landscape is essential for extending the expertise of existing and new COLSA faculty to the regional context. The successful candidate will have expertise in quantitative spatial analyses, possibly including experience with both remote sensing and GIS. Research could address topics such as habitat loss and fragmentation and their effects on wildlife, water quantity and quality, forest-farm interactions, and sustainable land management. Other topics might include the effects of climate change and associated migration of land cover on the function of native ecosystems as well as development and use of regional intelligence systems to enable long-term monitoring of landscape change.
Plant Pathology/Plant-Microbe Interactions: The successful candidate will emphasize the biology, ecology, or epidemiology of microbes of agricultural importance in New England, providing fundamental information needed to develop disease management strategies for environmentally and economically sustainable cropping systems. Potential foci could include biological/biorational approaches to manage plant diseases, symbiosis, rapid detection/diagnostics, crop biosecurity, disease resistance, and forest pathology including ecological impacts and climate change relations. The candidate may use molecular approaches to elucidate the nature of molecular plant-microbe interactions and how they are affected by agricultural practices. However, we envision that the candidate will have a strong background in plant or forest pathology and be able to teach plant pathology courses. Strong ties are expected with faculty in areas such as applied plant breeding, animal health, genomics, molecular evolution, and molecular breeding.
Soil Fertility and Biogeochemistry: The successful candidate will focus on aspects of soil fertility, nutrient cycling, plant-soil interactions, and/or the role of soils in the land-water or land-air interface. Research might examine the soil biological, chemical, and physical properties that interact to control plant growth, water quality or trace gas exchange with the atmosphere. Impacts of land use and environmental stressors would be desirable focal points, as would efforts to include soils in sustainable land management strategies. Systems of interests include both forests and agriculture and the ideal candidate would possess skills and understanding relevant to all types of land use in the region.
Specialty Crop Improvement: The successful candidate will focus on specialty crops (fruits, vegetables, or ornamental crops) to increase the competitiveness and income of small farms. It is expected that specialty crops will play an ever-increasing role in diversified sustainable agriculture of small farms. This position might focus on plant breeding, genetics and genomics approaches to addressing sustainable and low-input production systems, regional adaptation of newly developed crops, and improving the quality of crops already adapted to the local environments. Strong ties are expected with existing faculty in areas such as plant genomics, genetics and physiology, human nutrition, and horticulture.
