Social Science Portal

On April 6, 2020, the Fire Management Board (FMB) established the Wildland Fire Medical and Public Health Advisory Team (MPHAT) to address medical and health-related issues specific to the interagency administration of mission critical wildland fire management functions under a COVID-19 modified operating posture.  The COVID-19 MPHAT is tasked with providing medical and public health expertise, advice, coordination, and collaboration with external subject matter experts and developing protocols and practices for all aspects of COVID-19 planning, prevention, and mitigation for wildland fire operations.  Guidance found on this page has been issued via FMB Memorandum. They may be updated as appropriate and necessary to respond to the evolving situations and work conditions surrounding COVID-19.

The Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management (ESPM) at the University of California, Berkeley invites applications for a tenure-track Assistant Professor faculty position in the area of Plant Ecology of Changing Ecosystems with an expected start date of July 1, 2021.

Understanding how plants respond in changing ecosystems is fundamental to the health and well-being of both human and natural communities. Insights into the structure and function of vegetation in natural and managed ecosystems informs our efforts to develop sustainable and equitable ways to adapt to environmental novelty. Across the globe, terrestrial ecosystems are undergoing rapid change. Climate is a major driver that interacts with a host of other stressors including altered disturbance regimes and rapid biological migrations. Improving our knowledge of these forces and their consequences is priority for California and the world.

These positions are located in Pacific West Regional Office, Interior Regions 8, 9, 10, and 12, in the Cultural Resources Division. Current career and career conditional employees of the Department of Interior may apply.

One position is located at the Californian Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit at the University of California, Berkeley, CA, which is the host university for the Californian Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit (CA-CESU). The second position is located at the Pacific Northwest Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit at the University of Washington, in Seattle, WA, which is the host university for the Pacific Northwest Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit (PNW-CESU).

• Develop and implement an integrated program of natural, social and cultural resource research that supports NPS Pacific West Region's (PWR) units;
• Develop partnerships and secures outside sources of support from Federal, State, academic, and private organizations to conduct cooperative research efforts;
• Serve as liaison with partner agencies;
• Serves as a member of the national network of CESU's, provides the National Park Service with technical leadership in providing an integrated and responsive research program at the regional and service-wide levels.

The Bren School of Environmental Science & Management (www.bren.ucsb.edu) invites applications for a tenure-track faculty position in Environmental Data Science at the rank of Assistant Professor, to start July 1, 2021. We seek a highly creative and interactive scholar whose research and teaching interests are focused on innovative approaches for computational analyses in an allied discipline of Environmental Science (including, but not limited to, Earth science, ecology, political science, socio-ecological systems, etc.). We particularly seek candidates who address environmental questions using large datasets (e.g., remotely sensed data, text-based repositories, etc.), have a rigorous foundation in statistical fundamentals (e.g., machine learning, Bayesian inference, causal inference, etc.), or leverage cutting-edge developments in data science (e.g., data-driven discovery, scalable computing, etc.) in their work. We welcome candidates whose substantive area of expertise is related to environmental justice, or whose methodological expertise addresses algorithmic bias in quantitative sciences.

• Open date: September 11th, 2020
• Next review date: Monday, Oct 26, 2020 at 11:59pm (Pacific Time). Apply by this date to ensure full consideration by the committee.
• Final date: Thursday, Jul 1, 2021 at 11:59pm (Pacific Time). Applications will continue to be accepted until this date, but those received after the review date will only be considered if the position has not yet been filled.

Dr. Kai Zhu is recruiting 1-2 PhD student(s) starting in Fall 2021 in the Department of Environmental Studies at the University of California, Santa Cruz.

The Zhu Lab works on research questions at the intersection of climate change, biodiversity, and ecosystem processes, using quantitative approaches such as remote sensing, species distribution models, and Bayesian statistical methods. Current research projects include (1) phenological responses to climate change and human activity in the Northern Hemisphere; (2) the biogeography of soil fungi in North America; and (3) wildfire propagation and forest regrowth in California. The Zhu Lab also collaborates with other research groups, such as the Peay Lab at Stanford University (https://mykophile.com) through a collaborative NSF grant (https://news.ucsc.edu/2019/09/zhu-nsf.html). More information is available at https://zhulab.ucsc.edu/.

Students are encouraged to develop their own projects, which is an essential part of their advancement as independent and creative researchers. Dr. Zhu expects students to have previous research experience and a strong background in ecology and environmental science, as well as math, statistics, and programming. However, in the Zhu Lab students will learn new methods and tools by attending classes, workshops, and working on projects, so the most important quality is the willingness to learn.

Interested students should contact Dr. Kai Zhu (kai dot zhu at ucsc dot edu) as early as possible and no later than the application deadline in December 2020 with the following information: (1) research experience, ideas, and questions; (2) motivations to pursue a PhD and long-term career goals; (3) why interested in the Environmental Studies Department at UCSC; and (4) current CV, academic transcript, and TOEFL score (if applicable).

With multiple agencies/entities, groups and task forces all working to find solutions for operational concerns surrounding the coronavirus pandemic, the need for a space to share information is apparent. This forum serves as a platform to ask questions, as well as to share ideas, information, and solutions.