Postdoctoral position: Human livelihoods impacts of biological invasions

A two-year, full-time postdoctoral position is available at the Centre for Invasion Biology (CIB) at Stellenbosch University.

One of the research foci of the CIB is human livelihoods impacts of biological invasions. Biological invasions reshape food systems in ways that are rarely measured from the household’s perspective. The fellow will quantify how invasive species affect the availability, access, stability and use of food across rural and peri-urban Africa. Work will address losses caused by invasive crop pests and weeds, the conversion of grazing land by invasive shrubs and trees such as Prosopis, and disrupted fisheries and water access under aquatic weeds. The project will equally assess where invasive species sustain livelihoods: as fish protein, fodder, fuelwood and income. A central question is distributional: who gains, who loses, and how do households cope? The fellow will combine household surveys, participatory methods and economic valuation with spatial data, producing evidence that informs biosecurity and management priorities.

Job Description

The candidate will develop research on the interface of ecology, social science and policy to tackle issues around conflicts of interest and governance in the management of biological invasions. The candidate is expected to develop a research project based around the issues outlined above, aligned with ongoing projects and collaborations in the group. Tasks span a wide range of academic work from conceptualisation and idea development, data collection and analysis, to grant and manuscript writing. Supervision and mentorship of students is encouraged.

Starting date: 01 December 2026

Duration: 2 years

Profile

DPhil/PhD in biology/ecology/environmental sciences/social sciences/human geography/agriculture/development studies (or equivalent), degree received no longerthan 5 years ago
Experience in the fields of Invasion Science, Human Livelihoods, Sustainable Development and/or Social Science
Demonstrated experience with household or community data: survey design, interviews or participatory method
Experience in synthesising data across spatial and temporal-scales from national to regional
Experience in community engagement and/or policy-interface work
Experience in advanced statistical analyses of scientific data, preferably in R or Phyton
Interest and prior experience in the development of grant applications. Ambitions (or previous experience) for developing high level international grant applications (e.g.,
ERC, Horizon Europe) is a plus.
A publication record that includes first author papers in peer-reviewed journals.
Excellent written and oral communication skills in English
Ability and willingness to work in teams
Experience in project administration