Whenever there are any new positions available at the ICOS or related communities we will announce it on this page.
If you have information about related open vacancies, please email ICOS Communications at icos-comms (at) icos-ri.eu
Open positions in the ICOS field
Strategic Research Lead Ocean and Climate (Climate Mission Network Lead), National Oceanography Centre (NOC), Liverpool or Southampton, United Kingdom (deadline 15th October 2025)
We are seeking an exceptional researcher to join NOC in this new, strategic role created to drive the delivery of one of four Missions that will deliver the new NOC Strategy. This is a unique opportunity to direct research that will inform how society plans for, adapts to, and mitigates against environmental change, while working within a world-class research environment.
We are especially looking for researchers with a very strong background in climate and physical oceanography and/or the impacts of climate on ocean biogeochemistry.
This is a unique opportunity to direct research that will inform how society plans for, adapts to, and mitigates against environmental change, while working within a world-class research environment.
About the NOC Mission Networks
The NOC 2025-2035 Strategy is structured around four major Missions, each delivered through a flexible, multidisciplinary and collaborative Network spanning the full breadth of NOC’s expertise:
- Climate – Society can plan for, adapt to & mitigate against environmental change
- Biodiversity – Marine biodiversity is protected and thrives
- Hazards and Pollution – People, infrastructure and ecosystems are protected
- Sustainable Marine Economy – Marine-based economic activity is sustainably developed whilst protecting the ocean’s future health
Mission Networks will bring together the ocean professionals across NOC to collaborate on major research challenges, develop strategic partnerships, and maximise the real-world impact of our work.
About the Role
This vacancy is for one of two Climate Mission Network Leaders. With expertise in global to local environmental changes and impacts, you will provide strategic direction to this multidisciplinary network, shaping and guiding a coordinated programme of research, innovation, and collaboration. You will:
- Jointly oversee the delivery of NOC’s Climate Mission
- Strengthen cross-functional collaboration across NOC’s teams and programmes to enable delivery
- Develop and grow external partnerships—nationally and internationally
- Represent NOC’s climate work to key stakeholders, funders, and partners
- Ensure delivery of a high-impact portfolio of climate-related projects and programmes, including in your own area of research
Advise NOC’s Executive Team and Board - You will join a small team of Mission Network Leaders who have been appointed to the direct the NOC Missions. You will continue to develop and grow your own internationally significant area of research.
While this position does not include teaching responsibilities, there are opportunities to co-supervise graduate students as part of NOC’s broader research and training environment.
About you
A proven researcher with an international profile and deep expertise in ocean and/or climate science, you can demonstrate your passion for climate science and how your inspiring and collaborative leadership style enables others to deliver excellent research outcomes. You are motivated by the opportunity to shape large-scale scientific missions with real-world impact.
You will have:
- International standing in ocean and/or climate research, with a strong research track record
- Experience leading complex, multi-disciplinary research projects
- A proven track record of securing and delivering major research funding, including multi-institutional collaborations
- Strong leadership and strategic vision, with experience influencing science and policy at a national or international level
- Excellent relationship-building skills with internal teams and external partners
- A strong portfolio of impactful outputs, including peer-reviewed publications
- Experience contributing to national or international science strategies
- Experience of mentoring and developing researchers
Deadline for applications is 15th October 2025.
Postdoctoral and Doctoral Researcher, Institute for Atmospheric and Earth System Research (INAR), University of Helsinki, Finland (deadline 31st October 2025)
Institute for Atmospheric and Earth System Research (INAR) is a multi- and interdisciplinary research unit based in physics, chemistry, meteorology, forest sciences, environmental sciences and social sciences in the University of Helsinki. INAR aims to strengthen the internationally leading, integrated multidisciplinary research and education environment for atmospheric and Earth system science and to feed in scientific results for the national and international environment and climate policy. It performs multiscale research from molecular to global scale and focuses on climate change, air quality, biogeochemical cycles and ecosystem processes. INAR has INAR Finland Network partners in Finnish Meteorological Institute, University of Eastern 31Finland and Tampere University of Technology.
Faculty of Science invites applications for POST-DOCTORAL AND DOCTORAL RESEARCHERS TO THE RESTART PROJECT starting earliest November 2025 for a full-time fixed-term contract of two to four years depending on the position.
The hired researchers will work as part of the computational aerosol physics and urban meteorology groups at INAR. The computational aerosol physics group uses computational and theoretical methods to understand cluster and particle formation for atmospherically relevant molecules. The urban meteorology group studies urban atmosphere, air quality and greenhouse gas cycle using a wide range of theoretical and experimental methods.
RESTART project studies the future urban chemical cocktail by combining state-of-the-art molecular-level simulations on recently discovered aerosol-forming organic compounds, automated reaction mechanism generators, and high-resolution local scale air quality modelling. The project is funded by the Jane and Aatos Erkko Foundation. Research tasks include
- Developing future emission scenarios for various urban environments;
- Updating and applying reaction mechanism generators describing urban air chemistry;
- Developing volatility estimates relevant for urban chemistry;
- Developing quantum chemistry-based approaches for organic new-particle formation;
- Evaluating and advancing modelling capabilities of the PALM-SALSA model system in simulating urban air quality;
- Mapping changes urban air quality in selected cities.
The applicant should
- Hold a doctoral or master degree in relevant field such as chemistry, physics or meteorology;
- Have good programming skills and interested in code development;
- Have excellent skills in spoken and written English;
Deadline for applications is 31st October 2025.
Field Engineer (B.Sc) (f/m/d) Meteorology, Hydrology, Environmental Engineering, Instrumentation, Thünen Institute of Climate-Smart Agriculture, Braunschweig, Germany (deadline: 30th September 2025)
The Institute of Climate-Smart Agriculture of the Johann Heinrich von Thünen Institute, Federal Research Institute for Rural Areas, Forestry and Fisheries, located in Braunschweig, is seeking a bachelor's graduate (f/m/d) in meteorology, hydrology, environmental engineering, instrumentation or a comparable field to work full-time (currently 39 hours/week) in the research project Living Lab Teufelsmoor, limited to 31.12.2028.
The model and demonstration projects (MuD) on "Peat Soil Protection Including the Use of Renewable Resources from Paludiculture" funded by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Regional Identity (BMLEH), will prepare large-scale conversion to wet peatland management and demonstrate the climate protection effects and other ecosystem services of paludiculture. The "Living Lab Teufelsmoor" project will conduct site selection and preparation, as well as the implementation of rewetting and land management on a practical scale. It will also identify and implement solutions for the utilization and marketing of current and future paludiculture products. The Thünen Institute is responsible for quantifying the GHG balance of two wet meadow paludiculture sites and one reference site. Other tasks include the determination of nutrient leaching, hydrological monitoring, and elevation changes depending on soil properties and groundwater table levels. The position is located at the Thünen Institute of Climate-Smart Agriculture in a working group that conducts national and international research on organic soils.
Main tasks:
- Maintenance of three eddy-covariance stations for measuring greenhouse gas fluxes of CO2, CH4, and H2O
- Design of two discharge measurement stations including associated procurement
- Installation of measurement equipment (e.g., discharge measurements, automatic water samplers) and installation of platforms and frames for manual chamber measurements of nitrous oxide in a team with other project staff
- Organization and implementation of regular field campaigns for measuring nitrous oxide fluxes (manual chamber method) as well as taking water, vegetation, and soil samples, if necessary, supported by other team members
- Maintenance and servicing of other field measurement equipment
Data backup, processing, and quality assurance
Deadline for applications is 30th September 2025.
PhD opportunities: AI, Land-Atmosphere interactions, Wildfire/Hydroclimatic risk, The University of Texas at Austin, Texas, USA (deadline 10th November 2025)
The Land Intelligence (LI) lab at The University of Texas at Austin is seeking three fully-funded PhD students (tuition and stipend), starting in the Fall of 2026.
Our lab examines how terrestrial ecosystems interact with human activities and hydroclimatic hazards, with a particular focus on wildfires and land-atmosphere interactions of carbon, water, and energy. We aim to better monitor, predict, and reduce hydroclimatic risks to people and ecosystems by leveraging advances in Artificial Intelligence (e.g., machine learning), Earth observations (e.g., satellite remote sensing, field measurements), and Earth system models. Please see our website for more information.
Students interested in one of the following topics with strong quantitative and programming skills, are encouraged to apply:
- AI: Machine learning, causality inference, foundation models
- Data science: Remote sensing/GIS, geospatial/environmental data science
- Environmental/Earth system science: wildfire or hydroclimatic hazard/impact/risk modeling, terrestrial ecosystem modeling, carbon-water-energy cycles, human-environment interactions, land-atmosphere interaction.
We encourage research directions beyond those listed, but within the lab’s overall research umbrella.
Applicants must meet the UT Austin Graduate school’s admission requirements. Successful candidates have opportunities to work with collaborators at Stanford University, Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, and other leading research institutions.
Deadline for applications is 10th November 2025.