Three PhD Positions in Socio-Economic Modelling, Restoration Values, and Spatial Determinants of Nature Restoration Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam in Netherlands

Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (Institute for Environmental Studies, IVM) is advertising three PhD positions focused on nature restoration, socio-economic modelling, ecological benefits, and spatial analysis across Europe.

The positions are part of a broader effort to reveal the true value of nature restoration across space and time, helping policymakers and land users make restoration more visible, actionable, and fair. The first two PhD roles are connected to the newly funded Horizon Europe project NatuRISE, coordinated by IVM and involving 17 partners across Europe. NatuRISE will develop integrated models and decision-support tools to quantify the societal and environmental benefits and costs of nature restoration across sectors, actors, scales, and time.

There are three research profiles:

1) Agriculture / land use economist or modeller to help develop EU-wide models that reveal the socio-economic value of nature restoration, including underexplored health benefits.

2) Interdisciplinary researcher to study how the plural values of nature restoration emerge and change across space and time.

3) GIS / spatial data researcher to identify where nature restoration can succeed and why across European landscapes.

Relevant academic keywords include environmental science, economics, geography, agriculture, GIS, spatial data, land use modelling, and decision-support tools.

The post is aimed at PhD candidates with strong interest in modelling, spatial analysis, and interdisciplinary environmental research. Application deadline is May 5, and the expected start date is September 1.

Applicants should use the relevant vacancy link for the position that best matches their background.