The PhD position is in the field of terrestrial biology, focusing on the ecology of Arctic plants in a warmer climate. The research aims to investigate effects of amplified climate warming on abundance changes in High Arctic vegetation. It will also shed light on plant phenology, especially the recently observed phenomenon of re-flowering thought to be caused by the longer and warmer summers. Lastly, the study also highlights the need to rethink solutions for Arctic seed conservation in the future and will test whether long-term storage of seeds is a viable option.

The candidate will be responsible for 1) analysing long-term monitoring data from the International tundra experiment (ITEX) in Endalen after 20 years of artificial warming, 2) setting up monitoring plots to study re-flowering in a range of Arctic plant species and 3) conduct germination experiments on seeds after 20 years of storage in the Global Seed Vault.

The candidate is expected to take part in extensive field and lab work, which requires endurance and the ability to work systematically, both independently as well as in a team. Upon employment, the successful PhD candidate will work on a detailed project description together with the supervisors. The supervisor team consists of Lovisa Gustafsson and Simone I. Lang (The University Centre in Svalbard), Siri Lie Olsen (Norwegian University of Life Sciences), Inger Greve Alsos (UiT - The Arctic University of Norway), and Natasha de Vere (Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Denmark). Short research visits with the national and/or international collaborators will be possible.

The four-year contract includes a year of required duties. Alternatively, the candidate may choose a three-year position which excludes these duties. Duty work will include teaching in courses at BSc and MSc/PhD level, e.g., AB-201 Terrestrial Arctic Biology (15 ECTS) - UNIS, AB-329 Arctic Winter Ecology (10 ECTS) - UNIS. Required duties for the successful candidate will be specified upon employment. Other duties may be assigned by the head of department as required.