<div dir="ltr"><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">The PLACES lab at Boston University (BU) is offering a
time-sensitive, NSF-funded position for a<b> postdoctoral researcher or research
scientist</b> with a strong computational and statistical skillset and an interest
in land conservation policy in the United States.<span></span></span></font><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif"></span></font><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">

</span></font><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in"><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif"><br></span></font></p><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">

</span></font><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in"><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">The successful candidate will contribute to the development
of U.S.-wide, parcel-level estimates of land value and the cost of long-term
conservation (land purchase, easements)*. Products will support policy analyses
and decision-making processes of academic, federal, and non-profit stakeholders
interested in identifying effective and equitable land use choices under the
federal administration's current initiative to protect 30% of the U.S. by 2030.
The research is projected to be funded under NSF's Human-Environment and
Geospatial Sciences program.<span></span></span></font></p><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">

</span></font><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in"><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif"><br></span></font></p><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">

</span></font><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in"><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">The researcher will have the last opportunity to work with a
unique and fascinating dataset that is scheduled to expire on Sept 30, 2023:
geospatial data of 150 million U.S. properties and sales with a wide range of
social and environmental characteristics (<a href="http://placeslab.org/dictionary" style="color:rgb(5,99,193);text-decoration:underline">placeslab.org/dictionary</a>). Research
priorities will be defined jointly. Creative extensions are welcome.<span></span></span></font></p><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">

</span></font><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in"><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif"> </span></font></p><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">

</span></font><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in"><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">The ideal candidate will have:<span></span></span></font></p><ul><li><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">A PhD (or similar experience) in economics,
statistics, data science, geography, environmental science, or a similar field
with a strong quantitative research profile.<span></span></span></font><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif"><br></span></font></li><li><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">Prior experience with geospatial data processing
and prediction in Python, including geospatial statistics, machine learning,
and spatiotemporal cross-validation.<span></span></span></font><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif"><br></span></font></li><li><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">Publications in peer-reviewed journals.</span></font></li><li><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif"><span></span></span></font><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">Interest in understanding land conservation
policy in the United States.</span></font></li></ul><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">

</span></font><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in"><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">Knowledge in the following domains will be an asset (but not
expected):<span></span></span></font></p><ul><li><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">Methods for causal inference with observational
data.<span></span></span></font><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif"><br></span></font></li><li><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">Parallelized computing (Linux, SunGrid).<span></span></span></font><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif"><br></span></font></li><li><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">Principles of land and easement valuation.<span></span></span></font></li></ul><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">

</span></font><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in"><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">Due to the time constraints, the position starts as soon as
possible, ideally not after Sept 2022. The initial contract duration will be 12
- 18 months. Continuation of this research with other data sources is planned and
contingent on the success of grant applications to which the candidate can contribute.
BU offers a competitive salary ($61K) and benefits package.<span></span></span></font></p><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">

</span></font><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in"><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif"> </span></font></p><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">

</span></font><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in"><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">Interested applicants should contact Assistant Professor
Christoph Nolte (<a href="mailto:chrnolte@bu.edu" style="color:rgb(5,99,193);text-decoration:underline">chrnolte@bu.edu</a>) with
their CV, a short letter of interest that includes a statement of fit with the
position and research interests, publications, and contact information of two
reference letter writers. Review of applications will begin <b>April 22, 2022</b>,
and continue on a <b>rolling basis</b> until the position is filled. For
updates on the status of this search, visit: <a href="http://placeslab.org/postdoc" style="color:rgb(5,99,193);text-decoration:underline">placeslab.org/postdoc</a>.<span></span></span></font></p><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">

</span></font><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in"><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif"> </span></font></p><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">

</span></font><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in"><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">BU is an equal opportunity employer and all qualified
applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race,
color, religion, sex, national origin, disability status, protected veteran
status, or any other characteristic protected by law.<span></span></span></font></p><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">

</span></font><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in"><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif"> </span></font></p><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">

</span></font><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in"><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">--<span></span></span></font></p><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">

</span></font><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in"><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif"> </span></font></p><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">

</span></font><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in"><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">* For more information, visit <a href="http://placeslab.org/fmv_usa" style="color:rgb(5,99,193);text-decoration:underline">placeslab.org/fmv_usa</a> or
consult the following articles:<span></span></span></font></p><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">

</span></font><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in"><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif"> </span></font></p><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">

</span></font><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in"><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">Nolte (2020) High-resolution land value maps reveal
underestimation of conservation cost in the United States. PNAS (<a href="https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2012865117" style="color:rgb(5,99,193);text-decoration:underline">link</a>)<span></span></span></font></p><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">

</span></font><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in"><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif"> </span></font></p><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">

</span></font><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in"><font size="2"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">Nolte et al. (2021) Studying the impacts of environmental amenities
and hazards with nationwide property data: best data practices for interpretable
and reproducible analyses. SSRN (<a href="https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3900806" style="color:rgb(5,99,193);text-decoration:underline">link</a>)</span></font></p><div><br></div><div>-- </div><div dir="ltr" class="gmail_signature" data-smartmail="gmail_signature"><div dir="ltr"><span><span><b>Christoph Nolte</b><br><span><div><div dir="ltr"><div><div dir="ltr"><div><div dir="ltr"><div><div dir="ltr"><div><div dir="ltr"><div>Assistant Professor<br><div>Earth & Environment<br>Boston University</div><div><a href="mailto:chrnolte@bu.edu" target="_blank">chrnolte@bu.edu</a></div><div><a href="http://www.placeslab.org" target="_blank">www.placeslab.org</a><br></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></span></span></span></div></div></div>