Postdoc, Center for Marine and Environmental Studies, University of the Virgin Islands, USA

With this position there will be opportunities to contribute to writing grant proposals, mentoring undergraduate and graduate students, writing research papers, teaching, and presenting project research to various audiences that support the postdoc’s professional development. In addition, the postdoc may be involved in co-development and delivery of participatory workshops with community partners in project sites and other research projects that emerge from the community engaged research activities of the Hub.

Strong Coasts aims to advance our understanding of coastal flood and erosion risk and the role of ecosystems and “Nature Based Solutions (NBS)” to empirically assess hazards reduction, social vulnerability and overall risk. The goals are 1) to establish an inclusive participatory co-design approach for assessing current and future coastal risks and rigorously quantifying the benefits of NBS, including coral reef and mangrove restoration and protection, reducing risks, while enhancing human well-being, economic recovery, and biodiversity benefits; and 2) to determine how community experiences of risk differ within and across sites, how that affects NBS implementation, and how adaptive capacity to mitigate increasing climate change is related to localized impacts. The convergence research approach advances the quantitative, data-driven evaluation of coral and mangrove restoration for hazard risk reduction, while assessing social and economic co-benefits and limitations. This project is co-creating new knowledge with coastal communities in Florida, the US Virgin Islands, and Belize, on how ecosystem-based processes can help address climate risk and appropriate NBS. The Strong Coasts postdoctoral associate will develop independent research within the above themes and actively collaborate with other researchers who are a part of our Strong Coasts Hub. The team’s complementary expertise in engineering, ecology and social sciences, linking 7 academic institutions, local partners, and cross-regional organizations, expands the scope of potential research outcomes to global tropical coastlines beyond the three focus regions.

1. Build and maintain partnerships with community members, organizations, and stakeholders in the USVI, working closely with UVI researchers and other Strong Coasts team members.
2. Work closely with community partners and Strong Coasts team members to co-design community events, workshops, and meetings that advance project goals while also addressing community concerns and needs.
3. Participate in, and in some cases lead, UVI’s involvement in the CoPe Strong Coasts network, particularly those activities related to community engagement and social science.
4. Assist with community-engaged and social science research activities, including aspects of research design, data collection, analysis, and the development of academic and public-facing reports and dissemination materials.