Postdoctoral Scholar - COCA GOA

The College of the Environment fosters existing and new collaborations between outstanding faculty, staff and students who are engaged in the study of: the solar system and Earth's dynamic land, water and atmosphere; the development and application of environmental engineering and technological advances; the impact of policy and human actions on the environment, and the management of natural resources.

The School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences (SAFS) is dedicated to sustaining healthy marine and freshwater environments. Our school comprises one of the largest and most diverse academic aquatic and fisheries sciences program in the United States. Our faculty conduct innovative research from the organism to the ecosystem scale, and are recognized leaders in aquatic biology, sustainable fisheries management, and aquatic resource conservation.

The School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences values the strengths and professional experience that students, faculty, and staff bring to our community. We are committed to providing excellent education to all of our students, regardless of their race, gender, class, nationality, physical ability, religion, age, or sexual orientation. We are proud of the different roles that our students, staff, and faculty play in the community of the School and in the College of the Environment. We recognize that science is richer and the SAFS community is more vibrant when a diverse group of people participate the SAFS community.

The postdoctoral researcher will play a crucial role in a new project ("From climate to communities in the Gulf of Alaska: using an integrated modeling approach to evaluate drivers of present and future system-level productivity and assess climate impacts on fishing-dependent communities.") that builds upon more than a decade of interdisciplinary research focused on climate and fisheries management. The Gulf of Alaska (GOA) is a large and geographically complex region of the North Pacific Ocean, and has undergone regime shifts and ecosystem reorganization.  The GOA also supports diverse fisheries and fishing communities which have experienced many changes in management.  The North Pacific Fishery Management Council, which is considered among the world's best marine resource management organizations, will continue to work to adapt to a changing environment and management objectives. This project will contribute directly to the scientific foundation of future management. 

The postdoctoral researcher will undertake economic modeling in collaboration with Alaska Fisheries Science Center (AFSC) economists to build a fleet dynamics model for different fleets in the GOA.  The modeling effort will utilize and extend the Spatial Economics Toolbox for Fisheries (FishSET), an initiative between NOAA and diverse partners to develop fisher behavioral models for the Nation's major fisheries.  This effort will provide the capacity to link a series of models in the multi-model ecosystem ensemble, including an Atlantis model, to computable general equilibrium (CGE) regional economic models that separately model the economies of six fishing communities in Southwest Alaska (including the Western and Central GOA) within a larger economic model of Alaska. Ongoing economic modeling and data integration projects will provide a unique opportunity for evaluating the relationship between ecosystem conditions, climate change, management, and impacts on fishing communities.

As well as working with an experienced interdisciplinary team with members from AFSC, the University of Washington, and the Pacific Marine Environmental Lab, the modeler will join the AFSC Economic and Social Sciences Research Program, a leading marine resource social science research group.  The work will also contribute to international comparison projects that will be at the forefront of developing resilient marine resource management approaches in a time of rapid change. 

This a full-time, position located at the University of Washington in Seattle, although the location at which work is to be conducted is flexible, and remote work is possible.  The post-doc will be supervised by Dr. André Punt (University of Washington) and will primarily collaborate with Dr. Alan Haynie (Alaska Fisheries Science Center). This a full-time, position located at the University of Washington in Seattle. This is a 12-moth initial appointment, with the possibility of renewal. 

Postdoctoral scholars are represented by UAW 4121 and are subject to the collective bargaining agreement, unless agreed exclusion criteria apply. For more information, please visit the University of Washington Labor Relations website.

Responsibilities Include:

• Building a fleet dynamics model for different fleets in the GOA;
• Linking a series of models in the multi-model ecosystem ensemble to computable general equilibrium (CGE) regional economic models that separately model the economies of six fishing communities in Southwest Alaska; and
• Preparing results and leading writing efforts for peer-reviewed publications and presentations at scientific conferences.