CALL FOR APPLICATIONS FOR A FULLY FUNDED POST-DOCTORAL FELLOWSHIP AT THE COPPERBELT UNIVERSITY

The Copperbelt University (CBU) is a public university located in the Copperbelt Province, Zambia. In October 2020, the University secured funding for the Professorial Chair in Environment and Development in honour of Oliver R Tambo, called Oliver R Tambo African Research Chair Initiative (ORTARChl), through the successful research proposal entitled “Developing Models for Mining Landscape Restoration and Management of Pollution associated with Mining in Zambia “ to National Research Foundation of South Africa. ORTARChI is an initiative of South Africa’s National Research Foundation (NRF) and the Department of Science and Innovation (DSI), in partnership with the Oliver & Adelaide Tambo Foundation (OATF), Canada’s International Development Research Centre (IDRC), and seven councils of the Science Granting Councils Initiative in Sub-Saharan Africa (SGCI). The CBU ORTARChI Chair, together with other ORTARChI Chairs in sub-Saharan Africa, will focus on training graduate students and postdoctoral fellows as the next generation of research leaders in a number of subject areas. The ORTARChI Chair at Copperbelt University has two thematic areas namely; Socio-ecological landscape, and Mining pollution and remediation.

The Copperbelt University is hereby requesting for applications for Post-Doctoral position that will focus on socio-ecological landscape studies under the ORTARChI Chair of Environment and Development.

JOB DESCRIPTION AND POST-DOC DELIVERABLES

• Assist the Research Chair in developing research concepts to be undertaken for a particular research year.
• Plan and carry out independent research focused on social and ecological studies with a research focus on;
  • Coppice response to disturbance
  • Coppice dynamics and water relations
  • Coppice modelling
  • Socio-economic studies

• Restoration of degraded landscapes

• Supervise postgraduate students at both and PhD levels registered in the socio- ecological landscape thematic area, especially in the context of fieldwork, data handling and analysis, as well as manuscript development.
• Write competitive grant proposals to attract research
• Publish at least five (05) journal articles in international peer reviewed journals of good reputation (Target impact factor of 2 or better) per year as first author.
• Disseminate research results at international conferences and be able to build beneficial research networks within the country, region and beyond.
• Carry out administrative duties that may be assigned to you by the Research

Qualifications and qualities:

• A PhD and Master’s degrees in Forest Ecology or related studies
• Good publications reflective of the expertise needed
• Competence in GIS and remote sensing
• Strong background in biostatistics (knowledge and understanding of the R statistical package applications in ecological assessment)
• Team player
• Able to work independently
• Able to effectively communicate in English (both in writing and orally) their research to colleagues and the scientific community.
• Able to conduct field work

Employment conditions and duration of the contracts

• The initial appointment is for the period of 1 year with the possibility for renewal based on the performance.
• Remuneration will be in accordance with the Copperbelt University conditions of Service for post-docs
• The post-doc researchers will work under the supervision of the Research Chair

Application Requirements

Applicants should have completed their PhD no more than three years before starting their fellowships. The applicants are expected to take up their positions by 30th October, 2025. To apply, please submit the following documents:

1. Cover letter
2. A detailed curriculum vitae that includes a list of publications

• Certified academic transcripts and certificates

1. A brief description of your research interests (1000 characters )
2. A description of your scientific goals for the fellowship (5000 characters ).
3. Two names of academic referees from credible institutions that can easily be contacted to provide reference for the candidate.

The application should be addressed to the undersigned not later than 20th September, 2025:

ORTARChI Chair of Environment and Development The Copperbelt University

P.O. Box 21692

Kitwe, Zambia

The application should be emailed to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and copied to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. with the subject area of the email indicating the position being applied for.

Contacts:

For     questions     and     further     details,     contact      Dr     Theodore     M      Mwamba (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.).