Context
The project OT-Med is a « labex » funded by the French national programme « Investissement d'Avenir » for the period 2012-2019 (http://www.otmed.fr). OT-Med has the objective to study the impacts of environmental change (climate, land use etc.) on ecosystem resources and services, as well as on human society in the Mediterranean Basin. OT-Med intends to create synergies between its participating scientists at all levels. This will be achieved by organising and structuring interdisciplinary exchanges in research and education, by promoting interdisciplinary research projects, through an ambitious policy for the reception of visiting researchers, post-docs and Ph.D. fellowships, and exchanges with southern countries, by organising international symposia, summer schools and workshops, by organising scientific, technical and socio-economic databases resulting from research, for both scientists and stakeholders etc.
Domains
The domains covered by OT-Med are those (scientists interested to propose a subject who need additional information on OT-Med research themes may contact the respective coordinator for more information):
The study of climatic and anthropogenic changes and natural hazards. This includes earthquakes, landslides, extreme climatic events, sea-circulation changes, perturbation of aquifers and hydrosystems. There is special interesting long term variations of these changes including paleo-scales (contacts: Olivier Bellier, bellier@cerege.fr, France van Wambeke, france.van-wambeke@univ-amu.fr)
The impact of climate and socio-economic changes on ecosystems with a focus on the ecosystem services, in particular related to biodiversity, soils, agriculture, forestry, marine biogeochemistry and food-web interactions (contacts: Wolfgang Cramer, wolfgang.cramer@imbe.fr, Alexander Ereskovsky, alexander.ereskovsky@imbe.fr)
Human-environment interactions, including the perception of hazards, adaptation and mitigation; modelling of decision-making in the context of risks; the functioning of international environmental regimes for climate and biodiversity; the study of ancient Mediterranean civilizations with respect to their adaptation to climatic change (contacts: Olivier Chanel, Olivier.Chanel@univ-amu.fr, Sylvie Thoron, sylvie.thoron@univ-amu.fr)
A transversal work package of OT-Med is the coordination of observation systems and the databases necessary to collect observations (contacts: Patrick Raimbault, patrick.raimbault@univ-amu.fr, Thomas Curt, Thomas.Curt@irstea.fr)
Another transversal work package is the development and validation of an integrated model extending from the climate system to the socio-economic agents (contacts: Alberte Bondeau, alberte.bondeau@imbe.fr, François Carlotti, francois.carlotti@univ-amu.fr)
Procedure
Scientists working in OT-Med partner laboratories may propose PhD thesis subjects linked with the scientific objectives of OT-Med. The application should contain the 1 to 3 pages description of the project and the name of the PhD supervisor(s). The OT-Med executive committee and work package leaders will choose about 10 proposals according to their contribution to OT-Med research priorities and the quality of the project. Researchers, whose subjects will be selected, will be requested to find and propose the best candidate. The superviser will have to submit with the project the CV of the candidate and a where the candidate explains his interest for the thesis. Finally, each proposal (subject and candidate) will be evaluated with the help of external reviewers and the ranking will be established by the OT-Med management board ("conseil de direction").
Co-financed thesis are encouraged.
It could be helpful to indicate if the proposal has been (or will be) submitted to another funding agency (region, IRD, ...), so that we may discuss with them for a cofund protocol. This increases the chances on both sides.
Schedule
5th April 2013: deadline for proposing PhD thesis subjects;
mid-April 2013: evaluation and selection of PhD thesis subjects;
Beginning of June 2013: deadline for proposing PhD thesis subject together with CV and cover letter of the candidate;
end of June 2013: selection of five laureates.
PhD subjects proposals should be sent to Dr. Katarzyna Tarnowska: tarnowska@otmed.fr (Scientific Manager of OT-Med)