Application

Track 1 with Host-PIs

If you choose Track 1, you will apply directly for collaboration with one of our Host Principle Investigators (Host-PI) who hail from a variety of partner institutions, such as Clusters of Excellence, collaborative research centres and research groups of all disciplines. Your prospective Host-PI should match your scientific background and share your research interests, as the FRSA seeks to advance long-term collaboration.

Eligible for Track 1 are Doctoral Candidates, PostDocs and other experienced researchers. Students who are well-advanced in their Master’s programme but have not yet completed their Master’s degree may be eligible under special circumstances – please inquire with us or contact your intended Host-PI if you seek admission as an advanced master student. This may be the case for students who directly moved into a PhD programme without having a separate Master Programme etc.

Step 1: Choose your Host Principle Investigator wisely in order to apply for Track 1.

(Should you not find a good match, but are still interested in the Freiburg Rising Stars Academy and have identified a potential Host-PI at the University of Freiburg, do not hesitate to email us with your inquiry – sometimes, we can add PIs to the Academy later.)

Step 2: Prepare your application!

Only complete applications that provide good documentation of the applicant’s qualification and suitability will be considered. Your application should include the following documents as pdf files:

Step 3: Upload your documents to the central application platform of the University of Freiburg, the access link is posted under “Application Deadlines & Documents”. Only complete applications that provide good documentation of the applicant’s qualification and suitability will be considered.

Track 2 with future Cluster of Excellence Future Forests – Adapting Complex Social-ecological Forest Systems to Global Change

Introduction to Future Forests

Forests cover approximately 30 per cent of the global landmass and render numerous essential ecosystem services (ES): They provide renewable resources, mitigate the impact of climate change, support human health, and preserve biodiversity. In the face of rapid climate change, novel ecosystem disturbances, and the introduction or loss of species, large expanses of forests are evolving towards novel ecosystems that are unprecedented in evolutionary history. It is highly uncertain to what extent these novel ecosystems will be capable of rendering the desired ES and preserving biodiversity. The changes will occur so quickly that natural adaptation processes will not be able to keep pace with them.

Parallel to this development, major societal changes are to be expected, resulting from processes such as urbanization, globalization and trade, land use, and changing demands regarding nature’s services to humans. The natural and social spheres are closely interlinked, interact in a complex way, and thus present unexpected risks. With a better understanding of these system dynamics, it will be possible to devise strategies to prevent undesirable developments. The researchers of Future Forests thus aim to make novel contributions to conceptualizing and analysing forests as new social-ecological systems (SES).

The approaches of Future Forests to analysing and developing transformation pathways for forest-based SES will provide the basis for more adaptive forest systems and more sustainable transformation pathways than in the past. These approaches will be transferable to other world regions and a broad spectrum of ecosystem services.

Objective and Target Group:

Targeting researchers of all career stages, Future Forests offers Track 2 as an open application to PhD Students and Postdocs looking to get involved with any aspect of the research at the newly formed Cluster of Excellence. Participating in the Freiburg Rising Stars Academy through a placement with Future Forests means contributing to building its very foundation – which is both an exciting and challenging task. Interested candidates should look for a match with one of our PIs and reach out to them ahead of applying, a complete list can be found here: Principle Investigators in Future Forests.

Step 1: Prepare your application well!

This track requires close familiarisation of the applicants with Future Forests. Interdisciplinary research is highly encouraged at the University of Freiburg and at Future Forests, so most researchers will be willing to work with excellent researchers from other fields. However, a prospective Rising Star should ensure that there are points of interconnection with their own expertise if they seek to work with someone outside their field. Please indicate ways your research will be complemented by working with / at Future Forests and with at least one of the researchers associated with it (this can be anyone from a group leader to a full professor).

Your application should include the following documents as pdf files:

Application Documents:

• Application Form (download on top of the page)

• Letter of motivation (1-2 pages), in which you should
  • indicate your motivation for joining the Freiburg Rising Stars Academy and Future Forests
  • describe the goal you wish to achieve as a Rising Star working with / at Future Forests
  • and include a brief proposal of collaboration (the project) with the Host Principle Investigator of your choice, also describing why you believe that you would be a good match
• A Curriculum Vitae focusing on your research skills
• Certificates documenting your degree(s)

Step 2: Upload your documents to the central application platform of the University of Freiburg, the access link is posted under “Application Deadlines & Documents”. Only complete applications that provide good documentation of the applicant’s qualification and suitability will be considered.