PhD Candidate in Plastics Pollution Modelling and Life Cycle Assessment

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NTNU is a broad-based university with a technical-scientific profile and a focus in professional education. The university is located in three cities with headquarters in Trondheim.

At NTNU, 9,000 employees and 43,000 students work to create knowledge for a better world.

You will find more information about working at NTNU and the application process here.

   

Video: https://youtu.be/Xt-yHCN5QS0

About the position

Are you motivated to take a step towards a doctorate and open up exciting career opportunities? As a PhD Candidate with us, you will work to achieve your doctorate, and at the same time gain valuable experience that qualifies you for a further career in higher education, and research in and outside academia. The PhD candidate will contribute to the development of novel modelling approaches to understand the environmental fate and impacts of plastic pollution in Norway.

IndEcol is a pioneer in the development and application of industrial ecology methods, as well as the use of large data sets and scientific computing in industrial ecology. We focus on understanding resource use and environmental pollution associated with human activities, assessing the environmental aspects of different technologies and modeling society’s use of materials. IndEcol combines world-class competence in Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), Input-Output analysis (I/O), and Material Flow Analysis (MFA) with scientists’ contribution to IPCC and IPBES assessment reports, the International Resource Panel, active participation to the Life-Cycle Initiative hosted by UN Environment, and numerous publications featured in high-ranked journals. IndEcol hosts its own International MSc program and contributes to NTNU’s engineering education. The research team consisting of eight faculty members, the Industrial Ecology Digital Laboratory, and about 70 researchers, Post Docs. and PhD students. More information can be found at https://www.ntnu.edu/indecol.

Your immediate leader is Dr. Martin Dorber. Prof. Francesca Verones, Assoc. Prof. Johan Berg Pettersen and Assoc. Prof. Tora Bonnevie are co-supervisors of the candidate.

About the project

Plastic pollution is escalating across all environments and is recognized as a major One Health challenge. However, impacts on freshwater and terrestrial biodiversity are still largely unassessed in a life cycle assessment (LCA) context. At the same time, micro- and nanoplastic exposure in humans is confirmed, but the health implications remain poorly understood and no metrics exist to represent these effects in LCA. This project addresses both gaps in parallel by developing the first integrated One Health modelling framework for plastics. We will build a multi-compartment fate model for terrestrial and freshwater systems, derive the first Characterization Factors for plastic impacts on biodiversity beyond the ocean, and translate biomedical evidence into responsible early-stage human health indicators compatible with LCA. The PhD`s work will focus on both environmental transport modelling and biodiversity impact assessment, in close collaboration with interdisciplinary project partners.

The project is funded through NTNU and is an interdisciplinary project between the Industrial Ecology Programme at the Department of Energy and Process Engineering and the Department of Neuromedicine and Movement Science.

Duties of the position

• Complete the doctoral education until obtaining a doctorate
• Building and calibrating a multi-compartment environmental fate model to simulate transport, retention and accumulation of plastics
• Deriving exposure–response relationships and contributing to the development of characterization factors (CFs) for biodiversity impacts in Life Cycle Assessment
• Write academic publications of good quality and contribute to popular science dissemination
• Participate actively in Industrial Ecology Programme
• Participate in international activities such as conferences and/or research stays at foreign educational institutions
• Participate in building interdisciplinary collaboration between industrial ecology and the health field

Be prepared for changes to your work duties after employment.

Required selection criteria

• You must have a relevant Master's degree in industrial ecology, environmental science/engineering or equivalent. Your course of study must correspond to a five-year Norwegian course, where 120 credits have been obtained at master's level. Master students can apply, but the master's degree must be obtained and documented before starting the position
• You must have a strong academic background from your previous studies and have an average grade from your Master's degree study, or equivalent education, which is equal to B or better compared to NTNU's grading scale. If you do not have letter grades from previous studies, you must have an equally good academic foundation. If you have a weaker grade background, you may be considered if you can document that you are particularly suitable for a PhD education
• You must meet the requirements for admission to the faculty's Doctoral Programme
• Motivation to get proficient in Python and Brightway
• Interest in sustainability science and strong incentive to learn Industrial Ecology methods like LCA analysis
• Proven analytical and computational capabilities, in courses and or/thesis deliverables 
• Proven written and oral English communication skills

PLEASE NOTE: For detailed information about what the application must contain, see paragraph “About the application”.

The appointment is to be made in accordance with NTNUs guidelines for recruitment positions for general criteria for the position.

Preferred selection criteria

• Completed courses in life cycle assessment and life cycle impact assessment 
• Experience in geographical information systems (e.g., ArcGIS, QGIS or within Python, R) 
• Documented competence in using the Python scientific computing stack (Numpy, Pandas, Jupyter Notebooks) or of another programming language used for environmental data analysis 
• Knowledge of ecotoxicological concepts, preferably proven through completed courses
• Experience with data visualization
• Good oral and written presentation skills in Norwegian/Scandinavian equivalent level 

Personal characteristics

To complete a doctoral degree (PhD), it is important that you are able to: 

• Self-motivated, enthusiastic, and dedicated
• Motivated to solve environmental problems and advance sustainability
• Ambitious and goal-oriented
• Team player
• Excellent communication skills

Emphasis will be placed on personal qualities.

We offer

• An exciting job with an important mission in society
• Career guidance and follow-up during the PhD period
• Open and inclusive working environment with committed colleagues
• Support as a new employee at NTNU
• Favorable terms as a member of the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund (SPK)  
• Free Norwegian language training at a basic level (A2)
• Exciting and stimulating tasks in a strong international academic environment

As a PhD Candidate at NTNU, you will have access to employee benefits.

Diversity

Diversity is a strength, and at NTNU we aim to be an employer that reflects the diversity in society and that makes use of the potential of the population's collective skills. Our vision is Knowledge for a better world and our values ​​are creative, critical, constructive and respectful. We believe that an organization that is equal, diverse and gender-balanced is essential for us to achieve our goals. 

We strive to attract employees with different skills, life experiences and perspectives to contribute to even better problem solving of our societal mission in research and education. 

If you think this position is relevant and interesting, we encourage you to apply, regardless of gender, functional ability and cultural background, or whether you have been out of work for a period of time.

At NTNU we want to increase the proportion of women in scientific positions. We have a number of measures to promote equality.

The Department of Energy and Process Engineering (EPT) has established EPT Women in Science. The group is focused on supporting female Research Assistants, PhD Candidates, Postdoctoral Fellows and permanent academic employees within the Department. This support aims to help develop the academic careers of female employees, and is also made visible to our student body, to encourage them to consider an academic path. As part of the EPT Women in Science initiative we continue to build on our international network, inviting prominent female academics within and beyond the field of Engineering to speak at our events.

Salary and conditions

In the position of PhD Candidate, code 1017, your gross salary will normally be NOK 550 800,- per annum depending on qualifications and seniority. A 2% statutory contribution to the State Pension Fund is deducted from the salary. 

The employment period is 3 years for the doctoral work.

For employment as a PhD Candidate, it is a prerequisite that you gain admission to the PhD programme in Engineering within three months of your employment contract start date, and that you participate in an organized doctoral programme throughout the period of employment.

As an employee at NTNU, it is important that you keep yourself up to date with academic and organizational changes and adapt to them.

For the necessary professional and social interaction, it is a prerequisite that you are physically present and available to the institution on a daily basis.

The appointment is carried out in accordance with the principles of the State Employees Act, and Export control (legislation that regulates the export of knowledge, technology and services). Candidates who, after assessment of the application and attachments, are considered to be in conflict with the criteria in the latter act, will not be able to be employed.

About the application

The attachments (including a description of your scientific work) must accompany the application as these documents form the basis of the application assessment. The documents must be in English. 

Please note: the application will only be assessed on the basis of the information we have received by the application deadline. Therefore, make sure that your application clearly shows how your skills and experience meet the criteria described above. The application and all attachments must be sent electronically via Jobbnorge.no. If you are invited to an interview, you must bring certified copies of certificates and diplomas upon request.

The application must include:

• Transcripts and diplomas for Bachelor's and Master's degrees
• CV 
• Copy of Master's thesis. If you have recently submitted your Master's thesis, you can attach a draft of the thesis. Documentation of a completed Master's degree must be presented before taking up the position.
• Short letter of motivation (400 words/1 page)
• Possibly publications etc. other relevant research work
• Possibly certificates
• Names and contact information of three relevant referees

If all, or parts, of your education has been taken abroad, we also ask you to attach documentation of the scope and quality of your entire education, both Bachelor's and Master's education, in addition to other higher education. If your institution uses “diploma supplement” (normal for most European institutions), you must attach this. A description of the documentation required can also be found here. If you already have a statement from Norwegian Directorate for Higher Education and Skills (HK-dir), please attach this as well. 

Joint work will be considered. If it is difficult to identify your contribution to joint work, you must attach a brief description of your participation.

When assessing the best qualified, we emphasize necessary qualifications such as education, experience and personal suitability. Motivation for the position, ambitions, and potential for research will also count when assessing the candidates.

NTNU recognizes a wide range of academic contributions and has committed itself to The San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment and CoARA (responsible assessment of research and recognition of a greater breadth of academic contributions in accordance with NTNU's social mission).

General information

A public list of applicants with name, age, job title and municipality of residence is prepared after the application deadline. If you wish to be exempt from entry on the public applicant list, this must be justified. Assessment will be made in accordance with current legislation. You will be notified if the exemption is not granted.

If you think this position looks interesting and in line with your qualifications, you are welcome to apply.

If you have any questions about the position, please contact Prof. Francesca Verones, e-mail: francesca.verones@ntnu.no.

If you have any questions about the recruitment process, please contact HR Consultant Martha Aftret Karlsvik, e-mail: hr@ept.ntnu.no.

Application deadline: 01.08.2025

For practical information about working at NTNU, please visit this webpage. 

The city of Trondheim has a population of 200 000. It is a modern European city with a rich cultural scene and is known as the tech capital of Norway. The Norwegian welfare state, including healthcare, schools, kindergartens and overall equality, is among the best of its kind in the world. Professional, subsidized day-care for children is easily available, as is children`s education (including two international schools). Trondheim has low crime rates, clean air quality, and offers great opportunities for enjoying nature, culture and family-life.