Ph.D. Position (f/m/d) Optimizing Blue-Green Infrastructure for Climate and Biodiversity

Your Tasks

Do you have an interest in urban environments, climate change, and biodiversity? Do you enjoy working with spatial data, models, and decision‑making approaches? Are you motivated to contribute to sustainable solutions for cities?

If so, we offer you the opportunity to pursue a Ph.D. within the international and interdisciplinary graduate school C4LaNd, Cluster 2 (Rethinking Urban Spaces), with partners at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), the University of Melbourne, and the University of Hohenheim.

The PhD position “Optimizing Blue-Green Infrastructure for Climate and Biodiversity” is based in Campus South at KIT in Karlsruhe within the junior research group GRUSS lead by Dr. Benz, with close collaboration with the University of Melbourne. The position is embedded in a joint supervision framework, including a research stay of one year in Melbourne and a joint (cotutelle) PhD degree. In Melbourne the position is placed in the group of Prof. Wu.

The overarching question of the doctoral research will be:

How can blue-green infrastructure in cities be designed to jointly enhance biodiversity conservation and urban climate adaptation under increasing land‑use pressure?

Lines of research

• Explore how biodiversity in urban areas can be assessed using conservation‑based frameworks (e.g. Natura 2000 / FFH)
• Analyze spatial patterns of urban green infrastructure and their ecological characteristics
• Investigate how different urban green configurations influence urban climate, particularly heat stress
• Compare alternative design strategies for blue‑green infrastructure
• Identify trade‑offs and synergies between biodiversity conservation and urban climate adaptation
• Contribute to the development of multi‑objective optimization approaches for urban land‑use decisions
• Develop ideas for analysis, publications, and integration within the C4LaNd programme

Your Profile

• A M.Sc. degree in environmental sciences, geography, ecology, climate science, environmental engineering, urban planning, or related fields
• Interest in urban sustainability, biodiversity, and climate adaptation
• Experience with spatial data analysis (e.g. GIS)
• Programming skills (e.g. Python or R) and/or modelling skills are an advantage
• Experience in interdisciplinary research is an advantage
• Interest in quantitative methods and decision‑support approaches
• Fluency in English
• Motivation to work in an international and interdisciplinary research environment
• Willingness to spend an extended research period (one year) at the University of Melbourne

We Offer

• Sciene for Impact: Engage with topics of societal relevance—in an excellent scientific environment that enables change.
• Flexible Working Hours: Take advantage of flexible‑hours schemes, remote‑work options, part‑time models, and a 30‑day annual leave entitlement to achieve an optimal work‑life balance.
• Career‑Building and Developmental Opportunities: We provide you with a structured onboarding program, a broad spectrum of continuing‑education options, and personalised support, thereby fostering your individual growth.
• Family‑friendliness: The “KIT‑Family+” program assists you in reconciling work and family life by offering childcare services, holiday activities, a parent‑child office space, and assistance with caring for relatives.
• Stay Healthy: Under the motto “Fit at KIT – Body, Mind and Soul,” we promote your well‑being through fitness classes, mental‑health programmes, and regular preventive health examinations.
• Individualised Extra Benefits: Enjoy a corporate pension (VBL), a €25 monthly contribution toward a JobTicketBW, plus a broad selection of cultural and recreational programmes.

Job location

Karlsruhe (and Eggenstein-Leopoldshafen)

Salary

Salary category 13 TV‑L; classification is based on personal and professional qualifications.

Contract duration

limited for 3,5 years

Contact person in line‑management

Susanne Benz

Contact for Application questions

JanaKehrer Personalservice (PSE) + ‑45415

At KIT we value the diversity of our employees; different perspectives and backgrounds enrich our work. We prefer to balance the number of employees (f/m/d). Therefore we kindly ask female applicants to apply for this job.Applications from recognized severely disabled individuals are given preferential consideration when qualifications are equal.

Application up to:

Job posting number: 1093/2026