Combining Environmental and Social Data in Coastal Areas

Organization
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Reference Code
EPA-ORD-NHEERL-AED-2020-01-A
How to Apply

This is a repost of a previous posting. If you previously submitted your application to this reference code without the “-A” at the end, then you do not need to reply. Example: If you applied to “EPA-ORD-NERL-IO-2020-13” you do not need to reapply to “EPA-ORD-NERL-IO-2020-13-A”.

A complete application consists of:

  • An application
  • Transcript(s) – For this opportunity, an unofficial transcript or copy of the student academic records printed by the applicant or by academic advisors from internal institution systems may be submitted. All transcripts must be in English or include an official English translation. Click here for detailed information about acceptable transcripts.
  • A current resume/CV, including academic history, employment history, relevant experiences, and publication list
  • Two educational or professional recommendations

All documents must be in English or include an official English translation.

If you have questions, send an email to EPArpp@orau.org.  Please include the reference code for this opportunity in your email.

Application Deadline
6/1/2020 3:00:00 PM Eastern Time Zone
Description

*Applications will be reviewed on a rolling-basis.

A research opportunity is currently available at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Office of Research and Development (ORD), Center for Environmental Measurement and Modeling (CEMM), Atlantic Coastal Environmental Sciences Division (ACESD) in Narragansett, Rhode Island. EPA ORD recently reorganized and these are the newly named Centers/Divisions/Branches. This was formerly in the Atlantic Ecology Division (AED) within the National Health and Environmental Effects Research Laboratory (NHEERL).

The research participant will have the opportunity to be involved in research on several topics related to water quality benefits and policies to improve coastal water quality, including a survey of coastal recreation in New England, compilation of coastal water quality metrics, and other topics. The research includes: development of models and methods to quantify people’s recreational uses of water, how water quality affects those uses, and people’s values for changes in water quality; people’s perceptions of water quality and how perceptions relate to objective measures of water quality and affect people’s choices; and use of new sources of human mobility data to model people’s behavior and values.

With guidance from their mentor, the research participant will have the opportunity to be involved in developing, managing, and analyzing spatial datasets; analyzing and reporting on social and environmental conditions of coastal areas; scripting data management processes, and collaborating on scientific writing or presentations. This is an opportunity to learn about the social and ecological impacts of coastal pollution and to apply data from multiple disciplines for improving decision making.

The research participant will have the opportunity to learn through interactions with individuals and teams involved in other cross-cutting human/environment projects at ACESD and other EPA divisions. With guidance from the mentor, the research participant will have latitude in exercising independent initiative and judgment in the research commensurate with the level of training. The research participant will have the opportunity to collaborate with EPA Regions, researchers, states, and local stakeholders to improve EPA's abilities in generating and translating decision-relevant social and ecological data to end-users.

The research participant will have the opportunity to attend research team meetings and be involved in all aspects of the research. This may include active engagement with stakeholders regarding applications of the research. There will be opportunities to develop and conduct projects within the overall research program, and to publish and present research.

The mentor for this opportunity is Nate Merrill (Merrill.nathaniel@epa.gov).

Anticipated Appointment Start Date: June 1, 2020

This program, administered by ORAU through its contract with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to manage the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE), was established through an interagency agreement between DOE and EPA. The initial appointment is for one year, but may be renewed upon recommendation of EPA and is contingent on the availability of funds. The participant will receive a monthly stipend commensurate with educational level and experience. Proof of health insurance is required for participation in this program. The appointment is part-time (20 hours per week) at EPA in the Narragansett, Rhode Island, area. Participants do not become employees of EPA, DOE or the program administrator, and there are no employment-related benefits. 

Completion of a successful background investigation by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is required for an applicant to be on-boarded at EPA. OPM can complete a background investigation only for individuals, including non-US Citizens, who have resided in the US for the past three years.

Qualifications

The qualified candidate should have received a master's degree in one of the relevant fields, or be currently pursuing the degree and will reach completion by June 1, 2020. Degree must have been received within five years of the appointment start date.

Preferred skills:

  • Quantitative data management and analysis, including: Geographic Information System (GIS) data management, analysis and mapping; statistical analysis and scripting using R, Python, JavaScript
  • Knowledge and experience in working with water quality data and remote sensing analysis 
  • Attention to detail and record keeping
  • Prior experience with stakeholder groups and evaluation
Eligibility Requirements
  • Citizenship: U.S. Citizen Only
  • Degree: Master's Degree received within the last 60 months or anticipated to be received by 6/1/2020 11:59:00 PM.
  • Discipline(s):
    • Computer, Information, and Data Sciences (3 )
    • Earth and Geosciences (2 )
    • Engineering (1 )
    • Environmental and Marine Sciences (4 )
    • Mathematics and Statistics (10 )
    • Social and Behavioral Sciences (2 )
  • Veteran Status: Veterans Preference, degree received within the last 120 month(s).
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