We are looking for a candidate who meets the following criteria:
1. You hold a Master’s degree in Bioscience Engineering, Water Resources Engineering, Environmental Engineering, Physical Geography, Hydrology, or a closely related field, with strong academic results.
2. You have a strong interest in soil–plant–water processes, crop modelling, and sustainable water management.
3. You have experience with or a strong interest in remote sensing, geospatial analysis, and/or environmental modelling.
4. You have experience with or willingness to develop skills in open source programming and data analysis (e.g. R, Python, QGIS).
5. You are motivated to conduct fieldwork in Uganda and to work in an international and intercultural research environment.
6. You have strong analytical skills and a keen interest in scientific research.
7. You communicate clearly in English, both orally and in writing.
8. You can work independently as well as collaboratively within a multidisciplinary team.
Rice production in African inland valleys plays a crucial role in local food security. However, these systems are increasingly challenged by climate variability, water scarcity, and competing land and water uses. Sustainable intensification of rice production requires a sound understanding of soil-water-vegetation interactions and their response to climate extremes and management choices.The EAU’RYZA project develops an integrated monitoring and modelling framework that combines multi-sensor remote sensing data, process-based crop and hydrological models, and water accounting approaches to support sustainable rice production while safeguarding natural ecosystems in African inland valleys. Within this project, the PhD student will primarily contribute to modelling and accounting for soil-water-vegetation interactions. The research focuses on integrating remote sensing data into crop and hydrological models to quantify climate impacts, water productivity, and catchment-scale water balances in smallholder-dominated rice production systems.The PhD research will include substantial fieldwork in Uganda, in close collaboration with African and Belgian project partners.PhD research tasksThe successful candidate will:
9. Develop and apply an integrated modelling framework combining multi-sensor remote sensing with process-based crop and hydrological models.
10. Quantify climate impacts on rice productivity and water availability in African inland valley systems.
11. Assess spatio-temporal water productivity using remote sensing-based evapotranspiration and crop models.
12. Develop and test a catchment-scale water accounting framework to support sustainable water allocation between rice production and natural ecosystems.
13. Design and conduct field campaigns in Uganda for data collection (soil, crop, water, and management data) to support model calibration and validation.
14. Publish research results in peer-reviewed scientific journals and present findings at international conferences.
15. Contribute to interdisciplinary collaboration within the EAU’RYZA consortium and support supervision of MSc thesis students.
The Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, within the Science and Technology Group at KU Leuven, is looking for a highly motivated PhD student to conduct research on soil-water-vegetation interactions in African rice agro-ecosystems. The PhD position is embedded in the federally funded STEREO IV project EAU’RYZA – A framework for monitoring resource interactions within rice agro-ecosystems in Africa.The Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences conducts state-of-the-art research on geo- and ecosystems across spatial and temporal scales, with a strong focus on sustainable land and water management, food security, and climate change adaptation. More information on the department:
16. A full-time PhD scholarship for 1 year, renewable after positive evaluation for up to 4 years in total, in accordance with KU Leuven doctoral salary scales.
17. Enrollment in the Arenberg Doctoral School, including access to doctoral training and career development courses.
18. A dynamic, multidisciplinary, and international research environment.
19. Opportunities for international collaboration and extended fieldwork in Uganda.
20. A stimulating working environment in Leuven, a historic university city in the heart of Europe.
21. More information on working conditions at KU Leuven: