13 new PhD projects granted in WIFORCE’s final call

The call targeted projects in fundamental natural sciences, focusing on how abiotic and biotic factors influence the conditions for – and consequences of – forest management in Sweden’s forests.

A new feature of this call was that researchers without docent qualification were also eligible to apply, provided that they plan to apply for the title within one year. Of the thirteen projects granted, three were awarded to applicants in this group.

“It’s great that three of the projects go to researchers who are close to becoming docents, as this group was not eligible in previous calls,” says Hjalmar Laudon, Director of the WIFORCE Research School.

In total, 39 eligible applications were received, eight of which came from researchers who were not yet docents.

“This was the final planned call within WIFORCE, which will in total educate 50 PhD students. WIFORCE strengthens SLU’s world-leading position in research on the sustainable forestry of the future and contributes expertise to everyone working with forests,” says Göran Ericsson, Dean and Chair of the WIFORCE Steering Committee.

Gender balance among granted projects

Among the granted projects in this call, 54 percent had a female main applicant and 46 percent a male. Among the eligible applicants, 46 percent were women and 54 percent men.

This was the second call for PhD projects with employment at SLU. Across both calls, 46 percent of projects have been granted to women and 54 percent to men, based on a total of 71 eligible applications (39 percent from women and 61 percent from men).

Among the 24 PhD students admitted so far, 42 percent are women and 58 percent men, and among the 44 main supervisors in the research school, 45 percent are women and 55 percent men.

“It’s encouraging that the distribution is so close to equal across all groups,” says Hjalmar Laudon.

Recruitment for the new PhD positions within the granted projects will begin before the end of the year.

Granted projects

Inka Bohlin at the Department of Forest Resource Management for the project Remote sensing of fire severity and its dependency on forest management practices in Fennoscandia  

Tim R Hofmeester at the Department of Wildlife, Fish, and Environmental Studies for the project Developing bioacoustics methods for monitoring and quantifying Swedish forest biodiversity

Järvi Järveoja at the Department of Forest Ecology and Management for the project Rewetting versus Contininuous cover forestry: Alternative strategies for managing drained peatland forests for improved climate impact and biodiversity

Mari Jönsson at the Department of Ecology for the project From logs to soil: Linking above- and belowground perspectives on deadwood translocation for forest biodiversity and functioning

Paul Kardol at the Department of Forest Mycology and Plant Pathology for the project Soil food web functional capacity and resilience under climate change and climate extremes: consequences for tree regeneration

Peter Kindgren at the Department of Forest Genetics and Plant Physiology for the project Transcriptional adaptation during a forest cycle

Jonatan Klaminder at the Department of Forest Ecology and Management for the project Alternative oxidase respiration and its importance for microbial carbon use efficiency in soils

Ola Lindroos at the Department of Forest Biomaterials and Technology for the project Turning commercial forests into progeny trials: Linking genetics and harvesting data

Leonie Schönbeck at the Southern Swedish Forest Research Centre for the project Effects of long-term elevated soil fertility to drought tolerance and resilience of Norway spruce forests

Navinder Singh at the Department of Wildlife, Fish, and Environmental Studies for the project TRACE-AIR: Tracking ecological Responses of Airborne Communities in Forest Ecosystems using AIRborne eDNA

Marie Spohn at the Department of Soil and Environment for the project Nitrogen fixation in soil and mycorrhizal tubercles in Swedish forests

Kelly Swarts at the Department of Forest Genetics and Plant Physiology for the project Drivers of heritable plastic response under changing climate

Hannele Tuominen at the Department of Forest Genetics and Plant Physiology for the project Genetic tools for more efficient use of nitrogen in Swedish forest trees 

FACTS: WIFORCE Research School

• The research programme, which includes the research school, is funded by the Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation and runs until 2030. Its goal is to develop both forestry practices and conservation to meet future challenges.
• More than 50 PhD students will be trained within the research school.
• Of these, 16 are industrial or collaborative PhD students, with a main supervisor at SLU and employment at a company, public agency or municipality, where they also have a co-supervisor.