CESFRA - Postdoctoral Position in Agronomy and Soils Sciences (Dynamic of organic matter (SOM) in soils and how to improve it contains, particularly, on its stable form and establish the relationships between SOM and biological indicators for soil health under different land uses)

Job/Project description

The Center for Sustainable Soil Sciences (CAES) at the Mohammed VI Polytechnic University seeks a dynamic and highly motivated individual to join our academic institution as a postdoctoral research staff in Agronomy (Dynamic of organic matter in soils and how to improve it contains, particularly, on its stable form and establish the relationships with biological indicators for soil health under different land uses). The successful candidate will contribute to our institution's commitment to excellence in research and innovation in agronomy and soils sciences, mainly by conducting innovate research which allow us: (i) to evaluate the effect of land uses and agricultural practices on the capacity of soils to store carbon and (ii) to develop strategies (organo-mineral amendment, installation of a plant cover, inoculation by microorganisms of agronomic interest) and propose recommendations (iii) to increase the sequestration of organic matter on its stable form in the soils and (iv) to use practical biological soil health indicators, such as soil fauna, to promote sustainable use of agricultural soils in Africa.

Main responsibilities

• Conduct a survey with farmers to obtain a general view of real agricultural practices used in the selected Mediterranean and Sub-Saharan African countries where SOC is very low;
• Propose characterisation of the soil properties collected from different studied farms;
• Test how to Improve soil organic carbon content using organo-mineral resources under controlled condition;
• Assess the effect of using organo-mineral resources on soil carbon stock in the field;
• Implement agronomic assay to evaluate the stability of clay-humic complexes under culture conditions and how an intense of microbial activity contributes into the process of stabilization of organic matter;
• Assess the effects of organo-mineral management on soil biological parameters, including soil fauna;
• Predict the dynamic of OM in the future global climate change by using Soil Organic Models.
• Mentor master students and PhDs