Tier 1 Canada Research Chair (CRC) (NSERC) in Cold Regions Ecosystem Science

The Department of Geography & Environmental Studies at Wilfrid Laurier University (Laurier) invites applications for a Tier 1 Canada Research Chair (CRC) (NSERC) in Cold Regions Ecosystem Science. Applicants for Tier 1 Chair positions must be full professors or associate professors expecting promotion within two years of the nomination. Alternatively, if they come from outside the academic sector, candidates must possess the qualifications necessary for appointment at these levels. The CRC Program is a key component of a strategy to make Canada one of the world’s top countries in research and development (www.chairs-chaires.gc.ca).

Anticipated Salary Range:

• Associate Professor: $140,000 to $190,000. Actual salary to be commensurate with experience.
• Full Professor: $160,000 to $210,000. Actual salary to be commensurate with experience.

Position Summary

Tier 1 Chairs are intended for outstanding established scholars. To meet the criteria of the program, nominees must be outstanding and innovative world-class researchers whose accomplishments have made a major impact in their fields; be recognized internationally as leaders in their fields; have superior records of attracting and supervising graduate students and postdoctoral fellows... and, as Chairholders, be expected to attract, develop and retain excellent trainees, students and future researchers; and be proposing an original, innovative research program of the highest quality.

The Tier 1 CRC (NSERC) in Cold Regions Ecosystem Science will develop a leading-edge research and graduate training program focused on understanding and predicting ecosystem changes in the Canadian Arctic at local and regional scales... The successful candidate’s research program will focus on one or more of these types of ecosystem change. The successful candidate must have established experience integrating field observations, remote sensing, and high-resolution numerical and data driven models...

As part of their role, the successful candidate will become Director of the Trail Valley Creek (TVC) Research Station... Experience managing a large research station or facility would be an asset.

The Tier 1 CRC will be based at Laurier’s Waterloo campus in the Department of Geography & Environmental Studies... The successful candidate will also be affiliated with and have access to Laurier’s Cold Region Research Centre...

The successful candidate will have an established leading-edge research program... They will have a clearly established track record of attracting and managing large research grants... The successful candidate will be expected to engage actively with Indigenous communities... As part of their appointment, the successful candidate will be expected to teach two courses annually...

Qualifications:

To be considered, applicants must have a PhD in Geography, Earth and Environmental Science, Biology, Chemistry or another discipline directly related to cold regions ecosystem science.

The successful candidate will be nominated for a Tier 1 CRC and will be appointed as a tenured faculty member at the Associate Professor or Full Professor level...

How to Apply

Applicants must submit: cover letter... CV... research dossier... teaching dossier... contact details for three potential referees...

Application packages should be combined into a single PDF document and electronically submitted to: Dr. Robert McLeman, Chair, Department of Geography and Environmental Studies, Email: rmcleman@wlu.ca

Applications will be accepted until May 22, 2026. The anticipated start date is July 1, 2027...