*Applications will be reviewed on a rolling-basis.

USDA Forest Service Office/Lab and Location: A fellowship opportunity is available with the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) Forest Service (FS) within the Pacific Northwest Research Station (PNWRS) located in Wenatchee, Washington.

At the heart of the USDA Forest Service's mission is their purpose. Everything they do is intended to help sustain forests and grasslands for present and future generations. Why? Because their stewardship work supports nature in sustaining life. This is the purpose that drives the agency’s mission and motivates their work across the agency. It’s been there from the agency’s very beginning, and it still drives them. To advance the mission and serve their purpose, the USDA Forest Service balances the short and long-term needs of people and nature by: working in collaboration with communities and our partners; providing access to resources and experiences that promote economic, ecological, and social vitality; connecting people to the land and one another; and delivering world-class science, technology and land management.

The PNW Research Station’s mission is to generate and communicate knowledge to help people make informed choices about natural resource management and sustainability. Research priorities include generating science to 1) mitigate risks to people, property, and forests, 2) manage for forest resilience and ecosystem services, and 3) monitor and predict land stewardship and disturbance impacts. Wenatchee Forestry Sciences Laboratory scientists have a long history of conducting multidisciplinary research in the fields of dry forest restoration, fire ecology, post-fire forest management, and climate change adaptation.

Research Project: Research fellows will participate in research projects that provide science to facilitate the planning, implementation, and maintenance of forest restoration and fuel reduction treatments within dry coniferous forest landscapes of the interior Pacific Northwest by providing information about treatment effectiveness, treatment longevity, and post-disturbance vegetation dynamics. Research projects will:

• Assess the short- and long-term effects of forest restoration and fuel reduction treatments on forest structure, fuels, and understory vegetation;
• Identify the biophysical factors influencing fuel treatment effectiveness;
• Assess the effects of stand density reductions on tree growth and climatic sensitivity (especially to drought); and
• Examine fuel treatment effects on forest recovery following wildfire.

Projects will pursue these objectives by reviewing and synthesizing existing scientific literature; extracting and publishing information from long-term datasets; and collecting, analyzing, and publishing information from new field data. Research fellows will have opportunities to participate in most phases of the research, including project conceptualization, field data collection, data management, statistical data analysis, manuscript development, and communicating research findings.

Learning Objectives: Learning opportunities for participants include improving knowledge of forest and fire ecology theory and field methods, gaining familiarity with the flora of interior Pacific Northwest forests, and enhancing data management and analysis skills. Participants will also gain experience sharing research findings through the development of publications and presentations. Research foci and learning opportunities will vary somewhat among participants, depending on their prior knowledge and skills, career interests, and project needs.

Mentor: The mentors for this opportunity are Kathryn Ireland (Kathryn.Ireland@usda.gov) and David Peterson (David.Peterson1@usda.gov). If you have questions about the nature of the research, please contact the mentors.

Anticipated Appointment Start Date: January 2025.  Start date is flexible and will depend on a variety of factors.

Appointment Length: The appointment will initially be for one year and five months but may be extended upon recommendation of USDA Forest Service and is contingent on the availability of funds.

Level of Participation: The appointment is full time.

Participant Stipend: The participant will receive a monthly stipend commensurate with educational level and experience. 

Citizenship Requirements: This opportunity is available to U.S. citizens only.

ORISE Information: 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 USDA Forest Service. Participants do not become employees of USDA, USDA Forest Service, DOE or the program administrator, and there are no employment-related benefits. Proof of health insurance is required for participation in this program. Health insurance can be obtained through ORISE.

Questions: Please visit our Program Website. After reading, if you have additional questions about the application process please email ORISE.USFS.PNWRS@orau.org and include the reference code for this opportunity.

Qualifications

The qualified candidate should have received a master's or doctoral degree in the one of the relevant fields (in a natural resources field, preferably forestry, natural resources, plant sciences, ecology, botany, environmental sciences, biology, or related). Degree must have been received within the past five years.

Preferred (beneficial) skills:

• Prior experience with forest ecology and management research including, but not limited to, silviculture, forest ecology, fuels management, wildland fire science, plant community ecology, and dendrochronology
• Demonstrated success writing and publishing scientific reports in refereed journals.
• Strong analytical skills, including demonstrated experience analyzing large data sets with statistical programs such as R or SAS and geospatial programs such as ArcGIS Pro
• Ability and desire to conduct research independently and as part of an interdisciplinary researcher-manager team
• Ability to prioritize multiple activities within project deadlines
• Experience with forest ecology field and laboratory methods, such as forest stand structure measurements, surface fuels characterization, understory plant identification (species level), or tree-ring processing and analysis
• Strong oral and written communication skills and demonstrated success authoring refereed publications in a natural resource field

Eligibility Requirements

• Citizenship: U.S. Citizen Only
• Degree: Master's Degree or Doctoral Degree received within the last 60 month(s).