Junior Onderzoeker Dataverzameling ter Ondersteuning van Regeneratieve Landbouw

De druk op de landbouw en het gehele voedselsysteem neemt gestaag toe om de wereldwijde productie te verhogen en tegelijkertijd duurzaamheid te bevorderen op het gebied van onder meer het inkomen van boeren, bodemgezondheid, het gebruik van hulpbronnen en de milieu- en klimaateffecten. Regeneratieve landbouw biedt een veelbelovende aanpak om een gezond, multifunctioneel en toekomstbestendig bodem- en landbouwsysteem te ondersteunen. Samen met Nederlandse regeneratieve boeren ontwikkelt ReGeNL een toekomstbestendige agrarische sector waarin landbouw hand in hand gaat met bodemgezondheid en natuurherstel, en een goed verdienmodel voor boeren. Tussen nu en 2030 start ReGeNL de transitie naar regeneratieve landbouw met 1000 boeren. Het doel is dat regeneratieve landbouw in 2040 de nieuwe norm is.

In deze rol ondersteun je de monitoring van 100 pionierende regeneratieve boeren binnen het ReGeNL-programma. Wageningen University heeft samen met partners de verantwoordelijkheid om de veranderingen in managementpraktijken van deze boeren te monitoren en te onderzoeken welke resultaten deze veranderingen opleveren. Jaarlijks veldwerk wordt uitgevoerd om verschillende aspecten van de bodem te monitoren en om een inventarisatie te maken van de managementpraktijken die deze pioniers toepassen. Verschillende stappen zijn nodig om een succesvolle monitoringscampagne uit te voeren, zoals onboarding en veldselectie, voorbereiding van de steekproeflocaties volgens een statistisch steekproefontwerp, en het opzetten en uitvoeren van verschillende soorten vragenlijsten; allemaal aspecten waarin jij een belangrijke rol speelt. In deze functie bied jij de technische ondersteuning voor deze werkzaamheden.

Belangrijkste verantwoordelijkheden zijn onder andere:

• Verzamelen van ruimtelijke informatie over de pioniersbedrijven.
• Implementeren van een statistisch steekproefontwerp in QGIS en QField ter ondersteuning van onderzoekers tijdens hun veldwerk.
• Verzamelen en harmoniseren van veldniveau-vragenlijstgegevens uit QField.
• Opstellen van jaarlijkse vragenlijsten in Qualtrics om informatie te verzamelen over het bedrijf en de managementpraktijken.
• Opstellen van geharmoniseerde datasets op basis van verzamelde gegevens.
• Ondersteunen bij de dagelijkse afhandeling van data en verzoeken rondom dataverzameling.

Leerstoelgroep Bodemgeografie en Landschap
De missie van de groep is het verbeteren en delen van kennis over patronen en dynamiek van bodems, landschappen en processen aan het aardoppervlak, en hun drijvende krachten zoals klimaatverandering en mens-landschapsinteracties. De groep gebruikt integratieve benaderingen waarin biofysische en antropogene elementen worden gecombineerd om inzicht te krijgen in de dynamiek van systemen in het verleden, heden en de toekomst. Hiermee willen we bijdragen aan systeembenaderingen voor landgebruik en ruimtelijke planning, duurzaam beheer van bodems, landschappen en ecosystemen (bijv. zandige, rivier-, delta- en stedelijke systemen), en bescherming van cultuur- en geologisch erfgoed.

Samen met drie andere leerstoelgroepen vormt de leerstoelgroep Bodemgeografie en Landschap het Wageningen Soil Cluster, dat internationaal een uitstekende reputatie heeft binnen de bodemwetenschappen.

Postdoc position: GreenTE seed germination

Are you interested in mechanosensing in plants? Do you wonder how mechanical responses regulate seed germination? Then we are looking for you!

To strengthen the GreenTE project team, we are looking for a post-doctoral researcher. As Postdoc in the GreenTE (Green Tissue Engineering) Gravitation programme, you will be part of a multidisciplinary consortium of 7 Dutch universities. Together, GreenTE will unravel how plants sense and respond to mechanical stimuli. These fundamental insights will be the basis to develop engineering interventions to improve plant regeneration, seed germination and defenses against disease. The successful applicant will be an integral member of the GreenTE community, which offers an open, diverse and inspiring environment to engage in multidisciplinary mechanobiology research at the intersection of biology, chemistry and physics, and is expected to participate in GreenTE events, training and collaborations.

In the GreenTE subproject “How do cells communicate during seed germination?” we aim for mapping the mechanical responses during seed germination. The gained knowledge will be linked to transcriptome, translatome and phosphoproteome data to finally create an integrated model of seed germination. Within the team, you will be responsible for investigating how the mechanical responses are converted into biochemical signals. This research might include the identification and characterization of signaling proteins, investigating the effects of genetically modifying these proteins (e.g. By CRISPR) and / or localization studies. Besides carrying out the research project, you will contribute to teaching PhD, MSc and BSc students.

Your duties and responsibilities include:

• Investigating how mechanical responses during seed germination are converted into biochemical signals;
• Characterizing the biochemical pathways identified;
• Collaborating with PhD students and postdocs working in our group, as well as with scientists in the GreenTE consortium;
• Publication of the results in the scientific literature.

Your team
The GreenTE subproject “How do cells communicate during seed germination?” will run at the Wageningen Seed Science Centre under supervision of Prof. dr. Leónie Bentsink. You will be working in a team with two PhD students and two other post-doctoral researchers.

You will work here
The research is embedded within the Laboratory of Plant Physiology chair group. You will be member of the Wageningen Seed Science Centre and be supervised by Prof dr Leónie Bentsink.

Junior Researcher Data Collection Support for Regenerative Agriculture

Are you interested to work with 100 pioneering farmers in the Netherlands, and you have affinity with data collection tools? Within the ReGeNL project, we are looking for a junior researcher to technically support the monitoring campaigns of the pioneering farmers within ReGeNL.

There is steadily growing pressure on agriculture and the entire food system to increase global production while promoting sustainability in terms of farmers' incomes, soil health, input use, and environmental and climate impact. Regenerative agriculture is a promising avenue to support a healthy, multi-functional and future-proof soil and farming system. Together with regenerative Dutch farmers, ReGeNL is developing a future-proof agricultural sector in which agriculture goes hand in hand with soil health and nature restoration, and a good revenue model for farmers. Between now and 2030, ReGeNL will start the transition to regenerative agriculture with 1000 farmers. The aim is to make regenerative agriculture the new normal by 2040.

In this role you support the monitoring of a 100 pioneer regenerative farmers within the ReGeNL program. Wageningen University, together with partners, has the responsibility to monitor and study the changes in practices of these farmers and what the outcomes of these changes are. Annual fieldwork will take place to monitor various aspects of the soil and to make an inventory of management practices these pioneer farmers apply. Various steps are needed to perform a successful monitoring campaign, such as onboarding and field selection, preparation of the sample locations according to a statistical sampling design, and setting up and implementing different types of questionnaires, all in which you’ll play an important role. In this role you provide the technical support for such aspects.

Key responsibilities will be to:

• Gather spatial information on the pioneer farms.
• Implement a statistical sampling design into QGIS and QField to support the researchers during their fieldwork.
• Gather collected field-level questionnaire data from QField and harmonize these.
• Set up yearly questionnaires in Qualtrics to gather information about the farm and their management practices.
• Compile harmonized datasets based on collected data.
• Support day-to-day handling of data and data collection requests.

You will work at the Soil Geography and Landscape group
The mission of the group is to improve and share understanding of patterns and dynamics of soils, landscapes and earth surface dynamics and their drivers, like climate change and human-landscape interactions. The group uses integrative approaches that combine biophysical and anthropogenic elements to gain insight in past, present and future system dynamics. Through this, we aim to support system-based solutions in land management and spatial planning, sustainable management of soils, landscapes and ecosystems (e.g. sandy, riverine, deltaic and urban), and protection of cultural and geoheritage.

Together with three other chair groups, the Soil Geography and Landscape Group forms the Wageningen Soil Cluster, which has an excellent international reputation in soil science.

Assistant Professor Large-scale Water Quality and Planetary Health

Imminent and future climate change with increasing hydroclimatic extremes, combined with socio-economic developments are placing unprecedented pressure on both the quantity and quality of water resources globally. These pressures increase clean water scarcity and related threats to aquatic ecosystems, water, food and energy security, ultimately undermining planetary health. Geopolitical tensions and conflicts risk amplifying these vulnerabilities even further. To address escalating risks, it is imperative that we account for the full set of interactions between water availability, water quality, and human/ecosystem response interactions. This requires development of quantitative assessment frameworks and models to quantify these system interactions. By integrating these dynamics into future water-system pathways we can identify effective management strategies and solution options to safeguard our natural freshwater resources and improve planetary health.

The Department of Physical Geography at Utrecht University (DPG-UU) is seeking an Assistant Professor in the quantitative assessment and modelling of large-scale water quality and water resources in the context of planetary health research (focussing on ecosystem/human health). DPG-UU envisions that the candidate for this position will develop her/his own research line building on our large-scale high-resolution water quality and water resources models. The new research line combines large-scale (clean) water system understanding with integrated impact assessment of planetary health and clean water system adaptation. This interdisciplinary field will combine quantitative hydrological and water quality modelling, assessment of human and/or ecosystem health impacts and development of pathways towards healthier systems. Here you can build on modelling expertise available in Water Quality and Sustainable Water Systems group and other research groups within DPG-UU.

The candidate will develop and be involved in funding applications from national and European science agencies, and will be uniquely positioned to teach in courses on Earth Sciences, Hydrology and Planetary Health at Bachelor’s or Master’s level. You will also supervise individual Bachelor's, Master's and PhD projects.

PhD Positions in Next-Generation In Vitro Models of Musculoskeletal Tissues & Interfaces

2 PhD Positions in Next-Generation In Vitro Models of Musculoskeletal Tissues Including Bone and Bone–Soft Tissue Interfaces

• Our goal: Advancing next-generation human in vitro models for musculoskeletal tissue regeneration.
• Your colleagues: An interdisciplinary team of researchers within the MERLN Institute, working at the interface of biology, engineering, and medicine.

We are seeking two highly motivated PhD candidates to join the MERLN Institute for Technology-Inspired Regenerative Medicine at Maastricht University. You will contribute to an ambitious interdisciplinary research program focused on advancing innovative strategies for musculoskeletal tissue regeneration, with a particular emphasis on bone and bone–soft tissue interfaces.

PhD Project 1. A Multicellular Organ-on-Chip Model to Investigate Inflammation Mechanisms in Tendon, Ligament, and Enthesis
Disorders of tendons, ligaments, and their interface with bone, i.e., entheses, are major contributors to chronic musculoskeletal pain. However, the mechanisms linking mechanical loading, inflammation, and pain signaling remain incompletely understood, partly due to the lack of physiologically relevant experimental models. This project aims to develop an advanced multicellular organ-on-chip platform that recapitulates the structural, cellular, and biomechanical microenvironment of tendon, ligament and their entheses. The system will enable controlled induction and monitoring of inflammatory processes and associated mechanisms, serving as a tool for mechanistic studies and preclinical therapeutic testing.

PhD Project 2. Engineering Multicellular 3D In Vitro Models to Elucidate Bone Regeneration Mechanisms
Large bone defects and non-unions remain significant clinical challenges, reflecting an incomplete understanding of the complex biological processes governing bone regeneration. Critical factors such as stem cell dynamics, inflammatory signaling and vascularization interact in a tightly regulated manner, and their crosstalk is further influenced by pathological conditions. This project focuses on the development of multicellular, miniaturized 3D in vitro bone models incorporating key components of the regenerative niche, including stem cell, immune and vascular niches, as well as engineered periosteal-like tissues. Using spheroids, organoids, and organ-on-chip technologies, the project aims to dissect cellular interactions during homeostasis and to identify mechanisms that initiate and regulate bone regeneration.

Your role
By joining these projects, you will contribute to the development of next-generation human 3D in vitro models. If you are a curious and analytical Master’s graduate with a background in Bioengineering, Biomedical Engineering, or a related discipline, and you aspire to uncover how complex biological processes in the human body are regulated using cutting-edge, human-relevant tissue models, we encourage you to apply. Within these positions, you will:

• Pioneer innovative in vitro platforms for studying inflammation, stem cell migration, vascularization and regenerative processes in bone and bone–soft tissue interfaces.
• Characterize multicellular crosstalk and biological processes in musculoskeletal tissues using the developed systems.
• Access state-of-the-art facilities and resources for your research.
• Collaborate within a highly interdisciplinary team, where scientific excellence, creativity, and intellectual curiosity are actively fostered.
• Disseminate your findings through scientific publications and international conferences.

Your profile
It’s not about ticking boxes – it’s about who you are and what you bring. Do you recognize yourself in this?

• Strong academic foundation – You hold a Master’s degree in Bioengineering, Biomedical Engineering, Biomedical Sciences, or a related field.
• Excellent academic performance – You have an excellent academic track record, ranking among the top performers of your cohort.
• Theoretical knowledge – You possess solid theoretical knowledge in tissue engineering, in vitro models of human organs and tissues, musculoskeletal biology, biomaterials and regenerative technologies.
• Hands-on research experience – You have hands-on experience in developing (3D) in vitro models such as organs-on-chips, spheroids or organoids.
• Technical versatility – Experience working with microfluidic systems and microfabrication, biomimetic biomaterials, relevant cell types (stem cells, musculoskeletal cells, endothelial cells, or immune cells), molecular and cellular analysis techniques, or bioimaging is considered a strong asset.
• Collaborative mindset – You are motivated to work in a multidisciplinary and collaborative research environment.
• Scientific independence – You demonstrate independence, responsibility, and scientific maturity in conducting research.
• Strong communication skills – You possess strong scientific communication skills, both written and oral, with the ability to clearly present complex concepts to diverse academic audiences.

Do you want to push the boundaries of human in vitro modeling and transform how we study and uncover the mechanisms that drive the health, disease, and repair of musculoskeletal tissues? We look forward to receiving your application.