Assistant Professor Artificial intelligence for early warning in data sparse environments
The University of Twente, Faculty ITC wishes to increase the number of women in the faculty in order to have a more balanced staff profile. During all phases of the selection process, we will therefore prioritize selecting women who fit the profile.
You will develop a research direction and educational profile within the ambitions of the ITC Faculty Geo-Information Science and Earth Observation, University of Twente, and the Netherlands sector of Earth and Environmental Sciences. You will contribute to our MSc programmes, co-supervise graduate students and work with our E-Learning Specialists to develop online educational materials.
You will take responsibility for coordination and management tasks and take an active approach towards strengthening our national network, particularly in the broader Earth and Environmental Sciences domain in the Netherlands.
Building operational early warning systems that accurately and timely inform governments, organizations, and communities about potential natural hazard (hydro-meteorological, geomorphological, etc.) threats is a challenge. This challenge exists in data-rich contexts, where scientists can rely on large networks of in-situ measurements or remotely sensed information that provides data in near-real time. In the majority world, often availability and access to near-real-time data are lacking, particularly for in-situ observations, making the challenge even bigger. In such cases, the use of intelligent systems is fundamental to reduce spatiotemporal biases due to poor data availability, as well as to integrate new data sources from remote sensing with the limited in-situ observations one may get access to. For large regions, these problems become highly dimensional. This calls for interdisciplinary approaches, particularly for physics- and data-driven architectures that are flexible enough to be adapted to space-time predictive modelling, image processing, time series analyses, classification and regression tasks tailored toward utmosts. These techniques are part of modern machine/deep learning toolsets, which you will use, develop, and adapt to address priorities in line with Sustainable Development Goals and specifically to SDG 11.5: Reduce the Adverse Effects of Natural Disasters.
Information and application
For more information, you can contact Dr Luigi Lombardo (e-mail: l.lombardo@utwente.nl) or Dr Mariana Belgiu (m.belgiu@utwente.nl). You are also invited to visit our homepage.
Please submit your application before 30 September 2023. Your application has to include (i) a letter outlining your motivation and fit for the position, and (ii) a CV with two references.
Job interviews will be held in week 47 (20 – 24 November 2023).
About the department
The department of Applied Earth Sciences (AES) combines Earth science knowledge with geospatial modelling and advanced earth observation, to increase our understanding of Earth systems and their interaction with society in space and time. We combine insights on hazards with information on exposure and vulnerability, to model and monitor risk to human societies, and inform actions to reduce risk and increase resilience in long-term planning, for early warning and disaster response, and in the context of post-disaster recovery and reconstruction.
About the organisation
The Faculty of Geo-Information Science and Earth Observation (ITC) provides international postgraduate education, research and project services in the field of geo-information science and earth observation. Our mission is capacity development, where we apply, share and facilitate the effective use of geo-information and earth observation knowledge and tools for tackling global wicked problems. Our purpose is to enable our many partners around the world to track and trace the impact – and the shifting causes and frontiers – of today’s global challenges. Our vision is of a world in which researchers, educators, and students collaborate across disciplinary and geographic divides with governmental and non-governmental organisations, institutes, businesses, and local populations to surmount today’s complex global challenges and to contribute to sustainable, fair, and digital societies.
