2nd Grant Period / 2nd Call
Short – Term Scientific Missions (STSMs) aim at supporting mobility and collaboration among researchers participating in the CLEANFOREST Action. An STSM consists of a visit to a host institution located in a different country that the country of affiliation and should contribute to the objectives of the Action.
STSM travel grants are available for researchers actively participating in CLEANFOREST WG activities. We particularly encourage participation from young researchers. According to the COST Action, a young researcher is a researcher or innovator under the age of 40. PhD Students or postdoctoral fellows, but not MSc students, are also eligible applicants for the STSM grants.
STSMs shall only be used to support networking activities and other expenses specifically supporting the Action and dedicated to achieving the Action’s aims and objectives. STSM Grants may not be used for neither drafting, writing nor submitting proposals for the purpose of acquiring funding for national, European or internationally sourced research grants.
Period of STSM travel grants and application deadline
Applications can be submitted anytime until August 15, 2024. It is, however, noted that the first evaluation of submitted applications will be conducted on June 17, 2024, and that applications submitted later will be evaluated on a rolling basis (first come – first served basis), depending on STSM budget availability.
We do not provide a deadline for the completion of the STSMs, but the STSM report must be submitted by September 15, 2024.
WG-focused STSM topics
This call focuses on STSMs with specific topics that aim at supporting the Working Groups’ priorities. Thus, we offer 11 (eleven) STSM topics, described as following:
STSM topics 1, 2, 3 are in the context of Action’s Working Group 1 (WG1), which is focused on assessing spatial-temporal changes in global change drivers.
1. Developing a web database to collect, query, and process air concentration and atmospheric deposition from ground monitoring stations
During the STSM, the candidate will support the development of a consolidated database of nitrogen (N) and sulphur (S) deposition data from the EBAS database, and from and the International Co-operative Programme on Assessment and Monitoring of Air Pollution Effects on Forests (ICP Forests) monitoring network.
Currently, the large amounts of data on air pollution and its effects are of size and complexity that render it unusable to the general research community. Besides the size of the data, other issues include data access, integration, and homogenization of data from different sources. The common approach to access and process this data is ad hoc: each research group, depending on the specific requirements, develop in-house scripts (generally in R), to extract and process the relevant data. A more generic application is needed and will comprise accessing the various datasets, integrating the data in a single User Interface, and also performing the homogenization of data to ease further specific processing. This approach requires programming and computer engineering knowledge.
The STSM will last up to 6 weeks and the candidate will have the opportunity to work with an international team of researchers in the areas of Computer Engineering and Environment monitoring and modeling. During the STSM, the candidate will perform the following tasks:
- Document the generic workflows that researchers use to access and process air concentration and atmospheric deposition data.
- Identify relevant subsets from the datasets.
- Develop and implement data acquisition and homogenization.
- Implement the application that will allow easy access to the selected datasets.
At the end of the STSM, a prototype of a web application will be made available to browse and download the relevant data.
The candidate will be co-supervised by João Nuno Silva and Maria Alexandra Oliveira from the University of Lisbon, Daniel Alexandre from Universidade de Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro, and Arne Verstraeten from the Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO), Belgium. The candidate will be invited to work in Instituto Superior Técnico, Lisboa Portugal, hosted by João Nuno Silva.
Candidate requirement:
Knowledge and experiences with the python programming language applied to the processing of spatio-temporal data.
2. Evaluating performance of deposition models and their suitability for identifying global change drivers over Europe
During the STSM, the candidate will support the WG1 participants to compile and process nitrogen (N) and sulphur (S) deposition data from the European Monitoring and Evaluation Programme (EMEP) model, and ground observations from the International Co-operative Programme on Assessment and Monitoring of Air Pollution Effects on Forests (ICP Forests). ICP Forests provide the most complete and homogeneous datasets of N and S deposition over Europe, which makes it suitable for identifying hotspots of combined effects of pollutant deposition and climate extremes on European forests. The EMEP MSC-W is an air pollution transport model used to better understand transboundary air pollution and to derive European policies under the Convention on Long-range Transboundary Air Pollution (CLRTAP). Modeled concentrations and deposition of N and S compounds are freely available for a 0.1° grid overlapping Europe, since 1990 onwards, aggregate daily, monthly, and yearly.
The candidate will be involved in 1) analysing these data to provide an overarching status of spatial temporal patterns of N and S deposition over Europe and 2) create and document a workflow to evaluate the EMEP model performance using the ICP Forest monitoring network data. The work developed will contribute to the larger goal of the WG to develop a database of hotspots of global change drivers across Europe. The STSM will last up to 6 weeks and the candidate will have the opportunity to work with an international team of researchers including experts on climate extremes within the WG and contribute towards database creation and report writing for the WG.
The candidate will be co-supervised by Maria Alexandra Oliveira from the University of Lisbon and Arne Verstraeten from the Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO), Belgium. The candidate will be invited to the UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, Edinburgh, hosted by Ajinkya Deshpande, where they will have the opportunity to visit the Auchencorth Moss Atmospheric Observatory which is a part of multiple monitoring networks such as WMO-GAW, ICOS, eLTER, ACTRIS and EMEP. The candidate will also visit the ammonia enhancement manipulation experiments at Whim Bog and Glencorse Forest near Edinburgh.
3. Study on the influence of pollen on nitrogen wet deposition
The STSM will be in the context of Action’s Working Group 1 (WG1) and is intended to gather better insights into the effects of pollen and associated microorganisms on N in precipitation samples. The planned activities can be:
Part I – laboratory experiment
The candidate will carry out an experiment with pollen of different tree species (broadleaves and conifers) added to water with N15-labeled N at the Isofys lab of Ghent University (hosted by Marijn Bauters; email: Marijn.Bauters@ugent.be). There will be separate treatments to reduce the activity of microorganisms. Subsamples will be collected and analyzed during 1 week and simultaneously gaseous N-compounds above the sample will be measured. The candidate will analyze the data afterwards.
Part II – data analysis and field visit
The candidate will analyse available DOC-fractionation data from 200 throughfall samples collected in the spring of 2018 at 60 ICP Forests Level II plots in relation to pollen spectra and ion concentrations in the samples. This will be carried out at the Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO) in its offices in Geraardsbergen and Brussels (hosted by Arne Verstraeten; email: arne.verstraeten@inbo.be). A number of Level II plots in Flanders will be visited, intended to broaden the candidates’ knowledge of deposition sampling techniques.
STSM topics 4, 5 are in the context of Action’s Working Group 2 (WG2), which focuses on the interactions between global change drivers and the health and functioning of forest ecosystems.
4. Reviewing the effects of climate change and atmospheric deposition on European forest ecosystems over the last 30 years through the lens of tree growth, water-use efficiency (WUE) and mortality.
During the STSM, the candidate will support the WG2 participants in the development of the systematic literature review of trends in forest growth, WUE and mortality since 1990. This review is designed to provide an up-to-date perspective on the state of European forests over the last 30 years, as well as compare common methodologies used to make these assessments across a range of scales (from individual trees to the landscape level) and identify critical gaps in knowledge. The candidate will have the opportunity to develop the literature review research and learn useful skills in database management and participate in the writing process, with the support of a diverse international team of researchers. We are looking for a motivated individual who will play a significant role in 1) reviewing literature and existing published European databases for long-term trends in forest growth, WUE and mortality at a range of scales and methodologies across Europe; 2) manage the literature review database ensuring completeness, consistency, and providing quality control; 3) analysis of trends and drivers (with focus on climate and atmospheric nitrogen and sulphur deposition) and 4) collaborate with researchers working in the fields of forest growth/WUE and mortality to commence writing the literature review. It is not expected that the literature review will be completed during this STSM, however it is anticipated that the candidate (if desired) will continue to be involved in the process after the completion of the mission.
The candidate can select between one of two potential host institutions:
- Forest Research, Alice Holt, Surrey, UK (Host: Caitlin Lewis | caitlin.lewis@forestresearch.gov.uk). In addition to direct support with the management of the review database, the candidate will have the chance to visit the in-house laboratories and surrounding research forest; an ancient oak woodland which hosts an arboretum, an eddy covariance flux tower, an ICP Forests Level II plot, and novel instrumentation such as automatic dendrometers and biodiversity monitoring equipment. The location is close in proximity to other research institutions such as UKCEH and ECMWF, offering further opportunity for collaboration and guidance with the use of climate data. Depending on their interests, the candidate could also visit other research sites within the UK to see experiments and trials that address drivers of forest conditions and inform UK forestry practice. Forest Research could host a candidate between July-September.
- ETH Zurich, Switzerland (Host: Mathieu Lévesque | mathieu.levesque@usys.ethz.ch). Besides the direct support for the review database management and data analysis, the candidate will have the chance to visit cutting-edge research infrastructures at ETH and at other research institutions in Switzerland. ETH could host a candidate between late-August-September. We seek a scientifically creative individual who can work independently and as part of an international team of researchers. Basic skills in software for data management, analysis and visualisation, such as R are desirable, but the successful candidate will receive support to develop these skills during the visit. The STSM will extend for up to 4 weeks. Virtual assistance will be provided by Ass. Prof Rossella Guerrieri from the Dept. Agricultural and Food Sciences, University of Bologna in Italy and Ass. Prof Nikos Fyllas from the Department of Biology, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens in Greece.
5. Finalizing the literature review database for tree-ring based water use efficiency estimates and performing first analyses
This STSM will focus on progressing with the WG2 systematic literature review of trends in forest growth, water use efficiency (WUE) and mortality since 1990 with a particular focus on trends in tree WUE from tree-rings. During the STSM, the candidate will assist WG2 participants in correcting and filling missing data (gaps) in a literature review of the subgroup focusing on analyzing trends in water use efficiency (WUE) in tree rings from 1990 onwards. The candidate will have the opportunity to be fully involved in the literature review research and preliminary analysis, aiding other subgroups in their own literature reviews, with the support of an international team of researchers. We are seeking a candidate who can ideally fulfill a significant role in: 1) reviewing literature, correcting, and filling gaps in the database, 2) conducting preliminary analyses of trends and spatial distributions of WUE trends in Europe. This includes creating graphs of trends and providing examples for maps of spatial distribution for other subgroups. It is anticipated that the candidate will also assist with writing the initial draft of the manuscript for the WUE subsection focusing on tree-rings to provide a template for the rest of the review.
We are looking for a scientifically creative and enthusiastic individual with a background in WUE derived from tree-rings who can work independently as well as collaboratively with a range of experts. The STSM will last up to 4 weeks and it will be hosted by Marco Lehmann (marco.lehmann@wsl.ch) from the Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (WSL), Switzerland, an institute with a density of researchers focusing on WUE.
STSM topics 6 and 7 are in the context of Action’s Working Group 3 (WG3), which is focused on the understanding of the interactions between global change drivers, tree and soil biogeochemical processes.
6. Build a matrix of tree species, soil and management for climate and N mitigation potential
During the STSM, the candidate will work together with the WG3 participants in the analysis of the climate mitigation potential of different tree species in various soils and under diverse forest management regimes. The candidate will have the opportunity to analyze various sources of data and online tools developed specifically for tree species suitability for climate (current and future) and air pollution mitigation and soil conditions. And summarize the results identifying the potential tree species that show better mitigation potential, and under which circumstances. The outcome of this analysis will be ideally used to support reforestation, afforestation, and climate smart forestry decisions, and support guidance for forest management for climate and pollution mitigation we envision to develop ai scientific publication or a white paper. The STSM will last up to 2 weeks. The host Institute is Forest Research, UK under the primary supervision of Elena Vanguelova (elena.vanguelova@forestresearch.gov.uk). During their visit, the candidate will become familiar with the research facilities of the Institute, have the opportunity to interact with local researchers and with the members of the WG3 involved in this research.
We do not provide a deadline for the completion of the STSMs, but the STSM report must be submitted by September 15, 2024.
7. Reviewing current knowledge and analyzing EU level tree species climate mitigation potential
During the STSM, the candidate will work together with WG3 members. The candidate will review the current knowledge regarding the distribution potential of tree species under current and future climate and extreme events scenarios and will analyse the climate mitigation potential of different EU tree species using species distribution maps and climate scenarios. The outcome of this analysis will be ideally used to support reforestation, afforestation, and climate smart forestry decisions, and we envision to develop a si scientific publication or a white paper. The STSM will last up to 4 weeks. The host Institute will be the European Commission Joint Research Centre, Ispra (VA), Italy and the candidate will work under the primary supervision of Mirco Migliavacca (mirco.migliavacca@ec.europa.eu). During their visit, the candidate will work with a team working on forest resilience and become familiar with the research facilities of the Institute, have the opportunity to interact with local researchers working on similar topics and with the members of the WG3 involved in this research.
We do not provide a deadline for the completion of the STSMs, but the STSM report must be submitted by September 15, 2024.
STSM topics 8, 9, 10 and 11 are in the context of Action’s Working Group 4 (WG4),
which is focused on next-generation manipulation experiments and monitoring networks.
8. Coupled effects of climate extremes and N-fertilisation in manipulation experiments.
A database is being created based on literature search and the existing MESI database (van Sundert et al., 2023) for analyzing interactive effects of nutrient fertilization (N-deposition, NP addition) and climate extremes (heatwaves, drought etc). During the STSM, the candidate can be engaged with WG4 participants in analyzing data and drafting a literature review. The candidate will have the chance to actively engage in the research and writing process of the literature review, supported by an international team of researchers. We are seeking a candidate who can ideally fulfill a significant role by 1) reviewing literature and existing global databases for long-term nitrogen fertilization studies in forest ecosystems, either independently or by coordinating collaborative efforts through the COST action, and 2) identifying and defining local and/or global extreme climatic events from the past that correspond with the available datasets. This involves considerations such as forest productivity, forest health, tree vitality, and matter cycling. The STSM will extend up to 6 weeks. This STSM can be hosted either by the Department of Botany at Trinity College Dublin (under the supervision of Richard Nair | richard.nair@tcd.ie) or from the Ecological-Botanical Garden at the University of Bayreuth, Germany (under the supervision of Robert Weigel (robert.weigel@uni-bayreuth.de).
9. Can short-term climate manipulation experiments predict reality in the long term?
The candidate will work with data from different manipulation experiments that have been used for future forest growth and resilience projections. The meta-analysis will focus on the effects of time scales on results. In addition to working with databases, the interested candidate has the opportunity to visit the Free Air Humidification Experiment (FAHM) in Estonia, as an example of short (irrigation) and medium-term (relative air humidity) manipulation effects on forest ecosystem. This STSM will be hosted by the University of Tartu, Estonia, under the supervision of Ivika Ostonen (Ivika.ostonen@ut.ee).
10. Expanding forests resilience assessment by integrating microorganisms into routine soil health monitoring.
In the frame of preparation EU Soil Monitoring and Resilience Directive, the need to develop simple and informative indicators for soil health emerges particularly clearly. Forest soil is highly heterogeneous, formed due to several organic and inorganic processes; it hosts the highest known diversity of microorganisms and stores the greatest carbon pool. The microbial processes interacting with pedogenetic processes should be considered next to the forest resilience estimation, which currently is based on aboveground parameters or soil organic carbon change monitoring. In the frame of this topic, the candidate has the opportunity to work under the supervision of Marketa Mareckova (marketa.sagova@gmail.com, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague) to find connections between microbial communities and pedogenetic characteristics and estimate the potential for indication of forest soil health.
11. Are the current networks providing the data we need to estimate the resilience of the European forest?
This topic is still under development, but our goal is to analyze, based on the existing monitoring networks, what is the minimum number of parameters to assess the resilience of forests. Do the data from different networks (ICOS, ICP, eLTER etc) support each other, and what parameters directly relate to remote sensing indicators? If you are interested in being involved in the development this topic, please contact Ivika.ostonen@ut.ee.
Free topic STSMs
If there is still budget available, after funding the WG-focused STSMs, additional STSMs Grants may be offered for open topics, which still need to be relevant to the CLEANFOREST Cost Action priorities and contribute to the Action’s objectives.
Funding:
- Financial support for STSM is a travel grant awarded to individuals and it is not an employment.
- The minimum duration of each STSM is 5 calendar days including traveling. For the maximum duration please check at the description of each of the WG-focused STSMs. The applicants should consider that:
- for the WG-focused STSMs the maximum amount to be awarded is 4,000 € per grant, based on the duration of the mission, the costs level of the host country and a reasonable justification of expenses.
- for the open topic STSMs, which still need to be relevant to the Action’s objectives, the maximum amount to be awarded is between 2,000 to 3,000 € per grant, depending on the total budget of STSM grants and the above-mentioned criteria for the WG-focused STSMs.
Taking into account the number of approved applications and the total STSM budget
for this grant period of the Action, applicants may be asked to limit their costs.
- STSM grantees must make their own arrangements related to personal, health, taxation and social security.
- Payment for all costs have to be made using a private bank account, NOT an institutional bank account, to be eligible for reimbursement.
- Reimbursement will be carried out after the completion of each STSM and the approval of all required documentation.
Application:
- Applicants need to have an e-COST profile here.
- The applications must be submitted online here by selecting “Apply for Grant” and then “Short-Term Scientific Mission grant”.
- In addition to the information requested by the online platform, the applicants should upload the following documents in a single PDF file:
- The STSM grant Application, based on the e-COST template
- An invitation and confirmation letter on the agreement from the host institution in
receiving the applicant and on the responsible host affiliated researcher. - A cover letter clearly stating the relevance of the proposed activities in relation to the CLEANFOREST COST Action and the benefit for the applicant.
- A short CV (maximum 2 pages) including recent publications, if applicable.
- The budget requested (in €) including the list of estimated costs and justification.
- Additional information on the submission via the e-COST system can be found here.
Evaluation
The applications will be evaluated by the Grant Awarding Committee and members of the Core teams of each WG. The first evaluation will be carried out on June 17, 2024, considering all applications submitted until then. From that point on, any new applications will be evaluated in order of submission (first come – first served basis), depending on the available STSM budget available.
The evaluation’s results will be communicated to the applicants.
The evaluation criteria will be: (a) the CV of the applicant, (b) the contribution of the application’s goals and expected outcomes to the priorities set in the topics of each WG (for the WG-focused STSMs) or to the general objectives of CLEANFOREST (for the open topic STSMs), (c) the feasibility of the application’s workplan, (d) the justification of expenses, (e) the Action’s budget limitations. Attention will be given to promoting gender balance, young researchers and geographical inclusiveness.
Funded applications and reimbursement:
The template for the final report can be found here. The STSM reports must be submitted by September 15, 2024.
Written approval of the STSM scientific report will be uploaded on e-COST for archiving purposes. Failure to submit the required report on time will effectively cancel the grant. The grant payment will be executed within 30 days after the approval of the report by the Grant Awarding and STSM Coordinators as well as the Host.
In terms of outcomes’ dissemination, the grantees are expected to deliver the following after their missions are completed:
- A short talk or webinar.
- A photograph and a short description of the activities carried out during the STSM, to be shared at the section Grants of the COST Action’s website.
Any publication resulted by the STSMs should acknowledge the CLEANFOREST Action.
Questions/Inquiries:
For general STSM inquiries, please contact:
- Mariangela Fotelli (fotelli@elgo.gr), STSM Coordinator
- Yann Salmon (yann.salmon@helsinki.fi), Grant Awarding Coordinator
For inquiries related to the WG-focused STSMs, please contact the host persons indicated in each topic