Assistant Project Scientist, Congo Basin Institute

The Congo Basin Institute (CBI) at UCLA seeks an Assistant Project Scientist to advance research on tropical forest ecosystems, land-use and land-cover change, and climate-relevant environmental dynamics in Central Africa. The position emphasizes strong technical expertise in remote sensing and geospatial data science combined with the ability to coordinate complex research activities across institutional and international contexts. Responsibilities include project management and coordination across partner institutions, stakeholder engagement with government and NGO partners, organizing bilingual workshops and trainings, supporting field campaigns with logistics and permissions, contributing to algorithm development for forest monitoring, and mentoring junior researchers. The role requires publishing results and presenting at scientific conferences. Essential qualifications include a PhD in geography, ecology, environmental science, or related field with remote sensing training, plus at least three years of post-doctoral research experience. Candidates must demonstrate expertise with multispectral, lidar, and radar datasets, direct Central Africa fieldwork experience, project leadership capability, and fluency in French and English (written and spoken). Additional strengths in geospatial programming, machine learning, and equitable partnership practices are preferred. Full consideration deadline May 26, 2026; final deadline June 11, 2026.