PhD Position in Mathematical Food Systems Modeling | FoodDiverse CRC 1780 | University of Bonn | Deadline 14 June 2026

[Wolfram Barfuss]

Dear LEG-colleagues,

We are recruiting a PhD researcher (in fact, multiple) within the newly funded DFG Collaborative Research Center "Food System Diversification for Sustainable Nutrition" (FoodDiverse, CRC 1780) at the University of Bonn.

Project B05 – Multi-Scale Cross-Level Effects of Food System Diversification

The project develops a mathematical modeling framework to understand how diversification across food system levels — production, markets, and consumption — shapes the relationship between resilience, efficiency, and sustainability. Methodologically, we combine portfolio theory and distributional reinforcement learning dynamics within a social-ecological action-situations framework and hierarchical decision-making. The position is co-supervised by Prof. Kwabena Doku-Amponsah (University of Ghana).

Ideal candidates have a strong quantitative background (e.g., complex systems, applied mathematics, computational modeling, statistical physics, or related fields) and an interest in food systems and sustainability science.

The position is embedded in a rich interdisciplinary environment: FoodDiverse spans 21 projects and over 30 researchers from agronomy, agricultural economics, sociology, ecology, nutrition, and beyond, with empirical work in Germany and Ghana. Beyond B05, the CRC is also recruiting 23 further PhD and 8 postdoctoral researchers across these projects — details at the link below.

📍 Based at ZEF, University of Bonn | 🗓️ 3 years, TV-L 13 (65%) | Start: as soon as possible 📅 Deadline: 14 June 2026 | 🔗 www.zef.de/fooddiverse

Please share with anyone who might be interested.

Kind regards,

Wolf