项目介绍

2026年7月28日

This PhD project offers the opportunity to work at the intersection of climate change, food systems, and advanced optimization modelling. You will develop cutting-edge operations research models and methods to redesign agricultural supply chains that can withstand extreme climate events and shifting agroecological conditions.

Hosted by the chair of Operations Research and Logistics group of Wageningen University, the project focuses on quantifying how climate change impacts the resilience of agri-food supply networks. Building on state-of-the-art models for robust and responsive food supply chains, you will investigate how disruptions such as droughts, floods, heatwaves, and other climate-related shocks might affect critical decisions on facility location, storage, processing capacity, procurement, and inventory management.

The project combines:

• stochastic and robust optimization,
• uncertainty modelling,
• large-scale supply chain design,
• and advanced algorithms for solving complex optimization problems.

You will work with real-world case studies to design future-proof supply chain networks for key agricultural products in vulnerable regions.

This position is ideal for candidates interested in:

• operations research and optimization,
• climate adaptation and resilience,
• sustainable food systems,
• mathematical modelling and data-driven decision making,
• creating tangible societal impact through research.

This PhD position is embedded within the Horizon Europe project TIPPING, a large-scale European initiative developing next-generation climate intelligence tools for agriculture. Bringing together 16 partners across 10 EU countries, TIPPING aims to support climate adaptation in the agricultural sector by combining AI-driven climate modelling, agroecological transition analysis, socio-economic assessment, and decision-support systems. The project contributes directly to the EU Mission on Adaptation to Climate Change by helping farmers, businesses, and policymakers anticipate and respond to shifting agroecological conditions and climate-related risks across Europe.

Join us in shaping the next generation of climate-resilient agri-food systems.

Your duties and responsibilities include: 

• Developing advance quantitative models
• Writing scientific articles
• Participating in international project meetings
• Contributing to project activities and deliverables

You will work here

The research is embedded within the chair of Operations Research and Logistics (https://www.wur.nl/en/chair-groups/business-science/operations-research-and-logistics ), which is led by Prof. Sander De Leeuw (https://www.wur.nl/en/persons/profdrir-sljm-sander-de-leeuw ) You will be co-supervised by [Dr. Peter Kirst, Dr. Meike Reusken and Dr. Argyris Kanellopoulos].

Your qualities

You have:

• a strong interest in mathematical modelling, optimization, and quantitative methods;
• analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to translate complex real-world problems into quantitative models;
• affinity with data analytics, decision-support systems, and computational modelling;
• motivation to contribute to meaningful research on sustainability, climate resilience, and agri-food systems;
• curiosity and enthusiasm for developing innovative methodologies and interdisciplinary research approaches;
• the ability to work independently while also collaborating effectively within an international research team;
• good programming and data-handling skills (e.g., Python, R, MATLAB, or similar tools) are considered an advantage;
• excellent communication skills in English, both written and spoken; 

You also possess: 

• a successfully completed MSc degree in a discipline relevant to the PhD project e.g. operations research, applied mathematics, (bio-systems) engineering, computer and data science;
• experience in quantitative methods like Mathematical Programming, Robust and stochastic optimization;
• knowledge of the agricultural and environmental systems in Northwest Europe;
• meet all entry requirements of the WUR PhD programme;
• availability to start November 2026

For this position your command of the English language is expected to be at C1 level. Sometimes it is necessary to submit an internationally recognised Certificate of Proficiency in the English Language. More information can be found here.

We offer

Wageningen University & Research offers excellent terms of employment. A few highlights from our Collective Labour Agreement include:

• Partially paid parental leave;
• working hours that can be discussed and arranged so that they allow for the best possible work-life balance;
• there is a strong focus on vitality and you can make use of the sports facilities available on campus for a small fee;
• a fixed year-end bonus of 8.3%;
• excellent pension scheme.

In addition to these first-rate employee benefits, you will receive a fully funded PhD position and you will be offered a course program tailored to your needs and the research team.
The gross salary for the first year is € 3.059,- per month rising to € 3.881,-  in the fourth year in according to the Collective Labour Agreements for Dutch Universities (CAO-NU) (scale P). This is based on a full-time working week of 38 hours. We offer a temporary contract for 18 months which will be extended for the duration of the project if you perform well. 

We encourage development and internal mobility within our organisation. Our recruitment and selection policy sets out the conditions that apply specifically to you as a (former) employee. If you have any questions, we are happy to help.

You will work on the greenest and most innovative campus in the Netherlands, in an international and open working environment.