PhD Position on Forensic Tracing of Tropical Timber

Wageningen University & Research invites applications for a fully funded PhD position focused on tracing the geographic origin of tropical timber to help curb illegal logging. Working within the Timtrace team and supervised by leading experts, the candidate will combine wood chemical measurements from mass spectrometry with multivariate geostatistical models. The research contributes to creating a publicly accessible validation dashboard in collaboration with international partners and industry stakeholders. The successful applicant will author scientific publications, complete a structured PhD training program, and defend a doctoral thesis.

• Conduct wood chemical analyses on available wood samples using a mass spectrometer.
• Develop, test, and refine multivariate geostatistical models to verify the origin of timber.
• Lead data analysis and write multi-authored scientific articles leading to a doctoral dissertation.
• Collaborate actively with international research partners and members of the project user committee.
• Contribute data and findings to a publicly accessible timber verification dashboard.