Post Doctoral Associate -Rural Economic Resilience & Food Systems

Post Doctoral Associate
-Rural Economic Resilience & Food Systems

Please carefully review the details of this position below.

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Advertising/Posting Title Post Doctoral Associate
-Rural Economic Resilience & Food Systems

Posting Summary

The Postdoctoral Associate will conduct applied economic and community-engaged research jointly supporting two related research programs under the supervision of Dr. Andrew Van Leuven. Approximately 60% of the position’s effort will support an NSF EPSCoR project focused on rural climate resilience, which examining how severe weather, extreme heat, and harmful algal blooms affect rural labor markets, downtown business activity, and recreation economies.

The remaining 40% will support UVM Food Systems Research Institute-funded work examining climate effects on rural food business dynamics (e.g., restaurant and grocery entries and exits) and rural food systems infrastructure, building on ongoing FSRI
-supported research.

The postdoc will help with leading in-person and virtual interviews with New England business owners, municipal officials, and consumers; conducting causal-inference analysis of high-frequency foot-traffic, consumer-spending, and satellite-derived environmental data; and contributing to manuscript preparation, presentations, and public-facing outputs.

When applying, please submit a CV, a cover letter describing your fit with the position and research interests, a writing sample, and contact information for two to three professional references.

Applications will close October 31, 2026.

Minimum Qualifications (or equivalent combination of education and experience)

• PhD completed by the January 1, 2027 start date in economics, applied/agricultural economics, regional science, public policy, or a closely related quantitative social science field
• Demonstrated quantitative/econometric skills, ideally including causal inference or panel-data methods
• Programming proficiency in R, Python, and/or Stata
• Strong written and verbal communication skills
• Ability to work both independently and collaboratively across institutions

Desirable Qualifications

• Research experience or strong interest in rural economic development, climate resilience, and/or food systems
• Experience conducting qualitative or community-engaged interviews
• Data visualization and GIS skills
• Familiarity with high-frequency mobility/spending data (e.g., Advan, Safe Graph) or satellite-derived environmental data

Anticipated Pay Range

Anticipated Pay Range $63,480 - $63,900

Other Information

Hybrid and remote candidates will be considered; the search will not be limited to candidates already based in Burlington. At minimum, the postdoc must be able to travel to Burlington, VT at least four times during the year for team meetings, plus additional periodic travel across New England for interview-based fieldwork. Candidates able to work in person at UVM on a…