

Czech University of Life Sciences Prague
General description
The Czech University of Life Sciences Prague (CZU) is a modern, rapidly developing public university building on a high scientific expertise and excellent reputation of CZU in the fields of forestry, environmental sciences, agricultural sector, sustainable use of natural resources, management and informatics, technology, and regional development. Being a member of the Euroleague for Life Sciences, it is one of the leading European universities focusing on life sciences. CZU achieves excellent results in prestigious international rankings (THE, QS, AWRU, US NeWs BGUR) and presents highly attractive place for researchers to develop their professional research career. CZU is a holder of the European HR Excellence in Research Award.
Key Research Facilities, Infrastructure and Equipment
- University infrastructure such as library incl. institutional licenses to Academic databases and tools for scientific writing.
- The research groups have access to variety of licenses (e.g., ESRI, Hydrus) and access to fully and high-tech equipped laboratories (e.g., GIS/RS laboratory, Hydrochemical laboratory).
Contact person
Contact us to know more about our location and work environment. Please use the main contact for questions related to administrative matters. Please contact the supervisors/group leaders of respective research groups regarding feasibility of your research proposal with regard to the research group activities.
Supervisors

Petra Šímová

Petra Šímová
Since its foundation in 2008, I am the head of the Department of Spatial Science at Faculty of Environmental Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague (FES CZU), where I developed a GIS curriculum, built strong teaching and research strategies combining GIS, remote sensing, and environmental topics. My current research covers a wide area of GIS and remote-sensing data applications in landscape ecology, ecology of animals, and nature and biodiversity conservation. In 2017, I established and led the Spatial Science in Ecology and Environment (SSEE) research group at FES, which implemented various national, European and international research projects on the topic. Beside others, the international research team currently lead EarthBridge project (Horizon Europe), host ERC holder and host MSCA fellow.
About the position
The postdoctoral fellow will join the research team of Spatial Science in Ecology and Environment focused on interdisciplinary research combining especially GIS, remote sensing, unmanned aerial systems, GNSS, citizen science, data uncertainty, scaling, spatial ecology, spatial patterns and processes in landscape, ecological indicators, species distribution modelling, restoration ecology, landscape ecology, vegetation health and geohazards.
The fellow will also join and contribute to the research team of The Centre for Water, Soil and landscape (“CVPK”) located in in the the Central Bohemian Region, area of Rakovnicko. The center was established in 2018 and is conceived as multidisciplinary, including there disciplines: climatology, hydrology, pedology, hydropedology, hydromelioration (drainage and irrigation), water management, water treatment, biotechnical landscaping, agriculture, forestry, agroforestry, territorial planning, economic disciplines, IT (information technology), GIS (geographic information systems) and RS (remote sensing), and others. The CVPK conducts its research activities within 500ha large unique experimental field laboratory AMALIE representing the overall landscape in the Czech Republic within 20-30 years.


Martin Hanel
I am the head of the Department of Water Resources and Environmental Modelling and the Hydrological and Climate Variability research team at the Faculty of Environmental Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague (FES CZU). I focus on the climate change impact assessment, modelling of effects of climate change adaptation measures, extreme value analysis with special emphasis on extreme precipitation and drought and uncertainty decomposition. I spent 2 years working in the Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute and participated in several research teams. I have coordinated and contributed to various national and international applied research projects, which have resulted in several frequently used tools such as a drought assessment and prediction system or a climate scenario derivation tool.
About the position
The postdoctoral fellow will join the research team of Hydrological and Climate Variability, which focuses on statistical analysis of hydrology and climate variability and mathematical modelling of related physical processes.
The fellow will also join and contribute to the research team of The Centre for Water, Soil and landscape (“CVPK”) located in in the the Central Bohemian Region, area of Rakovnicko. The center was established in 2018 and is conceived as multidisciplinary, including there disciplines: climatology, hydrology, pedology, hydropedology, hydromelioration (drainage and irrigation), water management, water treatment, biotechnical landscaping, agriculture, forestry, agroforestry, territorial planning, economic disciplines, IT (information technology), GIS (geographic information systems) and RS (remote sensing), and others.
The CVPK conducts its reserach activities within 500ha large unique experimental field laboratory AMALIE representing the overall landscape in the Czech Republic within 20-30 years.
Fellows

Maryam Barati Moghaddam

Maryam Barati Moghaddam
I have participated in several international projects. As a visiting researcher at Politecnico di Torino, I developed a mathematical model for identifying pollutant sources in river networks. After my PhD, I received a national scholarship from the Slovak Republic and worked as a researcher at the Institute of Hydrology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, on a project focused on identifying unknown pollution sources in urban sewer systems. I then worked on a project on urban ecohydrology at the University of Florence.
The MERIT fellowship offers an exceptional opportunity to conduct ambitious and innovative research projects. The Czech Republic’s strong commitment to environmental preservation, combined with the opportunity to enhance my skills in mathematical modeling and hydrology through collaboration with leading experts at the Hydrological and Climate Variability research team at the Czech University of Life Sciences Prague (CZU), motivated me to apply for this fellowship.
My research project addresses one of the significant environmental concerns in Europe, including Central Bohemia and the Czech Republic, namely the increasing volume of microplastics (MPs) in freshwater resources. I will develop a novel mathematical model to simulate the complex dynamics of MPs in river systems, considering hyporheic exchange processes. Combining mathematical modelling with lab experiments, I will also examine the impact of particle size and flow rate on MPs’ dynamics. This interdisciplinary project merges hydrology, water quality, environmental science, applied mathematics, and statistics to create a tool for protecting water resources from MP contamination.
The MERIT fellowship will significantly advance my career by providing interdisciplinary research opportunities and enhancing my research profile, particularly in developing mathematical models to address global environmental challenges.
The fellowship will help me expand my professional network, improve my employability, and position me as a strong candidate for prestigious grants, ultimately supporting my goal of leading my own research group.

Juan Alberto Molina Valero

Juan Alberto Molina Valero
I come from Spain, where I completed my BSc, MSc, and PhD degrees before landing in the Czech Republic. Throughout this journey, I had wonderful international experiences, highlighting an academic exchange at the University of Concepción (Chile) and a pre-doctoral research stay at the Estonian University of Life Sciences. Later, I obtained a one-year postdoctoral fellowship to join the Czech University of Life Sciences Prague (CZU) as a junior researcher. This opportunity enabled me to recognize the advantages of the Czech Republic for new researchers, a country deeply committed to innovation, research, and development, while prioritizing the quality of life of its citizens. Hence, an excellent perspective to develop a research career, prompting me to apply for the MERIT programme without hesitation when I heard about it.
My research project at Czech University of Life Sciences Prague focuses on monitoring forest maturity using remote sensing technologies, which will be crucial for improved planning of forest management policies and strategies for adapting Czech forests to the effects of climate change. Enhanced forest policies translate to augmented ecosystem services for society in the medium and long term. Additionally, this project promises to yield positive externalities for forestry companies in the form of open-source software designed for processing and analyzing data from terrestrial laser scanning devices, recognized as one of the technologies with the greatest potential to enhance forest inventories.
The MERIT programme will enable me to attain more professional maturity through the planned research training, such as spaceborne RADAR data analysis, which will be achieved during my secondment at the University of Edinburgh. But also, through the transferable skills training organized by the Central Bohemian Innovation Center (SIC) and enriching my network of contacts. A spectacular journey to embark on!