The TropEcS Guest & Researcher Exchange Programme is a cornerstone initiative of ZMT’s Strategic Extension Modelling Socio-Economic Dimensions across Tropical Coastal Ecosystems and the Earth System (TropEcS). It is aimed at strengthening global collaboration in Earth System and Regional Modelling for tropical coastal environments linking researchers across disciplines, career stages, and continents.
By fostering scientific exchange opportunities and capacity development formats (training), the programme aims to enable researchers from ZMT and its partner institutions to work side by side and collaborate on tropical coastal and marine modelling - in the context of our initial pilot regions and beyond.
Together, models that integrate biophysical, biogeochemical, and socio-ecological dynamics will be developed and refined, addressing challenges such as coastal tipping points, compound climate events, and the transformation of tropical ecosystems under global change.
The exchange program emphasizes equity, inclusivity, and interdisciplinary collaboration, and supports early-career scientists through targeted mobility schemes. In doing so, TropEcS seeks to build a sustainable, interconnected community of tropical modellers who co-design innovative approaches, share knowledge, and collectively shape the next generation of Regional and Earth System Models for the tropics.
Participants receive financial and institutional support, including monthly allowances and full access to research facilities at ZMT. Exchanges are designed to be collaborative and build capacity, with clear deliverables such as joint model development, seminars, and contributions to publications or proposals.
Applicants: Early Career Researchers (up to 8 years after acquiring their PhD) - are invited to align their projects with TropEcS priority themes such as coupled ocean-atmosphere modelling, coastal tipping points, socio-ecological systems, participatory modelling, and scenario analysis.
Integrative topics addressed in TropEcS addresses 4 key scientific challenges:
Coupling across scales: How do local coastal processes connect to global change drivers such as nutrient fluxes, pollution, and species dispersal.
Tipping effects: How do nonlinear feedbacks trigger ecological or social tipping points, and how can this understanding guide / inform adaptation and governance.
Compound events: How do multiple stressors, including global warming, storms, flooding, and social pressures, interact to affect ecosystems and communities.
Ecosystem services and policy: How can better understanding of coastal protection, blue carbon, and biodiversity inform more equitable and sustainable management strategies.
While tools and frameworks will evolve, TropEcS is designed as a flexible, multi- and interdisciplinary platform. This approach advances the inclusion of tropical coastal processes in Earth system perspectives and deepens our understanding of global change dynamics in these regions. To best advance our scientific collaboration, our scientific exchange formats are designed to foster equitable partnerships, promote open-source collaboration and data sharing, benefit career development for Early Career Researchers (ECRs), improve diversity and inclusion targets in modelling, and address the underrepresentation of socio-economic and transdisciplinary dimensions essential to advancing this field of research.
Therefore, if your current research or research interests fall within one of the following research areas, consider an application for our program:
- Earth system and climate modelling, regional coupled modelling
- Oceanography, hydrology, and environmental data science
- Ecology and ecosystem modeling, environment-biota interactions
- Social-ecological systems, integrated assessment and socio-economic modelling
- Transformation, knowledge co-production, and participatory science
- Sustainable governance, scenario planning, and international development
Early Career Target Audience and Program Framework:
The program is aimed at fostering and strengthening a diverse community of expertise of modellers and researchers working on tropical marine and coastal systems. The target audience includes:
- Modellers based in tropical countries, to increase collaboration and knowledge exchange
- Experienced modellers from any region working in the explicit thematic focus areas
- Researchers from adjacent and complementary disciplines to integrate broader perspectives
Application of early career researchers (ECRs) who seek to build skills, experience, and learning networks in modelling through structured opportunities for collaboration - are explicitly encouraged.
The program also welcomes the participation and inclusion of researchers from complementary academic disciplines or non-academic actors, whose engagement can enhance the relevance and impact of modelling tropical systems. This includes NGOs, citizen science initiatives, as well as relevant representatives from administrative, regulatory, or policy backgrounds that are often highly relevant to climate change, fisheries, livelihood, and food security contexts, amongst others.
While in-person joint model development is not always required, direct in-person exchange and collaboration remain an important part of establishing a community of practice and a common understanding of research objectives, identifying and addressing critical knowledge gaps as identified under TropEcS, linking different research efforts and pilot projects, and co-developing joint pathways forward through sustainable and stable institutional partnerships that align their priorities and research questions in modelling.
Opportunities and Funding Schemes:
Calls for Early Career Researchers (within 8 years of the award of the PhD) will be launched once per year (towards the beginning of the 2nd quartal), offering different opportunities for research stays and collaboration of varying duration.
Sustainability and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Statement:
The exchange program is designed to keep practical and sustainability considerations in mind, including participants’ personal and family circumstances as well as the carbon footprint associated with international travel. Therefore, it facilitates targeted exchanges designed to achieve measurable effectiveness of its collaboration and capacity sharing formats.
Applications from researchers based in tropical countries, and from underrepresented gender groups are explicitly encouraged, in order to advance gender diversity and equitable opportunities within the program and beyond.
Vacancies and Calls:
Current Vacancy:
How to apply: Please use exclusively this online form to apply and follow this link.
Eligibility for Early Career Researchers (within eight years of the award of the PhD):
- Sc., or upwards in research experience
- Proven track record in ESM/Regional Modeling, climate science, oceanography, marine ecology, social modelling, social-ecological modelling, or related fields
- Preference for applicants from tropical regions and non-male researchers for diversity and inclusion targets
Required documents:
- Application that is to be handed in online via the form on the website
- Up-to-date personal curriculum vitae (max 2 pages), in addition to letter of motivation indicating your qualifications, experience, and interest (max. 1 page)
- Appropriate research proposal (max. 2 pages, including a collaboration plan with the host institution, as well as expected outputs and timeplan)
- Letter(s) of Recommendation, or 2 References
- Signed Terms of Reference (TOR)
Document Links:
Terms of Reference (TOR)
After applications are reviewed through our selection committee, shortlisted candidates will be invited to online interviews with our committee.