Help build the evidence that shows which buildings and materials fit within the carbon budget. You will develop the data and models behind our work on whole life carbon of buildings, materials and building stocks: the material basis of human settlements.
You will work with building-level LCA data and national building data, such as EPC databases, building registries and generic LCA databases, to define what data countries need, develop benchmarks, and build open tools and templates for INDICATE and GBDI with partners in Europe, Asia and Africa. You will work closely with our Senior Scientist for whole life carbon and LCA (RISE-Team-2611-02). The position can be combined with a PhD.
This profile is tentative. We will design the final profile and the extent together with the person we hire, based on their strengths, interests and our project needs. We value initiative: if you see a better way to contribute, tell us.
Read the full advert as a PDF: the role, what you bring, how we work, what we offer, relocation and housing, and how to apply, in one document.
What you will do
- Collect, harmonise and analyse building-level WLCA data and national building data (EPC databases, building registries), including conversion to openBDF.
- Support the definition of minimum data requirements and data quality criteria, and develop open-source templates and tools for INDICATE’s onboarding pathway.
- Develop benchmarks and analyse whole life carbon of buildings and building stocks, including upscaling to stock level and scenarios.
- Support analyses that link whole life carbon with EPCs, Renovation Passports and finance frameworks such as CRREM and GRESB.
- Prepare figures, datasets and documentation for publications, reports and trainings.
What you bring
- Essential: knowledge of life cycle assessment and material flow analysis, ideally applied to buildings, and an interest in carbon budgets and sufficiency-first strategies.
- Essential: demonstrated coding experience in Python (pandas, numpy and the like) and in working with large datasets. Name the tools and packages you have worked with.
- A Master’s degree in industrial ecology, environmental or civil engineering, architecture, geoinformatics, data science or a related field.
- An independent, careful and structured way of working, and the wish to grow as a researcher.
- Professional proficiency in English, spoken and written. German is appreciated but not required.
Nice to have
- Experience with GIS or remote sensing for stock characterisation, such as QGIS, geopandas or Google Earth Engine.
- Experience with EPC or building registry data, LCA databases or EPDs.
- A language spoken in one of our focus countries: India, China, South Africa, Kenya, Nigeria, Ethiopia.
- Plans to pursue a PhD in this field. We co-supervise doctoral projects with partner universities.
How to apply
Send your application as three PDFs to office@riselabs.at with the subject line RISE-Team-2611-03 - [Your name]. Applications without a Position ID in the subject line may not be considered.
- Motivation letter, at most two pages, including names and contact details of three professional references. They are contacted only after an interview, with your consent.
- CV, including a list of projects and publications.
- Examples of your work relevant to the position. You will know best how to present it: your Master’s thesis, or other work with data analysis or code. Links are fine.
Applications are open until 4 December 2026. Reviewing and interviewing start on 18 November 2026 and continue until the position is filled, so earlier applications have the advantage of an earlier conversation.
Applying for more than one position? List all Position IDs in the subject line and tell us in your letter which you prefer and why.