Junior Data Scientist

We are looking for a highly motivated Research Associate with a strong background in data processing and analysis. The successful candidate will contribute to an exciting and innovative development in global supply chain sustainability – the Transparency for Sustainable Economies (Trase) platform (http://www.trase.earth).

The successful candidate will be part of a team of researchers working on the technical development of the Trase platform, including data acquisition, preparation, database maintenance, as well as research on land-use change and sustainability inspired by Trase.

More specifically, the candidate will play a substantive role in i) further developing the back-end of the Trase platform, including helping to develop the SEI-PCS tool (Spatially Explicit Information on Production to Consumption Systems), which allows for linking global consumption of traded commodities with regions of production at sub-national scales; and ii) developing and maintaining a database that includes trade and production data, as well as indicators on the social and environmental sustainability of both production regions and supply chain actors.

Your main responsibilities:
•Support ongoing efforts to improve and expand the SEI-PCS model to new countries and commodities, helping acquire, archive, format and process large datasets on production, trade and different measures of environmental and social impact and sustainability performance
•Helping design, implement and manage an online and interactive data visualization platform (Trase) for mapping international supply chains and assessing associated sustainability impacts and opportunities
•Support colleagues in the ongoing development of the database and analytical approach that underpins Trase
•Provide quantitative support to an exciting range of other work related to natural resource use and sustainable development (up to 20% of the candidate´s time)

Who you are:

We are looking for a candidate with a strong interest in data science and quantitative analyses to help understand some of the major environmental and sustainability challenges the world is facing in the 21st Century. No previous working-experience is required but the candidate is expected to be capable of working both independently and in team in a highly flexible and exciting research environment, whilst also being comfortable investing time as needed in basic data preparation and processing routines. The candidate will participate in research publications, international workshops and a range of activities developed by the research team behind Trase.

Key qualifications:
•University degree in computer science, physics, mathematics, engineering, natural resource management or related field. If not formally trained in these fields the candidate should demonstrate adequate experience in data analysis and programming
•Experience processing and analysing data in a common statistical package or environment (e.g. R)
•Competent in handling of large amounts of data: at least basic experience in creating and maintaining relational databases (preferably PostgreSQL)
•At least basic programming experience (preferably Python) and ability to independently acquire new technical skills quickly
•Fluency in English.

Desirable qualifications:
•Previous experience and strong interest in applying innovative visualization methods for complex data (e.g. d3.js based)
•Experience with version control (Git) and collaborative software development (GitHub).
•Previous experience in applied sustainability research, ideally with focus on quantitative analysis of trade flows, consumption accounting, or the environmental and social impacts of land-use change
•Competence in GIS
•Intermediate level in other widely spoken languages, particularly Bahasa Indonesian, Spanish, and/or Portuguese.

About SEI:
Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI) is an independent, international research institute founded in 1989. Its mission is to support decision-making and induce change towards sustainable development around the world by providing integrative knowledge that bridges science and policy in the field of environment and development. SEI is ranked as the most influential environment think tank in the world in the Global Go To Think Tank Report 2016, compiled by the University of Pennsylvania's Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program.
SEI has about 230 employees working at research centres in six countries around the world. Our Headquarters and Stockholm Research Centre are co- located in Stockholm, Sweden.