Postdoctoral Environmental Applied Economist, Center for Applied Economics and Strategy

Overview

RTI International has an opening for a Postdoctoral Environmental Applied Economist within its Center for Applied Economics and Strategy (CAES). This is a one year term position.

CAES is a team of more than 60 economists and scientists conducting evidence-based assessments in environmental and natural resource economics, energy and climate policy, agriculture and land use, innovation policy, and economic development. CAES develops salient research outputs to support our client’s decision-making needs using cutting-edge economic tools and rigorous research methods including optimization-based sectoral and economy-wide modeling, impact evaluation, geospatial data analysis, econometrics, and more. Our clients include U.S. federal and state agencies, foreign government agencies, foundations, other nonprofit organizations, and private companies.

This position will support projects and project teams within the Center’s environmental and natural resources practice area. The role will support a variety of projects related to climate policy, with a focus on energy and economy-wide modeling. The position’s research portfolio will be determined partly by the successful candidate’s area of specialization and interests but will likely include assessment of climate change policies on the macroeconomy, computable general equilibrium and / or partial equilibrium model development, and simulation of sectoral responses to environmental policy and other shocks.

The successful candidate will be able to independently design and execute research projects, including reviewing literature to understand the availability of evidence for a given approach or assumption, collaborating with research teams (including RTI staff, clients, and academic collaborators) to define common objectives, designing and executing technical approaches that are fit for purpose, and clearly articulating findings to a wide range of audiences. Successful candidates will have a demonstrated interest in the topic areas described above and extensive training in economics, environmental science, and / or related engineering disciplines. However, we are also eager to hear compelling cases for how experience from other disciplines may support our growth in these areas.

Responsibilities

• Leading and supporting quantitative analyses, including optimization-based modeling, using mathematical programming packages (e.g., GAMS, GEMPACK, AMPL, Python, Julia-JuMP).
• Managing project implementation, ensuring completion of high-quality deliverables on time and on budget.
• Liaise with clients and collaborators to understand needs, design research plans, and communicate plans, progress, and results.
• Collaborating with internal teams and external researchers.
• Integrating data from a range of sources and in a range of formats, including earth observation data, field surveys, and government statistics, into models and analyses.
• Conducting literature reviews to identify best available data and / or best practices for data processing and analysis.
• Communicating research methods and findings via technical reports, journal articles, and presentations, including clear and compelling data visuals and summaries for a broad audience.

Qualifications

Required qualifications :

Desirable, but not required :

LI-KW1