PhD position: Vision-Language Models for Biodiversity & Environmental Monitoring

We are looking for an aspiring PhD to develop vision-language models for applications in biodiversity and environmental monitoring, using Earth observation, drone, and in situ images. You will develop new machine learning methods for learning efficient and interpretable representations from real-world data. Your models will be used by European partners in the GenAI4Earth project (and will start in September 2026) for identifying plant traits for monitoring the phenology, health and resilience to climate change of forests and crops. 

This PhD position builds on existing research in our group, particularly the development of an explainable vision-language model for species distribution modelling. During your PhD, you will further develop vision-language models that can describe species traits from images, which in turn can be used to monitor forest and crop health. You will engage with the international research community to push the state-of-the-art of AI/computer vision for ecology, for example, by leveraging LLMs as reasoning models that interact with biodiversity data via vision-language models. 

This position aspires to develop fundamental AI methods that will directly be used for pressing challenges in environmental and ecological monitoring. To do so, you will become part of a European consortium of specialists in AI, supercomputing, remote sensing, ecology and environmental sciences, connected to local stakeholders of forests in Europe and Africa. Therefore, collaborating with other scientists from other domains will be an important aspect of this role.

Your duties and responsibilities include: 

• Master the state of the art in representation learning in vision-language models, through engaging with academic literature, conferences and code bases.
• Design, develop and evaluate vision-language models to identify species traits from Earth observation and in situ images.
• Perform large-scale training and fine-tuning of AI models on an HPC server.
• Disseminate the research results by writing papers and presenting your work at international conferences.
• Collaborate with other scientists from our group, university and international consortium to curate AI-ready datasets, translate use cases into machine learning benchmarks, and apply AI methods to open environmental challenges.

You will work here

The research is embedded within the chair Artificial Intelligence (link internet page Chairgroup), which is led by Prof. Ioannis Athanasiadis. You will be co-supervised by Prof. Ricardo Torres and Dr Thijs van der Plas.

You are highly motivated, self-driven, and curious to advance use-inspired artificial intelligence methods. You bring along your enthusiasm to work in a highly dynamic, international team towards a common objective.

You also possess: 

• A successfully completed MSc degree in artificial intelligence, computer science, physics, mathematics, or another relevant field with strong AI experience.
• Demonstrated experience in applied machine learning, preferably in Earth observation, environmental sciences or ecology.
• Proficiency in programming in Python and experience in Pytorch, Jax, Scikit-Learn or related modern machine learning libraries.
• Good writing skills, as demonstrated by your thesis report or contributions to scientific papers.

For this position, your command of the English language is expected to be at C1 level. Sometimes it is necessary to submit an internationally recognised Certificate of Proficiency in the English Language. More information can be found here.

Wageningen University & Research offers excellent terms of employment. A few highlights from our Collective Labour Agreement include:

• Partially paid parental leave;
• working hours that can be discussed and arranged so that they allow for the best possible work-life balance;
• there is a strong focus on vitality and you can make use of the sports facilities available on campus for a small fee;
• a fixed year-end bonus of 8.3%;
• excellent pension scheme.

In addition to these first-rate employee benefits, you will receive a fully funded PhD position and you will be offered a course program tailored to your needs and the research team.
The gross salary for the first year is € 3.059,- per month rising to € 3.881,-  in the fourth year in according to the Collective Labour Agreements for Dutch Universities (CAO-NU) (scale P). This is based on a full-time working week of 38 hours. We offer a temporary contract for 18 months which will be extended for the duration of the project if you perform well. 

We encourage development and internal mobility within our organisation. Our recruitment and selection policy sets out the conditions that apply specifically to you as a (former) employee. If you have any questions, we are happy to help.

You will work on the greenest and most innovative campus in the Netherlands, in an international and open working environment. 

Wageningen University & Research is the university and research centre for life sciences. The themes we deal with are relevant to everyone around the world and Wageningen, therefore, has a large international community and a lot to offer to international employees. 

Because we expect you to work and live in the Netherlands our team of advisors on Dutch immigration procedures will help you with the visa application procedures for yourself and, if applicable, for your family. 

Feeling welcome also has everything to do with being well informed. Wageningen University & Research's International Community page contains practical information about what we can do to support international employees coming to Wageningen. Furthermore, our Welcome Center can assist you with any additional advice and information about for example housing, opening a bank account, dual career programs or schooling. Finally, certain categories of international staff may be eligible for a tax exemption on a part of their salary during the first five years in the Netherlands.

For more information about the position, please contact dr. Thijs van der Plas, via email: thijs.vanderplas@wur.nl  .
Questions about the procedure? Get in touch with Noorien Abbas, Corporate Recruiter, via vacaturemeldingen.psg@wur.nl .

Ready to apply?
You can apply directly using the apply button on the vacancy page on our website which will allow us to process your personal information with your approval. Only applications submitted through our website will be considered.

To apply, please send the following documents (max. 3 pages in total for both documents):

• Complete and up-to-date curriculum vitae;
• Motivation letter.
• Sample of your scientific writing (one paper, thesis, or report, that you have written yourself)

The maximum length of the documents, CV and motivation letter, must not exceed 3 pages. If it exceeds, applications will not be considered. Additional files such as grades and transcripts are not required during this stage and will not be considered.

You can apply up to and including May 29, 2026. The first interviews are scheduled for June 17, 2026. The position is available from Sept 1st, 2026. A later starting date can be considered for exceptional candidates.

Your prompt response will ensure that your application continues to move forward in the evaluation process. We assure you that the information provided will be kept confidential and used solely for this application process.

Welcome, safe, and valued
Wageningen University & Research (WUR) highly values diversity and inclusion because we believe that different insights lead to innovative solutions. We create a work environment where everyone feels welcome, safe, and appreciated, regardless of background, identity, or experience. Together, we are building a culture where everyone's unique contribution adds to the success of our organization.

​The mission of Wageningen University & Research is “To explore the potential of nature to improve the quality of life”. Under the banner Wageningen University & Research, Wageningen University and the specialised research institutes of the Wageningen Research Foundation have joined forces in contributing to finding solutions to important questions in the domain of healthy food and living environment. With its roughly 30 branches, 7,600 employees (6,700 fte) and 13,100 students and over 150,000 participants to WUR’s Life Long Learning, Wageningen University & Research is one of the leading organisations in its domain. The unique Wageningen approach lies in its integrated approach to issues and the collaboration between different disciplines.

Read the 5 reasons why your future colleagues enjoy working at WUR and watch the video below to get an idea of our green campus!

We will recruit for the vacancy ourselves, so no employment agencies please. However, sharing in your network is appreciated.

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