Research Center for Environmental Changes, Academia Sinica, TAIWAN

Global environmental changes have brought inevitable challenges to the sustainable development of human society. Science is the only way for the humankind to unravel the ins and outs of environmental changes and to formulate effective countermeasures and governance. Given the critical role of this topic, the Academia Sinica launched the Environmental Change Research Project and started the establishment proposal of the Research Center for Environmental Changes (RCEC). The seed research team was set as one of the research teams in the Institute of Earth Sciences, at the preparatory stage. Four years later, the RCEC was opened in 2004, and Dr. Shaw-Chen Liu (honored the Academician of Academia Sinica in 2012) was appointed as the founding director of the center. In the early stage, the RCEC developed researches in various fields including atmospheric composition, changes in the atmospheric circulations, changes in the global climate system, and biogeochemistry in waters surrounding Taiwan. These research topics engaged diverse discussions on critical issues such as the passage of dust storms in Asia, ozone formation and air pollution in Taiwan, changes in precipitation systems in the context of global warming, and influences of ocean acidification on coral reef systems. In particular, due to the relevance of aerosols for air quality and climate change, the RCEC worked with six local universities to investigate aerosols concentration and composition in Taiwan. These investigations, constituting the first large-scale field survey on atmospheric aerosols in Taiwan, served as a starting point for the RCEC’s research into PM2.5 and initiation of Taiwan’s first PM2.5 distribution map.

Homepage: https://rcec.sinica.edu.tw/index_en.php

The “Air Quality Research Center” of the Research Center for Environmental Changes, Academia Sinica, is seeking to recruit one full-time tenure track researcher at the rank of Assistant Research Fellow, Associate Research Fellow, or Research Fellow (equivalent to Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, or Professor in universities). This position starts as early as January 1, 2026.

Recognizing the impact of air pollution on public health and the environment, our center established the “Air Quality Research Center” in 2021 to advance research on the physicochemical mechanisms leading to air pollution. We are dedicated to improving the precision measurement, characterization, and numerical modeling of key air pollutants to address current challenges in air pollution mitigation.

PM2.5 and O3 are among the most critical air pollutants affecting urban environments. Their formation and transport involve both macroscopic meteorology and microscopic molecular chemistry. To strengthen our research capacity, we seek a researcher specializing in atmospheric photochemistry or heterogeneous chemistry, with experience in laboratory studies, field studies, or theoretical modeling of reaction mechanisms. The researcher will join our team projects and conduct research on the chemical reaction mechanisms of air pollutants, collaborate with national and international research institutions to develop innovative atmospheric pollution models, and engage in governmental and academic projects and provide scientific recommendations.

Applicants are required to have a doctoral degree; those with an excellent record of independent research are preferred. Application materials shall be submitted on-line through the Academic Jobs Online (https://academicjobsonline.org/ajo/jobs/29176) by including (1) curriculum vitae with a full publication list, (2) a research plan, (3) 1-3 representative papers, and (4) contact information of at least three reference peers.

For more information, please visit our webpage (https://rcec.sinica.edu.tw/index_en.php?action=researchGroup&cid=2) or contact Ms. Nellie Chang at nellie@gate.sinica.edu.tw. The application deadline is June 30, 2025.