USDA-FS Analysis & Modeling of Forest Operations Fellowship
*Applications will be reviewed on a rolling-basis.
USDA Forest Service Office/Lab and Location: A fellowship opportunity is available with the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) Forest Service (FS) within the Forest Service Southern Research Station (SRS). Opportunity may be located at Auburn, Alabama; Missoula, Montana; or Flagstaff, Arizona.
At the heart of the USDA Forest Service's mission is their purpose. Everything they do is intended to help sustain forests and grasslands for present and future generations. Why? Because their stewardship work supports nature in sustaining life. This is the purpose that drives the agency’s mission and motivates their work across the agency. It’s been there from the agency’s very beginning, and it still drives them. To advance the mission and serve their purpose, the USDA Forest Service balances the short and long-term needs of people and nature by: working in collaboration with communities and our partners; providing access to resources and experiences that promote economic, ecological, and social vitality; connecting people to the land and one another; and delivering world-class science, technology and land management.
Research Project: Low-grade logs and biomass from fuel treatments and forest restoration can be used for a wide variety of products, including lumber, biochar, liquid fuels, heat and power, and advanced bioproducts. Yet, utilization of these materials from National Forests and Rangelands is below our current potential production capacity and far below the projected production associated with an increase in the pace and scale of restoration under wildfire risk reduction WRR) activities. New supply chain models are needed for fuel treatment and forest restoration to address this gap, and to facilitate the effective and efficient use of removals from these treatments. This project seeks to improve our understanding of forest industry supply chains tied to fuel treatments and other prescriptions in western landscapes with elevated wildfire risk, and will use applied supply chain engineering to improve forest management. This is organized around several complimentary study areas in this field: forest operations and logistics, supply chain modeling and optimization, biohub siting and design, and aggressive dissemination of research results. In addition to USDA-FS scientists cooperating across multiple Research Stations, the project team includes co-investigators and experts from the following collaborating organizations: Ecological Restoration Institute, Northern Arizona University; Department of Forestry, Fire and Rangeland Management, California State Polytechnic University (Cal Poly Humboldt); Department of Forest Biomaterials, North Carolina State University; and the Department of Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering, Washington State University. Research products will be developed for use across the western United States and across all ownerships, but the target landscapes for applied case studies are the Colorado Front Range (Colorado), Enchanted Circle (New Mexico), and Klamath River Basin and the Trinity Forest (Oregon-California), which were chosen to span a wide range of biophysical and market conditions.
The participant will interact in a team environment with research collaborators and will communicate with the research team, forest operations professionals, national forest system staff, state foresters in the region, and contractors. The emphasis of the project will be the analysis of past restoration treatments relevant to these landscapes and helping in modelling efforts and collection of new forest management and supply chain data.
Learning Objectives:
- Gain first-hand experience conducting cutting-edge research within a federal agency
- Develop skills in interacting with agency partners to develop applied science to meet complex forest management, harvesting, and utilization objectives.
- Develop analytical skills analyzing forest products supply chains and developing analytical models.
- Develop science writing and communication skills.
Mentor: The mentor for this opportunity is Mathew Smidt (mathew.smidt@usda.gov). If you have questions about the nature of the research, please contact the mentor.
Anticipated Appointment Start Date: June 2026. Start date is flexible and will depend on a variety of factors.
Appointment Length: The appointment will initially be for on year but may be extended upon recommendation of USDA Forest Service and is contingent on the availability of funds.
Level of Participation: The appointment is full time.
Participant Stipend: The participant will receive a monthly stipend commensurate with educational level and experience.
Citizenship Requirements: This opportunity is available to U.S. citizens, Lawful Permanent Residents (LPR), and foreign nationals. Non-U.S. citizen applicants should refer to the Guidelines for Non-U.S. Citizens Details page of the program website for information about the valid immigration statuses that are acceptable for program participation. Foreign national candidates may have a mandatory in-person requirement depending on visa status.
ORISE Information: This program, administered by ORAU through its contract with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to manage the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE), was established through an interagency agreement between DOE and USDA Forest Service. Participants do not become employees of USDA, USDA Forest Service, DOE or the program administrator, and there are no employment-related benefits. Proof of health insurance is required for participation in this program. Health insurance can be obtained through ORISE.
Questions: Please visit our Program Website. After reading, if you have additional questions about the application process please email ORISE.USFS.SRS@orau.org and include the reference code for this opportunity.
Qualifications
The qualified candidate should be currently pursuing or have received a master's or doctoral degree in the one of the relevant fields.
Preferred skills:
- Experience in forest operations analysis, forest resource management, spatial data science, supply chain/logistics analytics, machine learning
- Analytical/statistical skills
- Experience with statistical analysis software (e.g. R, SAS), GIS software (e.g., ArcGIS, QGis), and programming languages (e.g., R, Python, C++).
- Experience or interest in science integration and stakeholder and partner engagement
- Organizational, communication, and scientific writing skills
- Ability to conduct research in an interactive team environment as well as independently
Point of Contact
Eligibility Requirements
- Degree: Master's Degree or Doctoral Degree.