Job Vacancy // Agrivoltaics and Energy-Water-Land Nexus - Researcher III

This job vacancy was initially published on the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) website.

About the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL)

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) is a leader in the U.S. Department of Energy’s effort to secure an environmentally and economically sustainable energy future. With locations in Golden and Boulder, Colorado, and a satellite office in Washington, D.C., NREL is the primary laboratory for research, development, and deployment of renewable energy technologies in the United States.

From day one at NREL, you’ll connect with coworkers driven by the same mission to save the planet. By joining an organization that values a supportive, inclusive, and flexible work environment, you’ll have the opportunity to engage through our eight employee resource groups, numerous employee-driven clubs, and learning and professional development classes.

NREL supports inclusive, diverse, and unbiased hiring practices that promote creativity and innovation. By collaborating with organizations that focus on diverse talent pools, reaching out to underrepresented demographics, and providing an inclusive application and interview process, our Talent Acquisition team aims to hear all voices equally. We strive to attract a highly diverse workforce and create a culture where every employee feels welcomed and respected and they can be their authentic selves.

Job Description

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory’s (NREL’s) Strategic Energy Analysis Center is seeking a Researcher who is familiar with agrivoltaic systems and energy-land-water nexus tradeoffs.

A Researcher III position is available in the National Renewable Energy Laboratory's (NREL) Strategic Energy Analysis Center in the Golden, Colorado office. NREL is the nation's primary laboratory for research, development and deployment of renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies. The analyst will join the Impacts Analysis Group in NREL’s Strategic Energy Analysis Center (www.nrel.gov/analysis) and work closely with researchers who assess tradeoffs and synergies of agricultural and solar energy generation systems through the Department of Energy’s InSPIRE project (https://openei.org/wiki/InSPIRE).

The Researcher III will lead project tasks related to tracking multiple agrivoltaic projects across the country; identifying and leading new research priorities; collecting data and performing analyses related to agrivoltaic project performance and costs; leadership in agrivoltaic model development and data acquisition; facilitating conversations across diverse sets of stakeholders; performing fieldwork and research at agrivoltaics sites; and conducting outreach to a wide array of audiences.

Basic Qualifications

Relevant PhD . Or, relevant Master's Degree and 3 or more years of experience . Or, relevant Bachelor's Degree and 5 or more years of experience . Demonstrated full knowledge of laws, regulations, principles, procedures and practices related to specific field. Strong leadership, communication, problem solving and project management skills. Ability to use various computer software programs.

Additional Required Qualifications

• Demonstrated skill and experience with analyses of agricultural, energy, and/or hydrology data sets.
• Excellent oral and written communication and recordkeeping skills.
• Self-motivated learner with demonstrated ability to grasp new concepts quickly and to develop new skills as needed.
• Passion for finding solutions that are beneficial to potentially conflicting perspectives.
• Good interpersonal and communication skills for both technical and non-technical audiences.
• Ability to work independently and within a team environment.
• Experience with fieldwork, preferably at an agrivoltaics site(s).
• Proven abilities to develop informative papers and presentations and manage work to meet deadlines.

Preferred Qualifications

• Preference will be given to candidates who have worked on or performed analysis on agrivoltaic projects in the past, with consideration towards how the work of this project could contribute toward career and program growth.
• Previous experience with agricultural policy, energy policy, water policy, and energy development.
• Interdisciplinary curiosity and resourcefulness, including desire to broaden skills.
• Knowledge of statistical methods, agricultural practices, agricultural decarbonization approaches, agrivoltaics implementation and research, solar energy development, technoeconomic assessment, lifecycle analysis, ecosystem services, and GIS capabilities.
• Familiarity with federal and state agriculture, energy, and water data sets
• Fluency in programming languages (e.g., Python, R, etc.) and/or a background in optimization modeling
• A strong publication record in a technical discipline, as compared to peers at similar levels of education and career experience
• PhD in relevant topics is preferred

Annual Salary Range (based on full-time 40 hours per week)

Job Profile: Researcher III / Annual Salary Range: $77,600 - $139,700

Further Information and Application

Click here for more information on the job vacancy. Kindly submit your application here.

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