DIFOREST Project – Functional Diversity of Forest Stands and Resistance to Drought. The UMR Silva is offering a PhD position focused on understanding the mechanisms driving forest resistance and resilience to drought under climate change.

Background and Research Context
Over recent decades, the increasing frequency and intensity of drought events have significantly affected forest ecosystems, leading to reduced productivity and increased tree mortality.

Functional diversity and structural complexity of forest stands are considered key factors that may enhance ecosystem resistance and resilience. However, their effects remain insufficiently quantified at large spatial and temporal scales.

Research Objectives
The main objective of this PhD project is to investigate how functional and structural diversity influence forest responses to drought.

The research will focus on:

Characterizing the functional diversity of tree species
Assessing the structural complexity of forest stands
Quantifying the effects of these factors on growth and mortality under drought conditions
Identifying combinations of traits and stand structures that enhance resistance and resilience
The analyses will be conducted using large-scale datasets (French National Forest Inventory and trait databases) over the period 1980–2025.

Methods
The project will rely on:

Compilation and processing of existing ecological datasets
Integration of climatic and functional trait data
Advanced statistical modelling (notably using R)
Supervision and Research Environment
The PhD candidate will be supervised by:

Damien Bonal, Research Director at INRAE (UMR Silva)
Lionel Hertzog, Research Scientist at IGN
The project is embedded in a collaborative research network involving several national research units and institutional partners.

Candidate Profile
Applicants should hold a Master’s degree in ecology, forest sciences, environmental sciences, or a related field.

Required skills include:

Data analysis and statistical modelling (especially in R)
Experience handling large datasets
Strong proficiency in scientific English
Employment Conditions
3-year fully funded PhD contract
Funding provided by INRAE
Research and travel expenses covered
Start date: October 2026
Location: Champenoux (Grand Est region, France)
Application Procedure
Applications should be sent by email to:

damien.bonal@inrae.fr
lionel.hertzog@ign.fr
Subject line: Application for the DIFOREST PhD project

Required documents:

Cover letter
Detailed CV (including 1–2 referees)
Academic transcripts and degree certificates
📅 Application deadline: June 28, 2026