The VolkswagenFoundation funds a series of two summer schools entitled “Earth Surface Dynamics – Understanding Processes at the Earth’s Vulnerable Skin” led by apl. Prof. Dr. Martin H. Trauth, together with nine instructors from Germany, United Kingdom, and Ethiopia. The application is now open, the deadline is 1 October 2017. Download the summer school 2018 flyer.
The series of two consecutive summer schools about the Earth’s Dynamic Surface is targeting a group of 25 doctoral students from geosciences, environmental sciences and related fields such as biology, chemistry, and physics. These summer schools will be designed for doctoral students, aiming (1) to improve their skills to understand the complex interaction of the processes shaping the Earth’s surface at different temporal and spatial scales, (2) to monitor, model and predict the results of these interactions, and (3) to identify and mitigate risks of natural and human-caused interference in these processes in an interdisciplinary and intercultural environment.
The two summer schools each comprise three modules with each module covering a week, taking place at different locations in Germany. These locations are representative of typical settings for Earth surface processes, from the coast to lowlands and from continental rifts to high mountains. The first set of modules will focus on types of signals and noise commonly encountered at the Earth’s surface, and methods of acquiring, processing and analyzing data with non-destructive physical surveying methods. The second set of modules will be about the examination and modeling of the processes underlying the data collected at the Earth’s surface.
The intense, multifaceted science training program of the summer school will help participants to acquire knowledge and understanding of the processes shaping the Earth’s vulnerable skin and to define premier research topics to study processes at the Earth’s dynamic surface. It will ultimately provide the next generation of researchers, practitioners, and lecturers with the necessary background and scientific tools to evaluate and mitigate the effects of present-day and future environmental change.
The instructors of the summer school are apl. Prof. Dr. Martin H. Trauth, Prof. Dr. Asfawossen Asrat, U Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Dr. Nadine Berner, Gesellschaft für Anlagen- und Reaktorsicherheit (GRS) gGmbH, Germany, Prof. Dr. Bodo Bookhagen, U Potsdam, Germany, and UC Santa Barbara, USA, Prof. Dr. Ekkehard Holzbecher, German U of Technology, Oman, Dr. Verena Foerster, U Köln, Germany, Prof. Dr. Mark Maslin, University College London, UK, Prof. Dr. Jens Tronicke, U Potsdam, Germany, Dr. Wolfgang Schwanghart, U Potsdam, Germany, Dr. Gerold Zeilinger, U Potsdam, Germany.
The summer school fellowship covers all costs for transportation, accommodation and meals during the summer school. Full or partial support for travel expenses to/from Potsdam will be granted according to necessity. The fellowship does not cover, though these things are necessary for participation, costs for (1) a computer laptop, (2) hiking boots and clothing, and (3) insurance and medical costs. No daily allowance will be paid.
Participants will be selected by the director and the instructors of this program. Applicants are required to hold an M.Sc. degree (or equivalent) in geosciences in a broad sense, including environmental-oriented biology, chemistry and physics, and to be currently participating in a doctoral program at an internationally recognised university. Applications should submit a covering letter, a single-page statement of the applicant’s motivation for participating in the summer school, a letter of recommendation from the applicant’s doctoral supervisor, and a copy of the master’s certificate. Please send your questions and your full application, as a single PDF file, by email to the director of the summer school before 1 October 2017:
