Job Opening: Research Associate – AI & Remote Sensing for Soil Health Monitoring

Organization: Interbalkan Environment Center (i-BEC)
Location: On-site (Thermi, Greece)
Start Date: September 1, 2025
Contract Duration: Until December 31, 2025, with renewal subject to negotiation
Application Deadline: June 30, 2025

Position Overview

The Interbalkan Environment Center (i-BEC) is seeking a Research Associate with strong expertise in artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) for the development of data-driven applications focused on soil health monitoring using remote sensing (RS) data.

The selected candidate will contribute to applied research and project implementation by designing and deploying advanced models and tools that extract environmental insights from large-scale Earth observation datasets. This role is ideal for professionals with a strong programming background and a practical focus on real-world environmental challenges.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop and apply AI/ML models to analyze satellite data for soil health monitoring, including soil properties estimation, land-use pattern recognition, and detection of agricultural practices or events.
• Process and analyze Earth observation data from Sentinel missions, hyperspectral sensors, and optionally radar datasets, to derive biophysical and environmental indicators.
• Design and deploy data-driven applications for environmental monitoring and decision support.
• Work with Open Data Cube platforms to manage and access multi-temporal EO data at scale.
• Contribute to national and EU-funded research projects
• Be part of an interdisciplinary team of environmental scientists, data engineers, and agronomists.

Required Qualifications

• PhD in Computer Science, Remote Sensing, Geoinformatics, Environmental Science, or a related field.
• Minimum 3 years of experience in research or applied projects involving ML/AI and EO data.
• Proven programming skills in Python, with experience in:
  • Scikit-learn
  • TensorFlow / Keras
  • GDAL, NumPy, Pandas
• Familiarity with Open Data Cube architectures and EO data pipelines.
• Experience with Docker or other containerization technologies.
• Demonstrated ability to develop scalable, production-ready code for geospatial analysis.
• Excellent communication skills in English (written and spoken).
• Relative research publications

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with cloud-based geospatial tools (e.g., Google Earth Engine, AWS, Copernicus DIAS).
• Experience in physical process models
• Experience contributing to open-source geospatial or scientific computing projects.

What We Offer

• Collaboration with a mission-driven organization at the intersection of technology and environmental science.
• Opportunity to work on impactful projects with real-world environmental and societal benefits funded from European Union or European Space Agency
• Work in a dynamic, interdisciplinary team environment
• Salary based on qualifications
• Contribution to a wide research team and participation to peer reviewed publications

How to Apply

Please submit the following to info@i-bec.org by June 30, 2025:

• CV (max 3 pages)
• Cover Letter (1 page) outlining your motivation and relevant experience
• (Optional) Links to relevant code repositories, publications, or past project work
• Include at the subject of the email “RS modelling application – [your name]”