SEFARI Gateway – SAGES Policy Placement

SAGES - the network that gives organisations, businesses and policy-makers to access geosciences-related expertise from across Scotland - are offering members a unique opportunity for a short-term policy placement with the SEFARI Gateway team.

The Gateway team is the main portal between the Scottish Government funded research programmes within the Scottish research institutes working on environment, food and agriculture, and the various policy customers, including notably the Scottish Government (SG).

Placement summary

Given SG’s commitments to Net Zero by 2045 and its ambitions regarding environment, agriculture, land-use, soils, biochar is an increasingly relevant technology.

There are potential hazards associated with biochar production, transport and use in soils or as a constituent of aggregates for land application. Risk assessment is required to ensure that potential hazards are recognised and processes managed to mitigate against them, drawing upon state-of-the-art thinking in environmental risk and regulation.

An earlier attempt to do this was started 10 years ago, culminating in the Biochar Quality Mandate (BQM 1). Given rapid advances in the science and technology, together with growing industrial interest, an updated version of the BQM is required. This will require substantial re-writing of key sections along with inclusion of new sections and consultation with a range of UK-based experts across the supply-chain.

The placement member will work with the principals in the review and rewriting process as well as driving the dialogue with key experts.

Application deadline

Apply by 17:00 on Friday 27 May, 2022.

SAGES Innovation Programme

Since 2017/18 ECCI and SAGES - the network that gives organisations, businesses and policy-makers to access geosciences-related expertise from across Scotland - have been teaming up to offer pioneering career enhancement opportunities for SAGES members.

The programme links students with relevant host organisations and is at the forefront of bringing academia and business together to tackle global environmental challenges. A range of business, third and public sector organisations working in priority areas of interest for SAGES were matched with PhD and MSc students to work together on meaningful consultancy projects.