Post-Doc Research Associate - Center for Energy, Transportation, and Environmental Policy - UTK

University of Tennessee Athletic Marketing Department
University of Tennessee Athletic Marketing Department

Full-time

Knoxville, TN, USA

Posted on Nov 11, 2026

The Baker School of Public Policy and Public Affairs at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville (UTK) is seeking applications for a post-doctoral position from doctoral candidates or recent Ph.D. recipients interested in designing and evaluating policies that encourage a more circular economy in the energy and agriculture sectors.

JEL Classification: Q -- Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics

Keywords: circular economy, natural resources, bioeconomy, sustainability

The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, has shaped leaders, changemakers, and innovative thinkers since its founding in 1794. The university is home to more than 38,000 students and 10,000 statewide employees—the Volunteers—who uphold the university’s tradition of lighting the way for others through leadership and service.

UT Knoxville offers over 900 programs of study across 14 degree-granting colleges and schools. As Tennessee’s flagship land-grant university, its footprint spans the entire state. The university holds the highest Carnegie classification for research activity and has deep partnerships with industry leaders and the US Department of Energy’s largest multidisciplinary laboratory, Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

The Knoxville campus serves and recruits for UT Knoxville, including the Institute of Agriculture and the Space Institute, as well as the UT Institute of Public Service.

UT Knoxville considers its employees its number one asset. With values that focus on work-life balance, compensation, and innovation leadership, all Vols are supported to advance professionally. Employees have access to career development and coaching, continued education, and an extensive list of development and training possibilities. The Volunteer employee experience implements structures and practices to attract and retain top-tier talent, fostering a strong staff community and supporting a culture of involvement and engagement for everyone.

The university holds a strong commitment to its land-grant mission of learning and engagement, with a tradition of service and leadership that carries that Volunteer spirit throughout the state and around the world. It has been ranked nationally as “Best Employer for New Graduates,” “One of America’s Best Large Employers,” and “Best Workplace for Women,” and has been designated as “Best Place for Working Parents” by Forbes Magazine.

Apply today and join the Tennessee Volunteer community!
The Baker School of Public Policy and Public Affairs at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville (UTK) is seeking applications for a post-doctoral position from doctoral candidates or recent Ph.D. recipients interested in designing and evaluating policies that encourage a more circular economy in the energy and agriculture sectors.

Required Qualifications:

Applicants should hold a Ph.D. in economics, agricultural and resource economics, public policy or a similar field prior to starting. Applications for candidates graduating in the Spring 2026 semester are welcomed to apply. Excellent programming, data management, and written communication skills are essential. Experience fostering circular economies in the agriculture or energy sectors is a plus.

Location: Knoxville, Tennessee UNITED STATES

Salary Range: Competitive salary plus full University benefits package.

Applicants must be legally authorized to work in the United States on a full-time basis without need now or in the future for sponsorship for employment-based visa status.

The Baker School has research focal areas in environmental and energy policy, along with its instructional and public service missions. The Baker School’s Center for Energy, Transportation, and Environmental Policy (CETEP) combines sound science, rigorous economics, and thoughtful policy to address natural resource use and environmental challenges facing the state of Tennessee, the U.S., and the world. CETEP is an interdisciplinary network of joint faculty, faculty fellows and affiliates, research associates, and post-doctoral researchers. The Baker School’s research network extends to industry, government, the nonprofit sector, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA). The successful candidate will join a cohort of postdoctoral researchers working on environmental and energy challenges.

To apply, please submit the following items with your application: a letter of interest, a curriculum vitae, a research paper, and three recommendation letters. Note, letters or recommendation may be submitted with your application, or can be sent directly from the reference to the Search Chair, Jilleah Welch, at jgwelch@utk.edu Review of applications will begin immediately and will continue until the position is filled. Successful candidates are expected to start a 24-month appointment in the Summer/Fall of 2027 (exact start date negotiable).

The successful candidate will work with Charles Sims at the Baker School, industry partners, and collaborators at Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the Tennessee Valley Authority on research at the interface of circular economy, waste remediation and reuse, and land use. The work will focus primarily on two areas:

  1. Develop and evaluate state and federal policies designed to grow a regional bioeconomy in the southeastern US centered on miscanthus and switchgrass.
  2. Define the benefits and costs of state and federal policies designed to encourage coal ash recycling and reuse.

The postdoctoral associate will:

  • Contribute to modeling and decision-support tool development
  • Apply optimization, statistical, simulation, and spatial analysis to increase the circularity of agriculture and fossil fuel industries
  • Organize and integrate ecological, economic, behavioral, and geospatial datasets
  • Prepare manuscripts for peer-reviewed publication
  • Help develop fact sheets, policy briefs, and other outreach materials to support applied and policy-oriented activities
  • Mentor graduate and undergraduate students contributing to project activities
  • Contribute to stakeholder-engaged research activities, which may include focus groups or surveys
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