Master Internship in Central Highlands (ICRAF)

TITLE OF PROPOSED INTERN RESEARCH PROJECT: Environmental Life Cycle Assessment of Coffee production in Vietnam

PERIOD & DURATION: 4 to 6 months

THE ORGANISATION:

CIRAD (French Agricultural Research Centre for International Development) is the French agricultural research and cooperation organization working for the sustainable development of tropical and Mediterranean regions.

More information: https://www.cirad.fr/en

LOCALISATION:

The intern will be based in the Central Highlands.

Fieldwork will be conducted in one or several of the following provinces: Gia Lai, Dak Lak, Dak Nong, Lam Dong.

PROJECT DESCRIPTION:

Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is a tool allowing the identification of environmental hotspots and mitigation options across a product value chain: from the producer to the consumer. LCA is the international reference method to quantify environmental performances. This approach is based on a comprehensive inventory of activities, including farm practices, which are then translated into global impacts (e.g. climate change) and regional impacts (e.g. water deprivation, acidification). This product-oriented approach is relevant in an international and global market context, by looking at both the international drivers and the regional impacts.

LCA will be applied to coffee farms within the framework of the BOLERO project (European project). The main objectives will be the assessment of environmental impacts and the potential of innovative practices, including grafting techniques, to mitigate the environmental impacts.

The intern will support the team in the application of LCA to coffee production system in Vietnam. This will involve one or several of the following tasks: preparation of survey/questionnaire for data collection, data collection on coffee farms, data analysis in Excel, life cycle modelling with a LCA software (Simapro), impact scores analysis and interpretation. A large share of the internship will be spent in the Central Highlands for data collection.

The intern will be trained and supported by CIRAD researchers and LCA experts based in France and in Australia.

The intern will have to provide the team with a report at the end of the study. The intern can later on be associated in the writing of research articles based on their work.

SKILLS:

Bac +4
Computer skills: advanced experience with Excel,
A solid background in Agronomy and Environmental impact assessment,
Basic knowledge on Life Cycle Assessment would be appreciated,
Good oral, reading and writing English capacities are required.

FINANCE

The student will receive the equivalent of 250 USD / month plus travel expenses when conducting field work.

CONTACT

All correspondence should be addressed to the World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF) Office Hanoi, at the 13th floor, HCMCC building, 249A Thuy Khue street, Tay Ho district, Hanoi, Vietnam OR via email: clement.rigal@cirad.fr Applicants should indicate “Application – Master Internship in Center Highland” on their application letters and email submissions.

Tags: ICRAF