CO2-related ocean changes pose a major threat to the marine biodiversity in coastal environments of the Mediterranean sea, highlighted as one of the most vulnerable basins. Indeed, marine heatwaves, acidification and freshening, to cite a few, may be amplified given the semi-enclosed morphology and overall shallow depths. Nonetheless, this basin is characterized by a consistent anthropogenic footprint, as an important area for fishery and aquaculture, tourism, oil and gas exploitation, riverine effluents and urban sewers that impact organisms’ health status and biodiversity through the introduction of relevant loads of organic and inorganic contaminants.The project aims to address the effects and of such multiple stressors on organisms’ biology and ecosystem integrity through a multidisciplinary approach, unravelling mechanisms of action and typologies of interactions between stressors on key biological processes at various level of biological organization, as well as thresholds of tolerance and resilience in species with economic and ecological interest. Field activities aimed to collect abiotic data, sediments and water samples, and bioindicator species will be integrated with laboratory investigations and mesocosms exposures, to produce findings that will be crucial to i) predict the impacts of CO2-related ocean changes and anthropogenic contaminants on marine biodiversity and ii) provide solutions for its conservation and management.

Successful candidates are expected to have a background in marine biology and ecology with an interest in climate change, anthropogenic pollutants, and sustainable development goals. Preferred skills reflect the ability to process biological samples using spectrophotometric, gas-cromatographic, brightfield and fluorescence microscopy, modern molecular biology techniques.

The project will be carried out at the Department of Life and Environmental Sciences of the Polytechnic University of Marche (DISVA).DISVA includes more than 100 interdisciplinary laboratories, ranging from biological physics, cell and molecular biology, biochemistry and genetic organic biology, microbiology and applicative biotechnology, physiology and reproductive biology, marine ecotoxicology and oceanography. http://www.disva.univpm.it/The DISVA offers the possibility to use the Actea Mobile Laboratory to sampling activities and hosts the "Aquarium" Laboratory representing a unique infrastructure at National level.