PhD Position: Sustainability Assessment of Pharmaceuticals

Would you like to contribute to more sustainable solutions in healthcare? Then come and join us as a PhD Candidate, and help us develop, support and apply of methods to determine the environmental sustainability of pharmaceuticals.

Pharmaceuticals are essential for human well-being. However, the production and use of pharmaceuticals can harm the environment, for example through the use of solvents and the emission of greenhouse gases in the production phase, and the emission of pharmaceutical residues in the use phase.

The EU PharmEco project aims to revolutionise pharmaceutical manufacturing towards sustainability by integrating environmentally friendly technologies/processes and harmonised sustainability assessment methods into healthcare industry practices. As a PhD candidate at Radboud University’s Department of Environmental Science, you will evaluate existing tools and develop new methods to assess the environmental impacts of alternative pharmaceutical synthesis routes. These synthesis routes will be assessed within the context of the safe and sustainable by design (SSbD) framework. Within this context, it is also possible to contribute to other sustainability aspects, such as the assessment of environmental risks during the use phase of pharmaceuticals.

You will work closely with project partners from around Europe, participate in relevant conferences and workshops, and contribute to project deliverables. You will have the opportunity to further develop and improve your skills set by attending courses offered by the Graduate School of the Radboud Institute for Biological and Environmental Science (RIBES) and other institutes. You will communicate your findings through publications in peer-reviewed journals. Part of your workload (10%) will consist of teaching activities at our institute, assisting staff members in their courses at the BSc and MSc levels (in English) and supervising thesis research.