School of Social and Political Science

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Applications for this studentship close at 23:59 GMT Monday 6th January 2025. Late applications cannot be accepted.

The University’s Forests and Peatland Programme is funding 3 PhD studentships to advance the understanding of the impacts, and monitoring and reporting techniques, around woodland creation and peatland restoration initiatives, designed and managed to meet multiple objectives, across multiple sites in Scotland. 

In this fully funded 48-month PhD studentship based in the School of Social and Political Science, the aim is to investigate the impacts of woodland creation and peatland restoration on local communities and wider society.

Project overview and details

The University of Edinburgh initiated a long-term investment in October 2021 to restore peatlands and expand forests across Scotland. The Forests and Peatland Programme aims to deliver multiple benefits, including carbon sequestration, biodiversity improvements, and community/societal benefits. As part of this programme, the University has acquired 887 hectares of land across three sites in Scotland and has formed several long-term 50-year partnerships covering a much wider area. 

The University’s Forests and Peatland Programme is funding 3 x PhD studentships to advance the understanding of the impacts, and monitoring and reporting techniques, around woodland creation and peatland restoration initiatives, designed and managed to meet multiple objectives, across multiple sites in Scotland. For each of these interdisciplinary studentships, a key priority will be how to support the baselining and monitoring of changes over time at the forest and Peatland sites, covering social, economic, and environmental dimensions to evidence impact. The students are expected to coordinate and collaborate to strengthen and integrate research outcomes and enhance impact. Each of the studentships will involve applied research to inform policy and practice around natural capital programmes. This studentship is one of a cohort of three PhD students (with one other studentship focused on biodiversity impacts, and another focusing on carbon sequestration). 

Key Research Questions 

1. How can societal impacts and community benefits from peatland restoration and woodland be a) identified, b) measured, and c) monitored over time, across scales and across sites? 
2. In what ways can citizen science help create opportunities for participatory monitoring and evaluation approaches? 
3. To what extent is the identification, measurement and monitoring of these impacts and benefits shaped by wider issues such as cultural context, power relationships and socio-political governance? 

Methodology 

This challenge-based research aims to use a combination of social science methodologies such as e.g. interviews, participant observation/co-creation methods with communities/citizen science, to monitor societal/and community impacts at sites undergoing woodland creation, both before and after. To enable/support such a study, the UoE has already funded various baseline data (community consultation data, drone data, eDNA and soil samples, NVC vegetation data) that might be utilised by the students in these studentships. The PhD students are expected, where appropriate, to utilise existing baseline datasets, as well as conduct fieldwork to collect complementary data at multiple sites across Scotland. At both the woodland creation sites and peatland restoration sites the aim is to employ monitoring methodologies to examine the community/societal impacts. The UoE has a large in-house expertise in the social and environmental sciences, with support from the Centre of Forest and Sustainable Landscapes (CSFL) bringing a wealth of expertise to support this studentship.

 

PhD studentship overview

In this fully funded 48-month PhD studentship the aim is to investigate the impacts of woodland creation and peatland restoration on local communities and wider society, as part of natural capital programmes, aiming to achieve multiple benefits. This challenge-based research will focus on assessing community and societal impacts and how these compare across sites undergoing Peatland restoration and woodland creation activities. To further understand what societal and community benefits are possible, which benefits are prioritised, by whom, and how best to measure these over time. Further, including an exploration into the role of citizen science. Research outputs will help to inform the Forest and Peatland programme and support the monitoring and reporting framework and actions. 

Award value

The scholarship is available as a 4-year funded programme. The programme will commence between 1st April and 1st June 2025. It includes

• An annual maintenance grant/stipend of £20,000 (with a 2% annual increase) 
• Full tuition fee cover 
• An annual postgraduate research support fund of up to £2,000 

Eligibility

The project is available to UK, EU, and International applicants.

The studentship funding is for 4 years on the full-time PhD Sociology programme in the School of Social and Political Science.

Applicants must meet the following additional eligibility criteria for this award:

Essential:

• Knowledge and expertise related to Sustainable Development, Sustainability, Society and Environment, Environment and Development, Environmental Science or equivalent 
• Knowledge and expertise of interdisciplinary research 
• Experience in qualitative and quantitative data collection and analysis 

Desirable:

• A UK driving license for field work
• An understanding of silviculture, forest systems and peatlands in Scotland 
• Experience working with communities and doing collaborative research 

Application process

Applicants must send the following documents to Zoe.Malcolm@ed.ac.uk no later than the studentship closing date:

• Cover letter 
• CV 
• The candidate must meet the English qualification requirements as described at https://www.ed.ac.uk/studying/international/english/postgraduate

All scholarship awards are subject to candidates successfully securing admission to the full-time PhD Sociology programme within the University of Edinburgh.  Successful scholarship applicants will be invited to apply for admission to the PhD programme after they are selected for funding.

Selection, assessment and results process

Studentship advert live from 27th November 2024 – 6th January 2025

Shortlist process - 7th-14th January 2025

Interviews - 3rd-7th February 2025 

Proposed outcome notification date for applicants - 10th -14th February 2025

PhD start date – Between 1st April 2025 – 1st June 2025

There will be a selection/interview panel that will include the core supervisory/coordination team and optional to also include supervisors from across the three PhD studentships or subject area staff. 

Core interview panel:

• Dr Zoe Malcom, Lecturer in Sociology (Sustainable Development), Sociology, School of Social and Political Science
• Prof Marc Metzger, Personal Chair of Environment and Society, School of Geosciences
• Dr Anastasia Yang, Forest and Peatland Academic Manager

Optional panel members:

• David Bruce, Forest, Peatlands and Rural Land Manager
• Prof Rob Ogden, Conservation Director, The Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies and Roslin Institute
• Prof Caroline Nichols, Personal Chair of Applied Remote Sensing, School of Geosciences
• Dr Nicholle Bells, Senior Lecturer, School of Chemistry
• Dr Georgios Xenakis, Forest Research 

The School of Social and Political Science, School of Geosciences, and Centre for Sustainable Forests and Landscapes (CSFL)

The School of Social and Political Science at the University of Edinburgh is one of the largest and most successful schools of social science in the UK, with global reach and local and global impact. The University has been delivering social work education since 1918. The postgraduate research culture is vibrant, with work reflecting a broad range of social issues and methodologies. 

The School of Geosciences is one of the largest interdisciplinary groupings of geographers and geoscientists in the UK, with a community of staff, students and researchers passionately committed to understanding the impact of climate on the Earth's systems, the environment and ecosystems, as well as the social, economic, cultural and political implications for society. 

The Centre for Sustainable Forests and Landscapes (CSFL) is codirected by Prof Marc Metzger and Prof Patrick Muir, and was established to accelerate interdisciplinary research, partnerships, teaching, and innovation in sustainable forests and landscapes by building on the breadth of academic expertise in the School of GeoSciences and expanding capability where there are opportunities. This will be achieved through focused expertise, research and collaboration, by developing new postgraduate teaching, and by facilitating thought leadership across sectors, from university and government to the private and third sectors.

Contact details

Contact Dr Zoe Malcolm: Zoe.Malcolm@ed.ac.uk - for questions about the project or Sociology PhD programme. 

Contact Dr Anastasia Yang: Anastasia.yang@ed.ac.uk – for questions about the Forest and Peatland programme or scholarship coordination.