Information on the School/Research Group

The School of Interdisciplinary Studies is based on the Dumfries Campus, Scotland. There are four broad research and teaching groups, namely Environmental Science and Sustainability, Health and Social Sector Leadership, Primary Education and Tourism. The PhD research will be carried out within the Environmental Risk and Resilience team of the Environmental Science and Sustainability Group.

Project Description

Mangrove social-ecological systems are being lost or degraded globally. Many restoration and conservation efforts are underway but with regionally contrasting success rates. In many cases, restoration projects that were deemed successful initially have not produced healthy mangroves habitats in the long run. The key shortfall of many restoration initiatives is the lack of understanding of socio-ecological complexities across appropriate restoration strategies, biophysical site assessments, socio-economic contexts, stakeholder engagement, and policy environments.


This PhD research will aim to determine such integrative socio-ecological typologies of mangrove restoration and conservation efforts in three large deltas: the Mekong, the Red River and the Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna deltas in Viet Nam, Bangladesh and India. An objective of the research is to develop an easy to use decision support tool to inform mangrove restoration/conservation strategies in the region. The research will be carried out within the Living Deltas Hub project and specifically within work-package 4 addressing tipping points in the coastal fringes of the three deltas. It will involve considerable amount of field work in the region. The successful candidate will be co-supervised by Professor Fabrice Renaud from the School of Interdisciplinary Studies and Dr Thorsten Balke from the School of Geographical and Earth Sciences, University of Glasgow, and will collaborate with many project partners in the deltas.

Eligibility

Applicants must meet the following eligibility criteria

• A good first degree (at least 2:1), preferably with an environmental science or geography component
• Demonstrate an interest in, and knowledge of coastal wetlands/mangrove systems, including the interface between the social and ecological interface, and of coastal wetland restoration/conservation strategies.
• Have a good grounding in both quantitative and qualitative research methods, participatory research approaches, statistics and GIS applications.

Award details

The scholarship is available as a three year '+3' (PhD only). The programme will commence in October 2020.  It includes

• A stipend indexed to the RCUK rate (2020-21 rate £15,285 Full-Time).
• 100% Tuition Fee Waiver at the standard Home/EU or International rate.
• Research Training Support Grant (RTSG) of up to £2,250 over 3 years (usually up to a maximum of £750 per year).

For more information and how to apply, click here.

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