Opportunities to research landscape scale restoration in the UK’s uplands
Three new PhD opportunities to research landscape scale upland restoration are being advertised at the University of Leeds (deadline: 11/04/22).
Restoration of degraded landscapes is needed to help address the climate emergency and the biodiversity crisis. In England, landscape recovery is now a core component of future farming policy and a new scheme supports landowners and farmers to restore nature and mitigate climate change. However, little is known about how landscape recovery and restoration can best fit within our upland landscapes and communities. Restoration projects are in their infancy and the benefits and trade-offs of different approaches are not well known. New research is urgently needed to ensure that landscape-scale restoration has the expected benefits for people, nature, and climate.
To address this need, we are appointing three Sowerby Researchers, as fully funded PhD studentships, to research the barriers and impacts of landscape-scale restoration in the UK uplands. Each Sowerby Researcher will work on an individual PhD project as well as collaborating together to ensure integrated research outcomes. The Sowerby Researchers will work closely with farmers and landowners, including ongoing landscape-scale conservation projects in northern England, providing a unique opportunity to gain experience in both research and practice. Research findings will directly inform ongoing discussions about land use and actions to address climate change and biodiversity loss. These studentships will suit applicants who are keen to address interdisciplinary research problems and help find solutions to some of the most pressing environmental issues facing UK landscapes.
Follow the links below to find out more about the individual projects and how to apply (closing date 11th April 2022):
- Negotiated visions of future upland landscapes
- Impacts of upland land management on ecosystem services
- Monitoring landscape-scale restoration for delivery of public goods
Funding for these PhD studentships has been generously provided by the Peter Sowerby Foundation.