Vacancies

Bangladesh has some of the most densely-populated cities facing overlapping risks of health, climate and urbanisation. Residents - particularly the poorest - have diets low in fresh vegetables and fruit, are subjected to hazardous levels of pollution, and have little or no access to green spaces.  Women in particular have high levels of vitamin D deficiency due to extended time indoors fuelled by gender norms and limited access to women-friendly parks. Urban gardens can support biodiversity, local food production, access to green space and reduce heat-island effects with potential health gains and are supported by recent policies. 

You will be based in the Leverhulme Centre for Anthropocene Biodiversity (LCAB) and your home department will be the Hull York Medical School , supervised by Helen Elsey, Anika Haque and Piran White. Your project will:

• Systematically review evidence of impacts of policies, fiscal interventions and programmes to support urban gardens on health, biodiversity and ecosystem service outcomes in the global south.
• Map low-income neighbourhoods to identify existing and potential urban gardens and assess their biodiversity in city/ies in Bangladesh.
• Explore perceptions and experiences (both positive and negative) of residents and city planners of urban gardens and their biodiversity.
• Co-design strategies with local stakeholders to stimulate urban gardens within cities.

You will have a Masters degree  in a relevant subject, with a commitment to building interdisciplinary networks. Experience of qualitative and participatory research methods and knowledge of the global south would be advantageous. You will have excellent written and spoken English and an ability to speak, or willingness to learn, Bengali. This LCAB scholarship only covers UK home PhD fees. If you are an international student, you will need to show that you have available funds to cover the additional international fees required.

Funding notes:

This studentship covers UK fees for 4 years and a tax-free stipend to match the UKRI’s minimum rate for 2024/25 for 3.5 years. While non-UK home students are welcome to apply, before interview all international applicants would need to show evidence of funding to cover the additional costs of international fees, which are subject to increase in subsequent years. See our website for current fee levels.

Entry requirements: 

Students with, or expecting to gain, a Masters degree and at least an Upper Second Class Honours degree, or equivalent, are invited to apply. The interdisciplinary nature of this research project means that we welcome applications from students with backgrounds in any relevant subject that provides the necessary skills, knowledge and experience for the project. You will need to submit a 1-page proposal outlining how you would approach the research project. See our FAQs for further details.

Eligibility: 

To qualify for UK (home) fee status, students must be from the UK (England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland) or Islands (Channel Islands and Isle of Man) and have been ordinarily resident in the UK for the past three years. 

Key dates:

• Closing date - 30 September 2024
• Interviews - November 2024
• Start - January 2025

Apply now

Much cultivation is accompanied by efforts at eradication, removing unwanted plants which are designated as weeds. However, weed-infested land might also be viewed as covered by a rich diversity of species. This project examines the incidence, perception and definition of weeds in Britain between the C16 - C20 and the relation between them.

You will explore how far the pathologization of “weeds'' was bound up with political, aesthetic or economic imperatives. This cultural historical approach will be balanced by attention to changes on the ground. To what extent were “weed” species simply colonising new anthropogenic habitats, thereby biodiversifying those environments? How far were they inadvertently introduced or escaping from cultivation, transitioning from ‘rare exotic’ to weed?

This project can be approached in a variety of ways. Applicants should set out the period and the sources on which they will focus, the approach(es) they expect to use, and how this particular work will illuminate broader questions. They are strongly encouraged to consult with the supervisors during the application process.

You will have a grounding in history, art history, archaeology, sociology, anthropology, cultural or literary studies. You should indicate what research/methodological skills you will bring and how you will craft a research project making the best use of your aptitudes, interests and experience.

You will be based in the Leverhulme Centre for Anthropocene Biodiversity (LCAB) and your home department will be History, supervised by Mark Jenner, Nik Brown and Jack Hatfield. 

Funding notes:

This studentship covers UK fees for 4 years and a tax-free stipend to match the UKRI’s minimum rate for 2024/25 for 3.5 years. 

Entry requirements: 

Students with, or expecting to gain, at least an Upper Second Class Honours degree, or equivalent, are invited to apply. The interdisciplinary nature of this research project means that we welcome applications from students with backgrounds in any relevant subject that provides the necessary skills, knowledge and experience for the project. You will need to submit a 1-page proposal outlining how you would approach the research project. See our FAQs for further details.

Eligibility: 

To qualify for UK (home) fee status, students must be from the UK (England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland) or Islands (Channel Islands and Isle of Man) and have been ordinarily resident in the UK for the past three years. 

Key dates:

• Closing date - 27 September 2024
• Interviews - October 2024
• Start - January 2025

Apply now

• guidance in developing and refining your research proposal along with advice on appropriate funding scheme
• additional salary to extend the fellowship duration beyond the initial funding period (fully funded fellowships)
• salary to support a postdoctoral research associate linked to the fellowship (fully funded fellowships)
• salary match funding, which may be split with home departments (part-funded fellowships)
• co-supervision of a PhD student associated with the Centre.
• mentoring a postdoctoral research associate in the Centre
• eligibility to bid for further LCAB research funding to support, for example, pump-priming activities, academic visitors to the Centre, short-term buy-in of skills or internal placements.