Fully funded PhD position - apply now!
Join ETL and an interdisciplinary team working to tackle this complex, urgent problem.
Invasive brown rats threaten seabird populations on the Isles of Scilly, an internationally important habitat. Domestic food waste is a critical food source for the brown rats: localizing its management offers enormous potential for protecting the Isles’ biodiversity.
Food waste management is critical to effectively protecting biodiversity and forms a central role in the Islands’ Seabird Recovery Partnership. Localizing this management potentially reduces emissions from waste transport, reduces disposal costs for residents and businesses, and retains important nutrients on the islands in the form of composts or soil improvers. Securing this potential is a practical challenge, requiring technical, social and governance changes among island communities with different histories, geographies, cultural norms and values.
Addressing this complexity requires an interdisciplinary approach that engages multiple local stakeholders. As a student based in the Leverhulme Centre for Anthropocene Biodiversity (LCAB), you will liaise closely with these stakeholders, including during fieldwork on the Isles of Scilly for up to six months.
Your background in social science from within human geography, environmental science or related disciplines will demonstrate your strength in bringing concepts and methods from the academic literature to bear on real-world challenges. For more information and to apply, see the Securing biodiversity through a transdisciplinary approach to small island waste management recruitment page.