The Countryside and Community Research Institute (CCRI) is delighted to offer three new fully funded social science PhD studentships, to commence in October 2026.
CCRI recently secured the competitive funds for the studentships from the Welsh Graduate School for the Social Sciences (WGSSS), a doctoral training network of which we are a member through the University of Gloucestershire.
Three new PhD studentships
Citizen Science Across Domains: Participation, Knowledge Exchange and Policy Impact for Freshwater, Biodiversity and Tree Health.
This doctoral opportunity will examine and compare the dynamics of citizen science across three domains: freshwater, biodiversity, and tree health. Each of these operates under different institutional and policy contexts. By examining these side by side, the project creates an opportunity to better understand how citizen science functions across settings, and what can be learned between them.
Supervisors: Dr Charlotte-Anne Chivers (CCRI), Dr Michael Pocock (UKCEH), and Dr Julie Urquhart (CCRI).
Deadline for applications: 1 May 2026
Learn more and apply: https://www.findaphd.com/phds/project/citizen-science-across-domains-participation-knowledge-exchange-and-policy-impact-for-freshwater-biodiversity-and-tree-health/?p196105
Adapting for change: deliberative approaches to farm system climate adaptation in the Usk Valley
The PhD aims to: firstly, understand perceived impacts of climate change on farms and their business models in the catchment; secondly, deliberate (using qualitative and catchment-level climate data in a ‘climate fresk’) strategies for climate adaptation (farm and catchment scales); and thirdly, share findings and recommendations for learning with farming rural policy advisors and to validate a ‘climate fresk’ (climate adaptation) game for Welsh farming systems.
Supervisors: Professor Damian Maye, Dr Philippa Simmonds and Dr Aimee Morse (CCRI), Dr Sarah Jones (adviser, Welsh Government), and Professor Bridget Emmett (adviser, UKCEH).
Deadline for applications: 6 May 2026
Learn more and apply: https://www.findaphd.com/phds/project/adapting-for-change-deliberative-approaches-to-farm-system-climate-adaptation-in-the-usk-valley/?p196111
Important Trees – Co-creating ways to recognise and protect their value
This PhD provides an exciting opportunity to explore how tree protection/designation can most effectively interpret, reflect, and protect their ecological, social, and cultural ‘importance’. It should generate evidence that can help support decision-making about the future protection of important trees and insight into the complexity and value of co-designed environmental regulation.
Supervisors: Dr Alice Goodenough and Dr Julie Urquhart (CCRI) and Dr Beth Brockett (Forest Research).
Deadline for applications: 1 May 2026
Learn more and apply: https://www.findaphd.com/phds/project/important-trees-co-creating-ways-to-recognise-and-protect-their-value/?p196115
WGSSS funding success
These studentships are made possible by funds from the WGSSS, which CCRI secured through the Supervisor-led Collaborative Competition.
Alice Goodenough of CCRI coordinated the competition and also successfully applied for funds through its Environment and Planning pathway for her Important Trees studentship.
Alice said:
“CCRI is delighted to have won three of the four studentships available in the Environment and Planning pathway. This success is testament to our expertise and track record within transdisciplinary, real-world research that frequently reflects policy and practice priorities.”
“Successful applicants to the studentships will benefit from WGSSS’s training pathways and provision as well as CCRI’s well-supported PhD research environment.”
Why study with CCRI?
The CCRI has a thriving research student community. We foster a vibrant research culture that includes a range of training and intellectual exchange within the Institute that research students are actively encouraged to take part in.
