PhD Studentship: Net Zero Climate Change: Political and Societal Engagement With Hard Choices and Difficult Trade-offs

Primary supervisor - a.jordan@uea.ac.uk

The topic

Reducing UK emissions to (net) zero will be very difficult without policies that disrupt the status quo. However, it is an open question as to whether society – comprising publics, politicians and other policy makers – is willing and able to embrace and implement such policies, particularly if they curtail individual freedoms or make certain groups worse off.

This studentship will examine how different social actors perceive the challenge of achieving net zero and the policies to achieve it. Specifically, it will explore how far they perceive net zero to challenge the status quo, via the adoption of policies that involve difficult trade-offs and hard choices.

Skills and data

This is one of three ESRC Centre for Climate Change and Social Transformations (CAST) affiliated studentships that will commence at UEA in October 2025. CAST is a centre of excellence that has embarked on a second phase of work (2024-9) which will focus on especially ‘sticky’ behaviours such as flying and eating meat. UEA is one of the CAST partners. In the 2021 REF, UEA was ranked 20th in the UK for research quality and impact.

It will provide you with an opportunity to utilise a wide array of methods to interrogate different forms of data. It will primarily be desk-based. You will have access to a large stock of existing high-quality data on public and politician attitudes and behaviours, collected in CAST Phase 1 and in the prestigious European Research Council project DeepDCarb. The research focus could be UK-based or (depending on your interests and skills) comparative across countries.

Training and professional development

You will have access to a varied professional development programme at UEA to support your research and prepare you for your future career. It will provide choice, flexibility and support to empower you to design your own annual training plan alongside some mandatory training on core topics. Sessions will be delivered by a range of highly qualified staff with expert knowledge in research, communication, personal effectiveness, wellbeing, data analysis and career planning.

You will be able to formally affiliate with CAST and/or the 25 year old Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research, which is headquartered at UEA. Together these centres and networks will offer you opportunities to undertake team-based interdisciplinary research, present your findings at international conferences and learn how to make impactful contributions to society.

Eligibility

You should:

• Have a first at hons. level (Political science, human geography, psychology, sociology, social environmental sciences) and a Masters degree in a relevant subject;
• Have a demonstrable interest and expertise in climate change politics and/or policy-making;
• Have experience in qualitative and/or quantitative data and methods;
• Be eager to join and actively contribute to a team of interdisciplinary researchers;
• Be a UK citizen or have a passport that does that does not require a visa to study in the UK;

Funding Details

Additional Funding Information 

This PhD studentship is funded for 3 years by an ESRC CAST grant for UK/Home students. This includes payment of tuition fees, and a stipend of £19,237 to cover living expenses. 

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