About the Project
This prestigious PhD Studentship, fully funded by the University of Stirling, will consider how we optimise the productivity and value from water resources in the Forth Water Basin in Scotland. This is a hugely exciting opportunity to make a real difference for the health and wealth of our businesses, communities, and natural ecosystems.
The studentship is linked with a ground-breaking £5m UKRI-funded Local Policy Innovation Partnership project. This major Partnership, called ‘FORTH2O’, involves seven Universities/Institutes, and over eighty stakeholder partners (including Scottish Government, Scottish Water, SEPA, Scottish Canals, Forth Ports, City Region Deals, Local Authorities, Health Boards, FE Colleges, Innovation Centres, and Chambers of Commerce, alongside numerous national agencies and organisations, environmental charities and community organisations).
Water resources provide essential ‘goods’ and ‘services’ and huge opportunities for the economy, society and communities. Harnessing these productively is a key route to optimising growth, value and community outcomes, as well as meeting important environmental goals. Do you want to contribute to our high-profile and cutting-edge research on these issues as part of an interdisciplinary team? If so, this studentship will appeal to you.
Water productivity can be defined as the value derived from the use of, or access to, a unit of water (Molden et al, 2010). Improving water productivity is fundamental to meeting societal demands, expanding economic activity, and maintaining the environment (Marston et al, 2020). The successful candidate will help develop new conceptual thinking about what represents a unit of water resource, the different forms of value that are created, and the novel combinations of value and benefits that may accrue (e.g. Osborne et al, 2021; Simmons, 2023). This work has the potential to generate ground-breaking shifts in mindset, behaviour and resource allocation, aligning established technical input-output efficiency measures with new questions regarding whether outcomes from water are ‘just, sustainable and good’ (JTI, 2021).
In building novel insights, the successful candidate will work with a range of tools, standards, metrics and narratives, which will be gathered, evaluated, tested and combined in innovative ways for use in a number of empirical contexts in the Forth Water Basin. This includes real-world applications for the ex-ante appraisal and prioritisation of relevant initiatives, activities or investments, as well as ex-post evaluation and review.
There is considerable scope to use a range of mixed methods in the construction of this research, which the successful candidate will be expected to shape with support from the supervisory team. This PhD project will provide a significant and timely contribution to knowledge – the results have the potential to inform policy and practice on these important topics, not only within the FORTH2O Partnership, but more widely across the UK and internationally.
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Supervisors
Prof. Richard Simmons (Professor of Public and Social Policy, Faculty of Social Sciences and LPIP/FORTH2O project lead) r.a.simmons@stir.ac.uk
Prof. Mirko Moro (Professor of Economics, Stirling Management School and FORTH2O Work Package lead for productivity and value) mirko.moro@stir.ac.uk
NB. The successful candidate will also benefit from working with other academic colleagues and stakeholder partners across the whole Partnership in developing, enriching and applying their research.
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Essential Attributes:
- Master’s degree (awarded at Merit or above) in a relevant academic discipline, with good fundamental knowledge of social science research methods
- Strong motivation, with evidence of independent research skills relevant to the project
- Competent in discipline-specific conceptual knowledge
- Competent in quantitative study, including knowledge and/or experience of survey and statistical applications (e.g. SPSS, Stata, R or Python)
- Good written and oral communication skills
- Creativity and versatility
- Good time management
- Willingness and ability to work as part of a team within the wider FORTH2O Project
Desirable Attributes:
- Award of Distinction in Master’s degree
- Knowledge and/or experience of using evaluation/measurement tools and techniques to assess value in a social science context
- Knowledge and/or experience of qualitative data analysis
Application Procedure:
Please send the following documents with the e-mail title ‘FORTH2O Optimising Value PhD Studentship’ to socscipgr@stir.ac.uk by the closing date 26th August 2024 (NB. Indicative interview date 3rd September);
(1) An up-to-date academic CV, detailing your education and qualifications; employment history; publications; and any other relevant information.
(2) Copies of the academic transcript and certificate from both your Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees. If your Master’s degree is pending, please provide an interim transcript.
(3) The names and contact details of two academic referees, one of which should be your Master’s dissertation supervisor. Referees will not be contacted unless you are invited to interview.
(4) A supporting statement of a maximum of 1500 words in two sections:
o Your motivation for applying for this studentship
o How your previous experience will support you in developing this PhD project, with regard to the essential/desirable attributes listed above
NB. A full PhD Proposal is NOT required.
The studentship will be based at the University of Stirling. The University is situated on a beautiful 330-acre campus just outside the historic city of Stirling. The campus offers a peaceful yet stimulating environment with everything you need for a good work-life balance. It boasts sports, academic, entertainment and cultural facilities as well as a loch, an Olympic-sized swimming pool and an 18-century castle. In the Faculty of Social Sciences you’ll discover a welcoming and supportive learning environment that will equip you with all you need to make a significant difference in the world.
We are committed to creating a workplace that promotes and values diversity. We strongly encourage applications from people from diverse backgrounds including gender identity, race, age, class, and ethnicity.
If you have any questions or would like to discuss this studentship further, please contact Professor Richard Simmons (r.a.simmons@stir.ac.uk).
Funding Notes
The studentship is intended to commence by 1st October 2024 for 4 years and is fully funded, covering tuition fees and an annual stipend (£19,237 per annum for 2024/25).
References
JTI (Just Transition Initiative) (2021) A Framework for Just Transitions, Washington, CSIS
Marston, L., Lamsal, G., Ancona, Z., Caldwell, P., Richter,B., Ruddell, B., Rushforth, R. & Frankel Davis, K. (2020) ‘Reducing Water Scarcity by Improving Water Productivity in the United States’ Environmental Research Letters 15, 1-13
Molden, D., Oweis, T., Steduto, P., Bindraban, P., Hanjra, M. & Kijne, J. (2010) ‘Improving Agricultural Water Productivity: between optimism and caution’, Agricultural Water Management, 97(4): 528-535
Osborne, S., Nasi, G. & Powell, M. (2021) ‘Beyond Co-Production: Value Creation and Public Services’, Public Administration 99(4): 641– 57.
Simmons, R. (2023) ‘Using Relationalism to Navigate Wicked Issues: Partnering for a ‘Relational Dividend’?’, in Bonner, A. (ed.) Wicked Issues, Relationalism and the Social Determinants of Health, Bristol: Policy Press
