PhD Projects

Our training programme is set within a multidisciplinary environment. All Partners are dedicated to developing a multi-, cross- and pan-disciplinary London centre of environmental science doctoral training.

We recognise the need to develop student skills in new subjects and linking research areas between traditional subjects. Each Partner has submitted a selection of PhD projects falling within each research theme.

Below is the list of the exemplar projects available. Students are also invited to develop their own bespoke projects. Click on a column header to sort the table, or use the ‘advanced search’ to search for projects on a particular topic, in a particular research theme, or at a particular institution.

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1st Supervisor Inst. Project Title Theme 2nd Supervisor Inst.
Abzhanov, Arkhat NHM Diversity of pterosaur crania from phylogenetic and ontogenetic perspectives Evolution & Adaptation Hone, David QMUL
Adam, Jurgen RHUL Simulation of Non-linear Fault-Fracture Processes and the Stress-Strain History in the Brittle Continental Crust Solid Earth Dynamics
Alexander, David UCL Evaluating earthquake information in the light of public needs Pan-disciplinary Kelman, Ilan UCL
Andres, Aida UCL Genetic adaptation in chimpanzee subspecies Evolution & Adaptation Balloux, Francois UCL
Arlt, Volker KCL The risk of microplastics to environmental health – Determining the risk of microplastics as vectors of organic pollutants in cultured epithelial cells Environmental Pollution Wright, Stephanie KCL
Aruliah, Anasuya UCL Structures and energetics of the auroral upper atmosphere and ionosphere Natural & Biological Hazards
Axmacher, Jan UCL Nocturnal pollinators in agro-ecosystems Biodiversity & Ecology
Baas, Andreas KCL Soil Erosion by Wind and Land-Use Decisions by Farmers Explored with Agent Based Modelling Earth, Atmosphere & Ocean Processes Millington, James KCL
Bähler, Jürg UCL The evolution of environmental plasticity Evolution & Adaptation Reuter, Max UCL
Balloux, Francois UCL Can host phenotypic plasticity facilitate survival when environmental change and disease cause amphibian declines? Natural & Biological Hazards Garner, Trenton IOZ
Barnes, Ian NHM Tracking historical dynamics of pathogens in bumblebees: linking disease to declines Biodiversity & Ecology Brown, Mark RHUL
Barron, Leon KCL Measuring occurrence and fate of drugs in aquatic species using high resolution analytical techniques: potential for human exposure? Environmental Pollution Kanda, Rakesh Brunel
Bass, David NHM Developing the eDNA toolkit to meet policy challenges Evolution & Adaptation Brown, Mark RHUL
Baynes, Alice Brunel Pharmaceuticals in the Environment – Investigating the effects of anti-depressants in aquatic molluscs Environmental Pollution Jobling, Susan Brunel
Brekke, Patricia IOZ Ageing in the wild and how to manage it Evolution & Adaptation Balloux, Francois UCL
Brekke, Patricia IOZ Why do eggs fail? Evolution & Adaptation Balloux, Francois UCL
Briant, Rebecca BBK Reconstructing multiple high sea level events in the Channel – the records from southwest England and south Wales Past Life & Environments Roberts, Gerald BBK
Briant, Rebecca BBK EQuaTE – Building a European Quaternary timescale based on AAR analyses Past Life & Environments
Brierley, Chris UCL Past2Future climate simulations Past Life & Environments Guillas, Serge UCL
Brierley, Chris UCL Climate variability, past and future Earth, Atmosphere & Ocean Processes Thornalley, David UCL
Bristow, Charlie BBK Dust production from desert sand dunes Earth, Atmosphere & Ocean Processes Drake, Nick KCL
Brodholt, John UCL The deep nitrogen cycle – nitrogen storage in the subduction system Solid Earth Dynamics Thomson, Andrew UCL
Brown, Mark RHUL Evolutionary ecology of social insects and their parasites Biodiversity & Ecology
Brown, Mark RHUL Impacts of stressors on bee health Biodiversity & Ecology Sumner, Seirian UCL
Buggs, Richard QMUL The genomic basis of ash dieback tolerance Biodiversity & Ecology
Burgess, William UCL Terrestrial water storage in the Bengal Basin – piezometric monitoring to validate and complement GRACE observations Natural & Biological Hazards Shamsudduha, Mohammed UCL
Burningham, Helene UCL The importance of inlets and their tidal deltas on the sediment dynamics and flood and erosion risk management of low-lying coastal systems Earth, Atmosphere & Ocean Processes
Burningham, Helene UCL Vulnerability of coastal dune habitats to climate change and anthropogenic intervention Pan-disciplinary Thompson, Julian UCL
Catford, Jane KCL The Future of Alien Invasions: the impact of rates of introduction, and introduction bias, on the richness and composition of alien assemblages Biodiversity & Ecology Blackburn, Tim UCL
Chadwick, Michael KCL Managing ecosystem services trade-offs between diverse socio-ecological systems in coastal Bangladesh Pan-disciplinary Adams, Helen KCL
Chatterjee, Helen UCL Predicting human impacts and environmental change on Southeast Asian biodiversity: past, present and future Biodiversity & Ecology Turvey, Samuel IOZ
Chaudhary, Abdul Brunel Metal recovery from secondary and low-grade primary sources using green solvents Environmental Pollution
Clare, Elizabeth QMUL Plant animal interactions – genetic diagnostics of species interactions Biodiversity & Ecology
Clark, Paul NHM The effects of the invasive Chinese mitten crab, Eriocheir sinensis, on native UK biota Biodiversity & Ecology Morritt, David RHUL
Clayton, David QMUL Identifying the neural mechanisms underlying colony identity Evolution & Adaptation Wurm, Yannick QMUL
Clemitshaw, Kevin RHUL Impacts of climate change and urban growth on ecological populations in the River Thames Basin Biodiversity & Ecology
Clemitshaw, Kevin RHUL Interdisciplinary studies of seasonal fluxes of nitrous oxide and methane in treated forest soils Environmental Pollution
Cuadros, Javier NHM Dynamics of Plio-Pleistocene environments in East Africa through the study of clay sediments Earth, Atmosphere & Ocean Processes de la Torre, Ignacio UCL
Cunningham, Andrew IOZ Informing Critically Endangered giant salamander conservation in China Biodiversity & Ecology Frantz, Laurent QMUL
Davies, Bethan RHUL Onshore-offshore Quaternary glacial processes and correlations: Dudgeon offshore windfarm zone, Southern North Sea Past Life & Environments
Davies, Bethan RHUL Dynamic patterns of ice recession in northern Patagonia Past Life & Environments Thorndycraft, Varyl RHUL
Day, Julia UCL Understanding the links between anthropogenic change, functional diversity and ecosystem resilience on tropical mountains Biodiversity & Ecology Norris, Ken IOZ
Day, Julia UCL Speciation in soda lake cichlids: ecological and genomic characterisation of reproductive barriers Evolution & Adaptation Mank, Judith UCL
dela Torre, Ignacio UCL Landscape use by Homo erectus in Olduvai Gorge (Tanzania) Past Life & Environments Hopley, Philip BBK
Dessimoz, Christophe UCL Resolving Deep Animal Phylogenies Through Genome-wide Maximum Likelihood Phylogenetic Inference Evolution & Adaptation Telford, Max UCL
Diazgranados, Mauricio KEW America’s useful plant and fungi data mining Pan-disciplinary Tucker, Allan Brunel
Dickson, Alex RHUL Quantifying marine redox during the Triassic–Jurassic mass extinction Past Life & Environments King, Martin RHUL
Dickson, Alex RHUL Exploring phosphates and carbonates as an archive of the zinc-isotope chemistry of past oceans Past Life & Environments Mattey, Dave RHUL
Disney, Mathias UCL Using new 3D measurements to explain forest structure and function Pan-disciplinary
Disney, Mathias UCL New approaches to measuring and valuing urban forests Pan-disciplinary Lewis, Philip UCL
dos Reis, Mario QMUL Fossil morphology and genomic data to study species divergences through time. Evolution & Adaptation
Eggleton, Paul NHM Functional diversity of termites across the tropics: linking pattern and process Biodiversity & Ecology Sumner, Seirian UCL
Eggleton, Paul NHM True or false? The evolution of gene expression in worker termites Evolution & Adaptation Sumner, Seirian UCL
Elphick, Maurice QMUL Reconstructing the Evolutionary history of neuropeptide signalling in the phylum Echinodermata Evolution & Adaptation Ewin, Tim NHM
Emery, Aidan NHM Non invasive surveying of parasites in wild otter populations Natural & Biological Hazards Lockyer, Anne Brunel
Engels, Stefan BBK Reconstructing long-term trends in NW European insect biodiversity using subfossil chironomids Past Life & Environments Briant, Rebecca BBK
Eyice, Ozge QMUL Interaction between anaerobic microorganisms during biomethane generation from wastewaters Pan-disciplinary Trimmer, Mark QMUL
Faure Walker, Joanna UCL A long-term stress map of the Italian Apennines from long-term strain-rates and palaeoseismic records Natural & Biological Hazards Roberts, Gerald BBK
Faure Walker, Joanna UCL Temporal and spatial strain accumulation within the Italian Apennines from modelling and laboratory experiments Natural & Biological Hazards Sammonds, Peter UCL
Ford, Heather QMUL Past intermediate and deep ocean circulation during sustained periods of warmth Past Life & Environments
218 PhD projects available

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