Scotland s Rural College (SRUC) James Hutton Institute (JHI) and University of Edinburgh PhD Studentship - Exploring technical, economic and behavioural barriers to global soil carbon sequestration The world must pursue net negative emissions or drawdown strategies to have a reasonable chance of avoiding catastrophic climate change. All scenarios for keeping global temperature change below 1.5 C or 2 C involve extensive carbon sequestration. Agricultural soils, grasslands, and wetlands are huge potential sinks for carbon if properly managed. This studentship will explore the state of our scientific understanding, results from field trials, emerging policy frameworks, and proposals to accelerate progress and build the field of soilbased carbon sequestration globally. The studentship is part of a recently awarded NERC project Soils research to deliver greenhouse gas removals and abatement technologies (SOILS-R-GGREAT) to be conducted by a consortium (including SRUC, JHI and University of Edinburgh) led by Professor Peter Smith at the University of Aberdeen. As such, the student will gain significant exposure to a programme of research being conducted by leading research teams in the UK and internationally. SOILS-R-GGREAT will analyse the global potential for soil-based greenhouse gas removal, and how this varies by practice and region. This will include investigating the social, cultural and ecological impacts, current policies that prevent implementation and future policies that may enable wider adoption, managing risks, and integration with other greenhouse gas removal approaches. This PhD studentship will adopt mixed approaches to examine a range of data to develop scenarios for global sequestration. The student will be registered for a PhD at the University of Edinburgh and will be based between the Land Economy, Environment and Society research group at SRUC, Kings Buildings, Edinburgh and at the University of Edinburgh, School of Geosciences. The student will also collaborate closely with the James Hutton Institute in Aberdeen. It is anticipated that the student will spend periods at both institutions as well as visiting with other SOILS-R-GGREAT consortium partners. The studentship also links project partners SRUC and JHI and the outcomes will be of use to other partners. The student will be integrated into and receive support from the RCUK E3 Doctoral Training Programme (DTP) http://e3dtp.geos.ed.ac.uk/. In addition the successful student will undertake the full graduate training programmes offered by both the University of Edinburgh and SRUC. Applicants must have a minimum of a 2:1 degree in a quantitative discipline e.g. economics, agricultural economics, statistics or quantitative geography. An MSc in a quantitative subject is desirable. This 3 year studentship offers a stipend of 14,553 per annum and the expected start date is 1 st September 2017. The studentship is funded to pay the tuition fees of UK/EU nationals only. Non UK/EU nationals must provide evidence of sufficient funds to cover the higher international student tuition fee level (approximately 14,900 per year would be required). SRUC, Scotland s Rural College, delivers comprehensive skills, education and business support for Scotland s land-based industry founded on world class, sector leading research, education and consultancy. SRUC s joint submission with the University of Edinburgh to the Agriculture, Veterinary and Food Science subpanel of the Research Excellence Framework (REF2014) ranks top in the UK on research power. Online applications for this studentship can be submitted via our website www.sruc.ac.uk/jobs Applicants who are unable to access the online system can request an application pack from audrey.johnstone@sruc.ac.uk Tel 0131 535 4028 quoting reference SRUC/1031284/Moran. CV s are not accepted without a completed application form. If English is not an applicant s first language, an approved English language certificate may be required see further particulars for more details. To have an informal discussion about this studentship, contact Dominic Moran, email dominic.moran@sruc.ac.uk The closing date for the return of applications is 5pm on 14 th July 2017.
FURTHER PARTICULARS OF STUDENTSHIP Exploring technical, economic and behavioural barriers to global soil carbon sequestration SRUC/1031284/Moran RESEARCH GROUP The Land Economy, Environment & Society (LEES) Research Group, within SRUC undertakes research and consultancy in the areas of policy evaluation, environmental economics, agricultural economics, farming systems, land-use and planning. It has considerable experience in evaluating the costs and benefits arising from public policy, particularly related to environmental regulation, health and other welfare enhancing regimes introduced in the agricultural sector. This experience has involved examination of broadbrush legislation such as CAP reform, the Rural Development Regulation and the Water Framework Directive, as well as more specific targeted policies related to food security, environmental compliance, GM co-existence and animal health strategies. The SRUC team has extensive experience in a wide variety of research techniques that will cover the scope of this project. The James Hutton Institute (JHI) brought together the Macaulay Land Use Research Institute and SCRI on 1 April 201. The Institute combines strengths in crops, soils and land use and environmental research, and makes a major contribution to the understanding of key global issues, such as food, energy and environmental security, and developing and promoting effective technological and management solutions to these. The Institute is an internationally networked organisation and operates from multiple sites, including two main ones in Scotland at Aberdeen and Dundee. It employs more than 500 scientists and support staff, making it one of the biggest research centres in the UK and the first of its type in Europe. The Institute is one of the Scottish Government s main research providers in environmental, crop and food science and has a major role in the Scottish knowledge economy This studentship will be based within the Resource Economics team within LEES but will spend time at the James Hutton Institute. STUDENTSHIP All SRUC PhD studentships are registered through a partner University. This studentship will be registered with the Environment and Society Research Group of the University of Edinburgh s School of Geosciences. Furthermore, the student will also collaborate closely with the JHI. STUDENTSHIP DESCRIPTION The world must pursue net negative emissions or drawdown strategies to have a reasonable chance of avoiding catastrophic climate change. All scenarios for keeping global temperature change below 1.5 C or 2 C involve extensive carbon sequestration. Agricultural soils, grasslands, and wetlands are huge potential sinks for carbon if properly managed. This studentship will explore the state of our scientific understanding, results from field trials,
emerging policy frameworks, and proposals to accelerate progress and build the field of soilbased carbon sequestration globally. This PhD studentship will adopt mixed approaches to examine a range of data to develop scenarios for global sequestration. The student will be registered for a PhD at the University of Edinburgh and will be based between the Land Economy, Environment and Society research group at SRUC, Kings Buildings, Edinburgh and at the University of Edinburgh, School of Geosciences. The student will also collaborate closely with the James Hutton Institute in Aberdeen. It is anticipated that the student will spend periods at both institutions as well as visiting with other SOILS-R-GGREAT consortium partners. The studentship also links project partners SRUC and JHI and the outcomes will be of use to other project partners. The student will be integrated into the RCUK E3 Doctoral Training Partnership (DTP) http://e3dtp.geos.ed.ac.uk/ and will receive the full-support from that programme, in addition to undertaking graduate training programmes offered by both the School of Geoscience (UoE) and SRUC. QUALIFICATIONS Applicants must have a minimum of a 2:1 degree in a quantitative discipline e.g. economics, agricultural economics, statistics or quantitative geography. An MSc in a quantitative subject is desirable. Some understanding of economic theory is desirable. They should have familiarity and demonstrated use of current Windows office packages and data handling packages. Oral and writing skills in English are required to a high standard. PERSON SPECIFICATION When applying for the studentship please use the Supporting Statement section of your application to address the list of requirements indicating how your qualifications, experience, skills, and knowledge match the qualities in the list, together with examples if possible. Competencies Essential Desirable Education / Qualifications Skills / Abilities Experience Minimum of a 2:1 degree in a quantitative discipline e.g. economics, agricultural economics, statistics or quantitative geography Demonstrable written skills, oral communication skills & data analysis. Excellent IT skills. Experience in independent research Masters degree in environmental management/economics/geography with a quantitative training element Knowledge Global climate change and the role of agriculture/land use change Understanding of economic theory Any applicants who do not have English as their first language would be required to provide a recent (less than 2 years old) IELTS/TOEFL certificate to evidence they meet the minimum language requirements for PhD study at SRUC. A certificate must be provided before a studentship offer can be made. A certificate may not be required if a candidate has a recent undergraduate or masters degree, that was taught and assessed in English in a majority 2
English speaking country as defined by UK Visas and Immigration. The minimum language requirements for PhD study are: IELTS Academic module 6.5 (with no score lower than 6.0 in each section) TOEFL-iBT 92 (with no score lower than 20 in each section) BRIEF STATEMENT OF TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF THE STUDENTSHIP LEAD SUPERVISOR Professor Dominic Moran and Dr Matt Aitkenhead STIPEND This 3 year studentship offers a stipend consistent with UK Research Council recommended stipend (for 2017/18 this will be 14,553 per annum) and the expected start date is 1 st September 2017. The studentship is funded to pay the tuition fees of UK/EU nationals only. Non UK/EU nationals must provide evidence of sufficient funds to cover the higher international student tuition fee level (approximately 14,900 per year would be required). LOCATION SRUC, Kings Buildings, Edinburgh DURATION OF STUDENTSHIP 3 years STUDENTSHIP DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME Postgraduate Student development is of major importance to SRUC and accordingly, we try to provide every opportunity for appropriate training. In addition all of our research students registered through Edinburgh University are eligible to attend training courses and workshops organised by the University of Edinburgh s Institute of Academic Development (IAD). Research students registered with other Universities can attend the IAD training courses but will be charged a fee which can be allocated to their project if the training has been approved by the student s SRUC supervisor. ADDITIONAL DRIVING LICENCE Not required NO SMOKING POLICY SRUC operates a No Smoking policy.. EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES POLICY STATEMENT It is the policy of SRUC to provide equality of opportunity for all applicants for postgraduate studentships. This policy of equal opportunity will apply regardless of a person s gender, age, marital status, parental status, race, colour, nationality, ethnic origin, religious beliefs, HIV status, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender reassignment, transexualism or physical or mental disability, or any other inappropriate distinction. 3
SRUC is committed to the development and use of procedures and practices, which do not discriminate and which will provide genuine equality of opportunity for all students. DISABILITY POLICY STATEMENT SRUC is committed to a positive and pro-active approach to people who have a disability. SRUC would seek to enable students with any such disability to pursue their work in equality with all other employees, through recognition of the additional support they may need to achieve this. Please inform the Main Supervisor if any adjustments or support are required for interview, or whether any adjustments or adaptations may help you overcome operational difficulties presented by the studentship. REFERENCES When recruiting new students we are required to ensure that the character and background of applicants are thoroughly assessed to maintain and implement an effective risk assessment and recruitment policy. We therefore ask that academic references from your application form are taken up as part of the selection process. We also ask applicants to fill in the following: SELF DISCLOSURE (CHARACTER ENQUIRY) All applicants are required to complete the Self Disclosure (Character Enquiry) Form. The purpose of the Self Disclosure (Character Enquiry) Form is to allow applicants to disclose their convictions in full to ensure that SRUC can assess the disclosed information fairly and to make informed decisions as to whether or not the convictions are relevant to the studentship applied for. Only offences that are deemed to be relevant to the studentship applied for will result in applications not been taken forward for interview. APPLICATIONS Online applications can be submitted via our website www.sruc.ac.uk/jobs. Applicants who are unable to access the online application process can request an application pack by contacting audrey.johnstone@sruc.ac.uk Tel 0131 535 4028 quoting reference SRUC/1031284/Moran The closing date for applications is 5pm on 14 th July 2017 Reference SRUC/1031284/Moran should be quoted in all communications. We would recommend that electronic applications are sent 24 hours in advance of the deadline, to allow for any technical difficulties. Please note that applications received after the closing date will not normally be accepted. How will the information on the forms be used? The information collected on the equal opportunities monitoring form does not form part of the selection process and will not be circulated to the selection panel. It will be used solely to monitor the effectiveness of SRUC s equal opportunities policy. Your application form will be circulated to the selection panel. They will use this information to assess your suitability for the post against the selection criteria. If appointed, your application will be retained on your confidential student file. If you are unsuccessful, your application will be retained for six months and then disposed of securely. 4
At all times the information will be held securely in accordance with the terms of the Data Protection Act 1998. ABOUT SRUC SRUC A Higher Education Institute for the Rural Sector SRUC (Scotland s Rural College) is a widely respected higher education institute dedicated to producing specialist research, delivering high quality education and providing comprehensive consultancy services in the rural sector within the UK and beyond. An organisation unique in Scotland and one of the largest organisations of its kind in Europe; we aim to lead the way in innovation and sustainable development in the agriculture and rural sectors at local, national and international levels. A cornerstone of SRUC is our internationally respected research, which seeks to address the major challenges of growing global demand for food, climate change and dwindling natural resources. Drawing on this foundation of cutting edge research, much of SRUC s emphasis is on knowledge transfer and exchange. A large part of the business is devoted to the education of over 8000 students, and by combining high quality relevant courses and excellence in teaching and support we are able to offer our students the opportunity to progress in their studies from access level right up to PhD. Working closely with both education and research SRUC Consulting is a division of SRUC which delivers leading edge advice and consultancy to over 12,000 clients in Scotland and the North of England. Our consultancy services for farm and rural business include diversification, crops, livestock, business management, food and drink and veterinary services. We have approximately 1500 members of staff working in over 50 locations across Scotland, and the organisation s annual turnover is around 78m. Our Ambitions Develop within SRUC academic resources which have national impact and global influence. Become a global leader in land-based research and consultancy services. Operate as a sustainable, well-resourced organisation with exemplary environmental credentials and real ownership amongst students, staff and stakeholders. Build on our assets and reputation. SRUC Research SRUC receives Grant-in-Aid from the Scottish Government. For research, this is about 8m per annum. Total research income, including Grant-in-Aid and funds won competitively from other sources, is around 19m per annum. In SRUC Research there are about 260 staff, of which around 100 are Project Scientists. 5
The vision for SRUC Research is to be a lead institution, nationally and internationally, conducting applied research to enhance the rural economy and environment. SRUC is distinct from many other organisations in the close integration of its three functions. Consultancy services and knowledge transfer and exchange (KTE) underpinned by rigorous R & D is at the centre of our business In addition to normal expectations of research quality, we expect our research to be relevant to a problem area where there is a real stakeholder need. The programme is tailored to emphasise, as the dominant theme, end-user pull whilst maintaining a strong spirit of innovation. The programme of SRUC Research is established through discussion and interaction with end-users and stakeholders and the route to application is planned on a reasonable timescale. We expect our researchers, in their interactions with stakeholders, not only to be responsive to current stakeholder interests but also to have the imagination and capability to be proactive in identifying opportunities and potential longer-term benefits for end-users and stakeholders. This includes recognising and helping to deliver into practice the potential of new technological developments. We put a strong emphasis on economics and socio-economics work as a core area of research in its own right but also as a contextual driver for the whole of the research programme. The evolution of national, EU and World trade policies and their impacts on agriculture, the land-based sector and the development of rural policy is a strong driving force for the kinds of research endeavour in which we are involved. It is becoming increasingly important that we are capable of addressing issues, through research, that arise out of policies at these various levels, but also that we play a significant part in considering potential future scenarios that are likely to impinge on future developments of policy. There is therefore a growing emphasis on horizon scanning as part of the process through which SRUC develops its activities to be consistent, not only with current needs, but also to help anticipate future ones. Our research is organised in 4 research areas: o Land Economy, Environment and Society o Crop and Soil Systems o Animal and Veterinary Science o Future Farming Systems We collaborate widely with other research institutes and research groups, nationally and internationally, to add depth and breadth to our research activities. Of particular importance here are the other Main Research Providers that, like SRUC, are funded by Scottish Government to do research. We have close collaborations with the James Hutton Institute (Aberdeen and Dundee) in environmental, plant and crop research, the Moredun Research Institute (Edinburgh) in animal health research and Biomathematics and Statistics Scotland. The Scottish Government s new research strategy is forging yet stronger links between SRUC s research and that in the MRPs. This provides exciting opportunities for further research developments. SRUC is also a partner in the Easter Bush Research Consortium (see http://www.ebrc.ac.uk) - one of the largest groups focussed on the biology of companion and production animals in the world. Most SRUC animal and veterinary science researchers recently transferred to a new purpose-built building together with research staff from the Roslin Institute and Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies. Many applied problems facing end-users are multi-dimensional. Research to find solutions to such issues needs to take multi- and inter-disciplinary approaches. The SRUC Research programme is being developed progressively to build multi- and inter-disciplinary approaches to research as the core of the programme, strengthening systems research and modelling, with the Land Economy research area informing research prioritisation through its 6
analysis of policy and context. The conceptual structure of our research programme and the way it links to knowledge transfer services can be pictured as follows: The real measure of success in our research programme is not simply knowledge generation and publication in learned journals, although that is as important to us as to any other modern research institution. Rather we plan to see the outcomes of our research developed with and transferred to end-users and beneficiaries as effectively as possible, combining the strengths of our researchers, teachers and trainers and consultants to do this. DISCLAIMER These particulars are issued by the Postgraduate Office, SRUC, Edinburgh. They are intended to represent an accurate description of the studentship at the time of writing, although this accuracy cannot be guaranteed. SRUC reserves the right to vary these particulars or make no studentship appointment at all. Neither in part nor in whole do these particulars form any contract between SRUC and any individual. 7