The University of Strathclyde has launched an exciting Centre for Doctoral Training (CDT) on “Partnerships for Sustainable Innovation”. The SCDT is housed in the Stephen Young Institute for International Business and is a collaboration between Strathclyde Business School and the University of Strathclyde Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences. Within the above mentioned SCDT the University of Strathclyde invites you to apply to an exciting PhD opportunity.

Whether it is climate change, or current events in geo-politics, one can say without hesitation that the world is at a turning point. 2030 will mark the end of the SDGs, so this is a perfect moment to critically assess their implementation and start discussing what comes after 2030. At the same time, population in cities will continue to increase, especially in the Global South, often putting enormous pressure on the quality and quantity of freshwater (and other natural resources) needed to sustain ever increasing urban areas. Business (and international business in particular), as well as other societal actors, play a pivotal role in shaping what the world (and cities in particular) will look like Post 2030. 

Within the SCDT on “Partnerships for Sustainable Innovation” the University of Strathclyde invites you to apply to this exciting PhD opportunity. The project will explore “new” approaches to international law and sustainability, underpinned by legal pluralism and global administrative law, that criticize the SDGs, go beyond it and aim to provide the foundations for a new version of the SDGs post 2030. Such new approaches will be explored by focusing on one specific sustainability challenge (freshwater) in the context of urban sustainability and partnerships therein. 

In particular, this project will review the Sustainable Development Goals with a specific focus on SDG 6 (freshwater), SDG 11 (cities) and SDG 17 (global partnerships) in order to critically assess the relationship between city sustainability and partnerships between different societal actors, such as businesses, public sector, and civil society, in the management of freshwater resources (including rivers). The project will include an exhaustive review of a selected group of C40 cities.

In addition to contributing to the literature through original research, this PhD project (as well as the wider CDT) will contribute to

• international policy recommendations linked to the reform of the SDGs
• city focused policy recommendations linked to city sustainability and the management of freshwater resources therein

Further information

Contrary to PhD projects where Law PhDs may carry out a desk-based study in isolation, the SCDT offers a great opportunity to work on your project collaboratively with other three PhD researchers enrolled in the SCDT, as well as with the SCDT team of supervisors across the Strathclyde Business School and the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences. The SCDT supervisory team will work with you to enable you to access world leading networks from which you will benefit during your PhD project

You will also enrol in the University’s Postgraduate Certificate in Researcher Professional Development (PG Cert RPD). This programme offers a tailored suite of workshops, courses, events, online provisions and resources designed to meet your development needs. This is a unique qualification aimed at developing skilled, confident researchers and effective and valuable potential employees. You will graduate with the University’s Postgraduate Certificate in Researcher Professional Development.

In addition, you may be able to apply for funding to carry out international field work related to your PhD subject to clearance and approval from the SCDT leadership, further to any support for such purposes available centrally.