University of Tasmania, Australia

Call for PhD Elite Scholarship applicants

Are you passionate about marine environment issues in Tasmania? Are you thinking about beginning a PhD?

Applications are being sought from motivated, high-calibre candidates for a multidisciplinary PhD exploring coastal waste and marine debris and attitudes towards these issues across Tasmania’s coastlines. 

This Elite PhD Scholarship is a partnership between the Alcorso Foundation, Bookend Trust and the University of Tasmania’s Faculty of Education.

This project provides the successful candidate with an opportunity to undertake high-level research as part of a strategic partnership that delivers sustainability and educative outcomes.

The candidate will be based in Launceston under the supervision of a team led by Dr Allen Hill, UTAS Faculty of Education.

Background:

Tasmania is the only Australian state to have its entire border consisting of coast. This leaves the state highly susceptible to waste and debris issues, and it is important that Tasmania matches other states in developing effective waste policy and programs.

Several action groups and education initiatives are being delivered across Tasmania, but greater co-ordination between these projects would assist in addressing the underlying issue. A proactive and integrated approach to reducing Tasmania’s coastal waste is needed, targeting a range of audiences.

A state-wide multi-disciplinary research project investigating marine debris issues and attitudes around Tasmania and contributing to a coordinated and integrated coastal waste education strategy is offered to the right candidate.

The project aims to raise awareness and develop meaningful strategies that can facilitate action that addresses the impacts of coastal waste and marine debris. Data collected will be shared with community, industry and government to highlight issues, heighten awareness and provide recommendations for educational strategies towards influencing behavior change.

Research focus:

The main focus of this research will be to identify causal factors contributing to coastal waste and marine debris in order to develop educational strategies for schools, community, business and industry. The objectives of the project are to:

• Analyse, collate and expand upon work previously carried out in the field;
• Identify causal factors of coastal waste and marine debris; and
• Develop a tangible analysis of the effectiveness of community engagement and educational approaches aimed at effecting change in community attitudes and behaviour;

The candidate must have:

• A strong academic background in Science/Environment and/or Education;
• Proven skills in data collection and analysis;
• A high level of communication skills;
• An ability to work both independently and collaboratively with the project partners, the project manager and academic supervisors;
• First class honours or equivalent, and be competitive for APA, TGRS, IPRS or similar scholarships.

Interested candidates must forward:

1. A covering letter;
2. A full academic CV; and
3. A written response to the project criteria.

Submissions must be received by email to info@alcorso.org no later than 5pm, Friday 5 April, 2013.

Shortlisted candidates will be invited to attend a panel interview either face-to-face or via electronic means if out of the state.