Postgraduate Research

Collaboration Through Research

At the Lincoln Centre for Ecological Justice, we have an inclusive multi-disciplinary and interdisciplinary research ecosystem. Our PGR students are encouraged to collaborate through research events and using our online collaboration systems to develop their formal and informal research networks.

We invite applications from PGR students who wish to research aspects of Ecological Justice and will consider applications focussed on single discipline studies, as well as those focussed on multi, or inter-disciplinary studies addressing Ecological Justice.

Our PhD students are committed to making research breakthroughs and inspiring those around them, and we are committed to helping them achieve their goals. That’s why the University of Lincoln is making a significant investment to provide research studentship opportunities for exceptional doctoral candidate.

Sample Past and Present PhD Students and Projects

Ehsan Ahmadian – Impact of Urban Built Form and Urban Density on Building Energy Performance in Different Climates

This thesis establishes a framework to demonstrate the inter-correlation of urban built form and density with building energy performance (energy demand plus PV energy generation) in cities. It also investigates the impact of climate on this correlation by selecting four case studies (London, Singapore, Helsinki and Phoenix) from different climatic conditions. The holistic outcome of this study provides urban energy planning guidelines that can be used by various stakeholders in the built environment to design more sustainable cities.

Research theme – Delivering Ecological Justice

 

Daniel Akrofi – Plastic Pollution, International Environmental Law and Earth System Governance: Earth System Law as a New Legal Paradigm for Global Plastic Governance

Managing plastic pollution has become a concern not just to governments at the national level but the international community as well. Its benefits are enormous from healthcare, construction to packaging but the menace is beyond the Earth's threshold. With no international agreement in place to manage plastics and current international resolutions inadequate to deal sufficiently with the problem, I employ Earth System Law as a New Legal Paradigm to proffer solutions to Global Plastic Governance.

Research themes – Understanding Ecological Justice, Delivering Ecological Justice

 

Shireen Alqadi – Accelerating Sustainable Housing Considering Occupants’ Health, Wellbeing and Thermal Comfort, the Case of Palestine

Energy security and affordability are among the major challenges facing the Palestinians. While the housing sector is a main energy consumer, the majority of the housing is of low energy efficiency. Before introducing the renewable energy technologies, optimizing the energy consumption is crucial. Meanwhile, very limited research incorporates the users’ behaviour alongside the physical characteristics of the buildings when examining the consumption of energy. The main goal of this research was to contribute to the development of sustainable housing in Palestine while considering thermal comfort, wellbeing and health of the users. The objectives of this research were to narrow the knowledge gap concerning the thermal performance of residential buildings and the thermal behaviour of the occupants. Another goal was to develop methods for estimating the energy consumption in buildings by integrating the socioeconomic characteristics of the occupants. In addition to critically assess the level of thermal comfort of occupants and develop adaptive models to predict the level of thermal comfort based on that. Finally, to create validated Dynamic Building Energy Simulation (DBES) models for existing case study buildings and integrate the users’ actual behaviour and thermal comfort preferences in the simulation to optimize the use of energy.

Research theme – Delivering Ecological Justice

 

Prince Bansah – Democratic transition in environmental governance: The integration of community participation practices in mining communities in Ghana

This thesis is anchored on three main sub-themes. It includes democratic transition, community participation and environmental governance. The purpose of this research is to explore the potential of participation practices (e.g., consensus conferences, citizens’ juries, deliberative forums) to elicit community participation in environmental decision making, with a focus on selected mining communities in Ghana.

Research themes – Understanding Ecological Justice, Delivering Ecological Justice 

 

Jakub L Ciesielczuk – The participation of non-state actors in international environmental regimes governing marine genetic resources

My research focuses on the nature of participation of non-State actors (e.g. intergovernmental and non-governmental organisations) in regimes regulating the utilisation of marine genetic resources (i.e. DNA of marine species). The participation of non-state actors in those regimes is examined in the context of ensuring equity of access to benefits of utilising marine genetic resources. 

Research themes – Understanding Ecological Justice, Delivering Ecological Justice

 

Nani T Mangoale – Achieving the Right to Water in South Africa (SA): A socio-legal study on the potential role of Catchment Management Agencies (CMAs) in fostering Decentralised Water Governance

The study has been motivated by the provision of a right to water as a basic right through s.27 of the  Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 108 of 1996 and the National Water Act (NWA), 36 of 1998. The hypothesis for the study is that CMAs in the South African context have a potential to achieve a decentralised water governance that can help in the realisation of S.27 of the Constitution (the right to water). The study employs a socio-legal approach to contextualise understanding of law in practice and is supported by empirical data collected from water experts and managers who add their voices to the appraisal of the legal framework.

 

Seán P Marriot – Non-force enforcement of fisheries: The evolution of legal mechanisms for achieving compliance in national and international fisheries

This work examines the central problem of fishery management: how to ensure compliance with sustainability goals.  The study investigates options for developing a new paradigm for resource-user responsibility through no-force compliance, particularly trade-related measures. The outcome propose a legislative framework incorporating the new approach.

Research theme – Delivering Ecological Justice

 

Soseala Saosaoa – Community Education and Its Impact on Environmental Stewardship in Tuvalu

Soseala’s doctoral research seeks to assess the effectiveness of formal and non-formal training on environmental stewardship (biodiversity and ecosystem services) and devising and testing appropriate methodology to examine educational interventions on environmental stewardship.

Research theme – Delivering Ecological Justice

 

Olivier N Yambo – The Customary Law Status of the Principle of Sustainable Use in the Context of Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction

This Thesis seeks to determine the normative force of the principle of sustainable use when the principle is applied in international environmental treaties regulating human activities in marine areas outside the authority of States.

Research theme – Understanding Ecological Justice