Fully Funded MSc by Research: Environmental Impacts of Swansea Half-Marathon and Other Large Events Moving to Net Zero

Funding provider: Swansea University

Subject area(s): Psychology, Environmental Science / Engineering, Environmental Engineering (Departments of Mechanical Engineering and Psychology) 

Project start date:

• 1st January 2025 / 1st April 2025

Supervisors: Professor Ian Walker (ian.walker@swansea.ac.uk) and Professor Matthew Davies (M.L.Davies@Swansea.ac.uk) 

Aligned programme of study: MSc by Research in Psychology

Mode of study: Full-time  

Project description: 

Hosting large events is big business, worth >£40 billion in the UK alone. However, the event industry has a high environmental impact and there is an increasing drive to reduce this. For example, in the entertainment industry, Coldplay’s pledge to reduce their emissions by 50%. 

If we are to move towards a sustainable society, engineers and social scientists need to work together to ensure that technology developments are effective in reducing environmental impacts. This project will give the successful applicant the opportunity to build skills in both disciplines.  

The student will work with Front Runner (the organiser of the Swansea Half Marathon) to measure the environmental impact using life cycle assessment (LCA) of the Swansea Half Marathon and the effect of changes made by the organiser to make the event more sustainable. This part of the research will be supported by a supervisor in the department of Mechanical Engineering.   

The second part of the research will measure competitors and sponsors' reaction to these changes in order to support consequential life cycle analysis of the changes (e.g. what happens if the event stops giving out free t-shirts – is there a real saving or do people choose an event with free t-shirts instead?)  

(Please visit the website for more project description information) 

Eligibility

Candidates must hold an undergraduate degree at 2.1 level (or Non-UK equivalent as defined by Swansea University) (see country specific qualifications). Given the trans-disciplinary nature of this master's, we do not want to discourage applications from graduates of any discipline. However, applicants holding an undergraduate qualification in Psychology, Marketing, Engineering (with LCA experience) and Environmental Science are particularly encouraged. Please note that you may need to provide evidence of your English Language proficiency. 

Due to funding restrictions, this scholarship is open to applicants eligible to pay tuition fees at the UK rate only, as defined by UKCISA regulations. 

Salary Information

Additional Salary Information

This scholarship covers the full cost of UK tuition fees and a stipend of £19,327.

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