PhD Studentship: Digital Twinning for Post-Mining Environmental Transitions. NERC GW4+ DTP PhD studentship for September 2026 Entry

About the Partnership

This project is one of a number that are in competition for funding from the NERC Great Western Four+ Doctoral Training Partnership (GW4+ DTP).  The GW4+ DTP consists of the Great Western Four alliance of the University of Bath, University of Bristol, Cardiff University and the University of Exeter plus five Research Organisation partners:  British Antarctic Survey, British Geological Survey, Centre for Ecology and Hydrology,  the Natural History Museum and Plymouth Marine Laboratory.  The partnership aims to provide a broad training in earth and environmental sciences, designed to train tomorrow’s leaders in earth and environmental science. For further details about the programme please see http://nercgw4plus.ac.uk/

For eligible successful applicants, the studentships comprises:

• An stipend for 3.5 years (currently £20,780 p.a. for 2026/27) in line with UK Research and Innovation rates
• Payment of university tuition fees
• The budget for project costs is £9,000 which can be used for computer, lab, and fieldwork costs necessary for you to conduct your research.
• There is also a conference budget of £2,000 and individual Training Budget of £1,000 for specialist training

Project Aims and Methods

At a time when many landscapes need repair and global demand for mined raw materials is escalating, this project investigates how to redevelop landscapes when mining finishes. The student will desk-survey how well international mine/quarry/tip sites are re-mined for resources, environmental restoration, tourism and cultural heritage projects, alternative and/or innovative manufacturing and research industries. Using existing plans, remote sensing and laser scanning field-surveys, they will build lab-based digital replicas of UK post-extractive underground and overground landscapes. Then they will import these into game engines to visualize and provoke alternative, sustainable working environments that make space for nature. The student will consider how digital-twinning (virtual replication) and gamification methodologies can transform local and regional understanding and decision-making for management of industrial extraction and post-extractive resilience. Variably geodiverse and biodiverse landscapes will be modelled using UK-based case studies, selected from a shortlist in Isle of Portland, S Wales, SW England, and the Peak District.  

The work will be supported by Deep Digital Cornwall at Camborne School of Mines, University of Exeter, and the Bristol Digital Game Lab, University of Bristol, and benefit from consultation with the Mine Remediation Authority and Portland Community Partnership/Island Community Action. 

Useful recruitment links:  

For information relating to the research project please contact the lead Supervisor via: k.moore@xeter.ac.uk 

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