PhD Studentship: Seeing Donkeys: Just Transitions, Multispecies Care and Shared Responsibility

Project advert

Research on “just transitions” - the shift towards more fair and sustainable futures - has largely focused on human communities, overlooking how animals are also part of social and environmental change. This project, which has been co-created with leading equine charity, The Donkey Sanctuary, reframes that challenge as an opportunity to imagine more inclusive and sustainable futures across species. Donkeys provide a compelling focus as they are active in tourism, therapy, conservation and companionship contexts, yet they - and the people who live and work with them - are often overlooked in economic and policy debates.

this exciting project explores how fostering more caring, equitable human-donkey relationships can model a less human-centred approach to decent work and socioecological justice. Using participatory and ethnographic methods, the successful candidate will map donkey visibility, document everyday practices of mutual care and co-produce an impactful “Shared Responsibility” guide with local partners. 

This PhD project is one of five independent projects open for applications, with only three funded studentships available. All applications will go through an initial review stage conducted by the project supervisors. Candidates selected from this stage will be invited to a second-round interview, where final funding decisions will be made based on performance across all projects.

Project aims and objectives

Aim: To explore how human-donkey relationships can inform a more inclusive understanding of just transitions

Objectives:

1. Identify and characterise the diversity of human-donkey relationships across the UK.
2. Examine institutional and policy frameworks influencing donkey welfare and visibility.
3. Explore diverse perspectives within human-donkey communities to understand how actors negotiate care, labour and value.
4. Model an equitable, sustainable and multispecies just transition by integrating empirical findings into a “shared responsibility” framework linking welfare science, participation and socioecological justice.
5. Translate research insights into an accessible, co-produced Shared Responsibility Toolkit that promotes welfare, accountability and multispecies wellbeing. 

Funding

Both Home and International students can apply. Home and international tuition fees will be covered for the duration of the three-year award.

The student will receive a standard stipend payment for the duration of the award. These payments are set at a level determined by the UKRI, currently £20,780 for the academic year 2025/26.

Specific requirements of the candidate

• Strong interest in sustainability, social and environmental justice, and human–animal relationships.
• Background in management and organisation studies, sociology, geography, anthropology, environmental studies, animal studies or a related discipline.
• Enthusiasm for developing creative, qualitative and participatory research skills.
• Ability to engage confidently with diverse communities. 

How to apply

Interested applicants are encouraged to contact Dr. Kate Seymour (k.seymour@mmu.ac.uk) for an informal discussion. 

To apply you will need to complete the online application form for a full time PhD in Strategy & Sustainability. 

Please complete the Doctoral Project Applicant Form, and include your CV to demonstrate how your skills and experience map to the aims and objectives of the project, the area of research and why you see this area as being of importance and interest. 

Please ensure that your application also includes your Academic Certificates and Transcripts as supporting documents.

Please upload these documents in the supporting documents section of the University’s Admissions Portal.

Applications closing date: 02 March 2026 

Expected start date: October 2026

Please quote the reference: FoBL-KS-2026-27-Seeing Donkeys 

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