PhD Studentship: Low-carbon Climate Adaptation in UK Households: Understanding Participation in, and Pathways toward, Low-carbon Climate Adaptation

Application deadline: 07/08/2026
Research theme: Climate change, social transformation, sustainable living, climate policy

This 3.5-year PhD project is fully funded; students who are eligible to pay tuition fees at the Home rate are eligible to apply (more details can be found here). The successful candidate will receive an annual tax-free stipend set at the UKRI rate (£21,805 for 2026/27) and tuition fees will be paid. The start date is October 2026. 

People play many roles in climate action — as commuters and carers, workers and hobbyists, citizens and consumers. Climate change is already reshaping all of these: affecting how people travel to work, what they eat, how they heat (and cool) their homes, how they manage caring responsibilities, and how they spend their leisure time. A critical question remains unexamined: are the ways people are already adapting to climate change compatible with the transition to net zero? Some adaptation measures support emissions reduction (e.g. shifting to active travel). Others risk locking-in carbon-intensive ways of living (e.g. air conditioning), and there are yet untapped measures that could both mitigate and adapt to climate change (e.g. recirculating water systems). This PhD will provide the first analysis of the relationship between adaptation and mitigation across the full range of everyday actions and develop evidence-based policy pathways for low-carbon adaptation.

The relationship between mitigation and adaptation sits at the heart of this project. While both agendas are well-developed in isolation, the ways that people’s everyday adaptation practices complement or conflict with mitigation priorities remain poorly understood. Where policy inadvertently steers people towards high-carbon coping strategies, it risks actively undermining the net-zero transition. Conversely, well-designed support for low-carbon adaptation has the potential to advance both agendas simultaneously. This PhD will provide the evidence base to make that possible.

The project will pursue five interconnected lines of inquiry:

1) How can low-carbon adaptation be conceptualised?
2) Which everyday climate adaptation practices — across mobility, energy, water, diet, work, care, and leisure — support climate mitigation goals, and which conflict with them? The project will develop a typology of adaptation practices mapped against mitigation priorities.
3) In what ways are people already participating in low-carbon adaptation, how does this vary, and what enables and prevents participation in low-carbon adaptation?
4) How do current adaptation policies characterise the role of people, and how does this compare to already existing forms of adaptation people engage in?
5) What systemic interventions are needed to enable low-carbon climate adaptation?

The project combines literature review and policy analysis with primary qualitative research (e.g. interviews, focus groups, and/or observation) and co-productive workshops with policymakers and practitioners to develop people-centred low-carbon adaptation pathways. Outputs will include 2–3 peer-reviewed papers and non-academic policy briefs designed to directly reshape how adaptation policy is designed and delivered.

Essential: a 2:1 or above (or international equivalent) in a relevant undergraduate or postgraduate degree; enthusiasm for socially engaged, policy-relevant research; and a willingness to work independently and collaboratively.

Desirable: experience with qualitative research methods; familiarity with sustainability or climate policy literatures; and an interest in participatory approaches.

To apply, please contact the main supervisor; Dr Claire Hoolohan - claire.hoolohan@manchester.ac.uk. In your message, please explain: a) your motivation to study this PhD project; b) your current level of study, academic background and how your previous experience prepares you for this doctoral research; and c) how you would approach the research questions.

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