We are delighted to announce that we will be accepting the second cohort of Leverhulme ‘Space for Nature’ Doctoral Scholars in September 2025. This initiative is funded by the Leverhulme Trust, complemented by matched funding from University of Kent.
The Leverhulme Scholars
The Leverhulme ‘Space for Nature’ Doctoral Scholars will address one of the key global conservation challenges of our time: how we reconcile biodiversity protection with other land-uses and land values. Contemporary rates of biodiversity loss across the world are profound. We are currently living through the sixth mass extinction event in the history of the planet, with more than a million species at risk of extinction in the coming decades. How we manage land into the future will be critical to stemming biodiversity declines, as anthropogenic habitat loss and degradation are the single greatest cause of extinction. Consequently, there needs to be a radical shift in how we imagine, design and implement successful and inclusive conservation solutions in multifunctional landscapes. The work of the Leverhulme ‘Space for Nature’ Doctoral Scholars will take shape in this context.
Through their commitment to interdisciplinarity, across diverse fields and domains of knowledge, the Leverhulme Space for Nature Doctoral Scholars will foster new ways of considering how landscapes, in all their variety and manifestations, can work as venues that benefit both biodiversity and people.
The Scholarships
1. The impact of governance and management structures on conservation and community outcomes in Cameroon
Governments are committed to conserving 30% of the planet’s land and sea by 2030. Despite this, research on community-held lands remains limited, with most studies focusing on traditional protected areas (PAs) and often confined within single academic disciplines. This project addresses the critical need for high-quality, interdisciplinary research by examining how conservation and social outcomes are impacted by different governance and management structures in PAs and community-managed areas in Cameroon, a country rich in biodiversity but facing conservation challenges. Find out more information about this scholarship and how to apply here.
2. White-tailed eagle recovery across multi-use landscapes in England
Trophic rewilding, involving the reintroduction of missing species, is gaining momentum worldwide, including in the UK, to enhance biodiversity and restore ecosystems. However, managing wide-ranging species whose ecological functions depend on anthropogenic landscapes is challenging, as seen with the white-tailed eagle (Haliaeetus albicilla) in England. Extinct for over two centuries, the species is now slowly recovering through a translocation project initiated on the Isle of Wight in 2019, aiming to establish a self-sustaining breeding population in southern England. Despite these efforts, reintroducing this wide-ranging raptor poses difficulties, especially with local perceptions of potential conflicts. This project will use GPS tag data from nearly 40 white-tailed eagles to address several related questions. Find out more information about this scholarship and how to apply here.
3. Exploring outcomes of strategies towards 30×30 for fisheries social-ecological systems in the global tropics
In order to tackle global biodiversity loss, many countries have agreed to ambitious biodiversity conservation targets in the coming years. One such target, called “30×30”, aims to protect 30% of land and oceans through Protected Areas or Other Effective area-based Conservation Measures (OECMs) by 2030. Achieving this level of protection in marine environments will require changes to how fisheries and other ocean sectors are currently managed. This could amount to socio-environmental pressures that influence the resilience of coastal communities. Countries will therefore need to find a careful balance between meeting conservation goals and sustaining productive ocean resource sectors for resilient coastal communities. Focused on the global tropics, this project will explore the strategies that countries are taking to meet their 30×30 commitment (e.g. through MPA or OECM implementation) and examine the outcomes of these strategies for fishing communities. Find out more information about this scholarship and how to apply here.
4. Exploring scenarios for conservation areas to balance biodiversity and ecosystem services in the UK’s marine environment
Globally, we face an enormous challenge of reversing biodiversity loss. Under the Global Biodiversity Framework, signatory countries have committed to conserve, through protected areas and other effective area-based conservation measures (OECMs), 30% of land and oceans by 2030 (a commitment also known as “30×30”). However, achieving this level of conservation will require changes in current ocean management that will create conflicts with the many human uses and ecosystem services that marine environments provide. This project will explore novel approaches to marine management that could be used in the UK to balance ecological and social outcomes of our spatial conservation goals. Find out more information about this scholarship and how to apply here.
5. Other effective conservation measures and ecosystem service assessment on European islands
European islands are hotspots of biological and cultural diversity, but also particularly vulnerable to tourism development and uncontrolled land-use changes. Projected climate and land-use change will impact on island biodiversity but also on ecosystem services and on the quality of life of human inhabitants. Although ecosystem service assessments have been carried out worldwide in different geographical areas, islands are still underrepresented. We still know little about ecosystem service supplies, flows and demands and their spatiotemporal variability. This interdisciplinary project aims to address several questions related to ecosystem services. Find out more information about this scholarship and how to apply here.
If you are interested in any of these scholarships or want to find out more about the Leverhulme Scholarship scheme in general, please visit our Leverhulme Scholarship webpage to find out more.