Disaster resilience and reconstruction – PhD studentships
Fri, 07 Nov 2014 11:37:00 GMT
The international multi award-winning School of Art, Design and Architecture, at the University of Huddersfield, is delighted to announce 20 competitive PhD Scholarships for 2015. These scholarships include the support for successful candidates in disaster resilience, management and reconstruction to develop their research, whilst also providing opportunities to gain career-enhancing teaching experience and teaching-related skills. The School’s mission is to foster the next generation of creative researchers, and boasts a dynamic and interactive learning community that allows staff and students to nurture, develop and exploit their talents.
What would it be like to live in a world in which government authorities, businesses, communities and individuals work together to create a society that is able to withstand the effects of unforeseen events and threats? As a leader in inter-disciplinary research, education and advocacy to improve the resilience of nations and communities, we are working with stakeholders at the global, national, municipal and local level to make this happen.
With growing population and infrastructures, the world’s exposure to hazards is increasing. When disaster strikes, communities may need to be rebuilt physically economically and socially. At the same time, it is vital that any reconstruction activity pro-actively considers how to protect people and their environment, and reduce a community’s vulnerability.
The University of Huddersfield has some of the global leaders in this field. They have chaired several international conferences, including the 4th International Conference on Building Resilience, that attracted over 350 UK and international delegates from academic, policy and practice. They have also secured a number of significant, high profile grants including the EC FP7 funded CASCADE project (Collaborative Action towards Societal Challenges through Awareness, Development, and Education) and the ANDROID Disaster Resilience Network. In January 2014, they were invited by the European Commission to formally launch their Horizon 2020: the new EU Framework Programme for Research and Innovation in South Asia. They are also Editors of the SCOPUS indexed International Journal of Disaster Resilience in the Built Environment, the only journal to promote research and scholarly activity that examines the role of building and construction to anticipate and respond to unexpected events that damage or destroy the built environment.
Applications are welcome to support interdisciplinary strategies that develop the capacity of a system, community or society potentially exposed to a tsunami to adapt, by resisting or changing, in order to reach and maintain an acceptable level of functioning and structure. We also welcome multi- and inter-disciplinary research proposals that draw upon the University of Huddersfield’s strengths in art and communications, fashion and textiles, and architecture and 3D design.
Topics may include, but are not limited to:
· Interrogate the term disaster resilience from the perspective of the social/political, economic and physical sciences, and across national boundaries;
· Identify the critical social, economic, and physical factors that enable a system, community or society potentially exposed to hazards to maintain an acceptable level of functioning and structure;
· Define and develop a set of measures that can be used to assess the critical social, economic and physical factors that underpin disaster resilience;
· Action-orientated metrics and underpinning data standards associated with resilience to natural hazards;
· New mechanisms to input planning & designing solutions that help create a resilient community;
· Understanding disaster risk – the development of innovative national and local policies and practices for disaster risk management;
· Strengthening governance to manage disaster risk;
· Preparedness for response, recovery and reconstruction – “Build Back Better”
· Strengthen early warning and preparedness systems, motivated by the increase in disaster events;
· Contingency planning and resource management for anthropic and technological disasters
· Private sector engagement in the development of disaster resilience;
· Developing a business case for investment in disaster resilience
Deadlines
The deadline for the receipt of applications is dependent on proposed start date:
• For April 2015 start date - End Dec 2014
• For October 2015 start date - End Jun 2015
Further details on other topics of interest, funding information , eligibility criteria and how to apply are available at:
http://www.hud.ac.uk/researchdegrees/scholarships/schoolofartdesignandarchitecturescholarships20places/
Contact for further information:
Professor Dilanthi Amaratunga
Co-Director, Global Disaster Resilience Centre
Editor: International Journal of Disaster Resilience in the Built Environment
E-mail. d.amaratunga@hud.ac.uk
Web. www.dilanthiamaratunga.net
or
Professor Richard Haigh
Co-Director, Global Disaster Resilience Centre
Editor: International Journal of Disaster Resilience in the Built Environment
E-mail. r.haigh@hud.ac.uk
Web. www.richardhaigh.info
Global Disaster Resilience Centre
School of Art, Design and Architecture , University of Huddersfield
Queensgate , Huddersfield HD1 3DH
UK
