Funded PhD studentship: Groundwater dynamics in social-ecological regime shifts
Funding: fully funded, 3.5 years
Start: flexible, no later than October 2027
Based at: School of Geographical and Earth Sciences, University of Glasgow
Apply: expression of interest form, reviewed on a rolling basis
context
Groundwater is among the least studied aspects of social-ecological systems. This is partly because it is a slow variable in these systems, partly because it is invisible beneath our feet, and partly because groundwater researchers only make up a small contingent of the social-ecological systems community. Yet groundwater is closely connected to many human, environmental and Earth system processes (Huggins et al. 2023; Gleeson et al. 2020). Many of these processes behave non-linearly, and some may meet the definition of a regime shift (a large, persistent change in how a system is structured and how it functions). Despite sustained efforts to catalogue social-ecological regime shifts (Rocha et al. 2015) and to build middle-range theories of land system change (Meyfroidt et al. 2018), groundwater’s role remains underrepresented and thus largely unknown in these contexts.
about the project
This PhD will explore how groundwater shapes regime shifts in social-ecological systems. For example, a groundwater system’s response time might alter the timing of a regime shift or determine its reversibility, and groundwater-informed decisions related to pumping, land use, agricultural and energy policy, and the protection of groundwater-dependent ecosystems might provide ways to move a system into a new state.
This position is for an ambitious, interdisciplinary and problem-oriented student. The scope is flexible and the successful candidate will lead the development of the research questions, case studies and methods, with support from the supervisory team. Possible directions are listed below. Applicants are equally welcome to propose their own ideas, or combinations of these directions, within the broad theme of this call.
Potential directions of the thesis could include:
- Synthesis work, such as identifying known groundwater connections to documented regime shifts and to theories of land system change, using literature review, text analysis and expert elicitation surveys.
- Network modelling, such as developing a multi-layer network model (e.g., see Bechthold et al. 2025), and/or qualitative modelling, such as developing qualitative network models (e.g., see Barber et al. 2015) to identify feedback mechanisms, stability properties, the role of different timescales, and adoption of practices or policies through a case study.
- Empirical detection of regime shifts, such as using new, analysis-ready datasets of water table depth (e.g., Bäthge et al. 2026), in conjunction with satellite data of ecological variables, to identify a range of different types of tipping including bifurcation-induced, rate-induced and noise-induced tipping in groundwater-dependent ecosystems or other systems connected to groundwater.
research environment
The student will be based in the School of Geographical and Earth Sciences at the University of Glasgow, and will join the Research Collective on Groundwater, Sustainability, and Social-Ecological Systems led by Dr Huggins. A second supervisor will be chosen to match the direction of the thesis. Throughout their studies, the student will gain connections to:
- The Centre for Sustainable Solutions at the University of Glasgow.
- The Freshwater Systems Science Workshops, a research network connecting freshwater collaborators in Sweden, the Netherlands, Finland and Germany.
- The Society for Social-Ecological Systems Working Group on Regime Shifts.
- The Socio-Hydrogeology Network (SHG) of the International Association of Hydrogeologists.
who we are looking for
- A first-class honours degree, or international equivalent, in a relevant field, such as hydrology, ecology, geography, environmental science, sustainability science, economics, mathematics, or complex systems.
- Experience with quantitative methods or programming (for example, Python or R), or a strong interest in learning them.
- Curiosity and interest in working across disciplines.
We encourage applications from people of all backgrounds, especially groups under-represented in environmental science. The School holds an Athena Swan Silver Award.
funding
This is a fully funded studentship that matches the support provided by the School of Geographical and Earth Sciences’ College Scholarship. The start date is flexible, with the latest start in October 2027.
- Duration: 3.5 years.
- Stipend: a tax-free stipend in line with the UKRI rate. As of October 2026, this stipend is £21,805/annum, which is comparable to the take-home pay of a full-time job at the real Living Wage in Glasgow.
- Tuition fees: a fee waiver at the home applicant rate. Exceptional international applicants are welcome, but these applicants should also apply for scholarships that cover international fees, such as the College of Science and Engineering Graduate School Scholarship or scholarships from their home country. Dr Huggins can advise on these routes.
- Research support: a research laptop, computing resources, and an annual conference travel fund of £1,000.
how to apply
Interested applicants are invited to complete this expression of interest form. Expressions of interest will be reviewed on a rolling basis. Selected applicants will be invited to submit a full application (CV, transcripts, short written responses and two referees), and shortlisted applicants will be interviewed.
contact
Dr Xander Huggins
Assistant Professor (UK Lecturer) of Global Terrestrial Water
Geographical and Earth Sciences, University of Glasgow
xander [dot] huggins [at] glasgow [dot] ac [dot] uk
references for further reading
- X. Huggins et al., Groundwater connections and sustainability in social-ecological systems. Groundwater 61, 463–478 (2023). [paper]
- T. Gleeson et al., Illuminating water cycle modifications and Earth system resilience in the Anthropocene. Water Resources Research 56, e2019WR024957 (2020). [paper]
- J. C. Rocha, G. D. Peterson, R. Biggs, Regime shifts in the Anthropocene: Drivers, risks, and resilience. PLOS ONE 10, e0134639 (2015). [paper]
- P. Meyfroidt et al., Middle-range theories of land system change. Global Environmental Change 53, 52–67 (2018). [paper]
- M. Bechthold et al., Social norms and groups structure safe operating spaces in renewable resource use in a social-ecological multi-layer network model. Earth System Dynamics 16, 1365–1390 (2025). [paper]
- M. Barber, S. Jackson, J. Dambacher, M. Finn, The persistence of subsistence: Qualitative social-ecological modeling of indigenous aquatic hunting and gathering in tropical Australia. Ecology and Society 20, 60 (2015). [paper]
- A. Bäthge et al., A global-scale time series dataset for groundwater studies within the Earth system. Scientific Data 13, 401 (2026). [paper]