PhD student in Sustainability Science

Stockholm Resilience Centre (SRC) is a research centre on resilience and sustainability science at Stockholm University. The Centre advances the scientific understanding of the complex, dynamic interactions of people and nature in the Biosphere; train the next generation of sustainability researchers and leaders; and engage in collaborations with change agents. It is a joint initiative between Stockholm University and the Beijer Institute of Ecological Economics at the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. The SRC currently employs around 160 members of staff. More information about us, please visit: Stockholm Resilience Centre (SRC).

The SRC aims to foster new generations of researchers and academic leaders through our Resilience Research School. The school equips students with a theoretical and practical foundation in Sustainability Science with a focus on resilience in social-ecological systems. Students are encouraged to develop new approaches that integrate methods and concepts from the social, natural and applied sciences. Emphasis is placed on developing student ability to define a problem, develop research methods, and communicate research findings within international scientific and science-policy discussions.

Project description

We seek an enthusiastic and committed PhD candidate to join an interdisciplinary group of researchers working on resilience and sustainability.

The research project focuses on agricultural development in the Global South, which is increasingly financed through loans and debt-creating instruments. Yet the social-ecological consequences of debt-driven sustainable intensification remain under explored. While access to credit can enable investments and productivity gains, indebtedness can also drive land-use change, biodiversity loss, and increased vulnerability to climate-related shocks. Farmers burdened by debt often face trade-offs between short-term repayments and long-term sustainability, reinforcing inequalities and ecological degradation.

The project investigates how debt affects land use, decision-making, and adaptive capacity across scales. By combining sustainability science, systems thinking, spatial finance, and political ecology, the project aims to analyze the effects of sovereign and household-level debt. The PhD student will trace how relationships between creditors and debtors – from multilateral development banks and states to financial institutions and farmers – shape development trajectories and resilience to environmental shocks.

Through geospatial analysis, case studies, and stakeholder dialogues, the PhD student will provide a comprehensive understanding of debt’s role in agricultural transformation. The project will help identify how alternative financing models and resilience-oriented indicators (KPIs) can steer capital flows toward ecological sustainability and social justice. The results will guide strategies to direct capital toward sustainable and climate-resilient agricultural systems.

The project is a collaboration between Universidad Nacional de San Louis in Argentina, and Colorado State University and Natural Capital Insights LCC in the USA.

Tasks will include working together with a diverse group of stakeholders from agricultural sciences and practice, and with financial actors and institutions.

The PhD candidate will be supervised by Prof. Henrik Österblom (SRC), Prof. Esteban Jobbagy (Universidad Nacional de San Louis) and Andrea Baudoin Farah (Colorado State University) The PhD student will be employed at SRC but should be prepared to spend time in the different research groups of the supervisors. As part of the interdisciplinary environment of SRC, the student will have opportunities to collaborate with and benefit from other students and researchers with diverse research interests and perspectives. 

Qualification requirements

In order to be admitted to postgraduate education, the applicant must have the general and specific entry requirements. The qualification requirements must be met by the time the applicant is admitted to the PhD program at the Stockholm Resilience Centre.

You meet general entry requirements if you have completed a second-cycle degree, or completed courses equivalent to at least 240 higher education credits, of which 60 credits must be in the second cycle, or have otherwise acquired equivalent knowledge in Sweden or elsewhere.

Specific entry requirements for admission to postgraduate studies in Sustainability Science are that the applicant has a total of at least 30 credits, or equivalent, at advanced level in Natural Science, as well as a thesis of at least 30 credits at advanced level in a relevant subject, or equivalent knowledge.

Selection

The selection among the eligible candidates will be based on their capacity to benefit from the training. The following criteria will be used to assess this capacity:

• Subject knowledge relevant to the research task, such as sustainability science, development studies, agronomy, or related fields, with an interest in agricultural development, debt and climate resilience.
• Experience working with quantitative data relevant to climate, land use, agriculture and/or finance (e.g., statistics, indicators or geospatial data), and familiarity with software such as R, Python, or GIS tools or similar.
• Demonstrated ability to integrate social and environmental dimensions of sustainability, for example through work in sustainability science, social-ecological systems, development studies, political ecology or related fields.
• Proven ability to work in teams and inter- or transdisciplinary settings.
• Experience in working with diverse groups of stakeholders such as public agencies, NGOs, financial institutions, community organisations and/or farmers (e.g., through workshops, interviews or policy processes/engagement).
• Analytical ability as demonstrated by a degree project, scientific report(s) or publications.
• Fluent in English, and skilled in written and oral communication. The applicant’s personal references.

In addition, the following qualifications are considered desirable:

• Experience with climate and/or development finance, agricultural credit, sovereign debt or other debt-creating mechanisms in research, policy or practice settings, especially where linked to agriculture, land use or climate adaptation.
• Experience with geospatial analysis or spatial finance (linking financial flows to spatial data).
• Experience with both quantitative and qualitative research methods, and an interest in combining them.
• Experience from low- and middle-income countries relevant to agriculture, climate adaptation, or development.
• Familiarity with social-ecological systems and complex adaptive systems research.
• Knowledge of additional languages beyond English. 

Admission Regulations for Doctoral Studies at Stockholm University.

About the employment

We offer a fixed-term employment as a doctoral student according to Chapter 5 of the Higher Education Ordinance (1993:100). The period of employment may not be longer than what corresponds to full-time doctoral education for four years. As a doctoral student, you should primarily devote yourself to your own doctoral education, but the employment may include work with education, research and administration to a limited extent (maximum 20 %).

A new employment as a doctoral student is for a maximum of one year, the employment is then renewed for a maximum of two years at a time.

Stockholm University strives to be a workplace free from discrimination and with equal opportunities for all.

Contact

For more information, about the PhD programme or Sustainability Science at Stockholm Resilience Centre, please contact the Director of PhD programme Victor Galaz, phone: +46 8 674 70 83, victor.galaz@su.se or Head of Subject, Professor Örjan Bodin, phone: +46 8 674 76 71, orjan.bodin@su.se.

For more information about the project or the position, please contact Professor Henrik Österblom, henrik.osterblom@su.se.

Application

Apply for the PhD student position at Stockholm University's recruitment system. Attach a personal letter and CV as well as the attachments requested in the application form. It is the responsibility of the applicant to ensure that the application is complete in accordance with the instructions in the job advertisement, and that it is submitted before the deadline.

The instructions for applicants are available at: How to apply for a position.