PhD: Political Economy of Production and Consumption Transformations, University of Leeds, UK

We are offering a fully funded PhD scholarship in the Sustainability Research Institute, School of Earth and Environment for one UK candidate starting in October 2026. This fully funded PhD place provides an exciting opportunity to pursue postgraduate research on the political economy of the UK’s industrial transformation.

The scholarship will be part of the Production and Consumption Transformations (PACT) Centre which is funded by UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) and the UK Government Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ). The project will focus on the political economy of production and consumption transformations in the UK.

We are particularly interested in examining:

• the political-economic dynamics along production–consumption chains within specific sectors and strategies for intervention,
• the actors, coalitions, and institutional arrangements that can align industrial strategy with climate and social-ecological goals, and
• the policy levers needed to bridge production and consumption to catalyse systemic change.

As part of this PhD scholarship, there is an option to spend up to six months at DESNZ through a secondment. The PACT centre examines options for the UK to meet its carbon reduction targets through transformations of production and consumption systems.

This PhD project takes a political economy approach to examine how structural conditions – such as modes of regulation, systems of economic governance, geopolitical and geoeconomic shifts, capital dynamics, and prevailing norms – interact with key actors, including labour and capital factions, consumers, civil society, and the state. It investigates these interactions within a specific sector (e.g., construction, automotive) and along production-consumption chains, from extraction and manufacturing to distribution and end-user consumption.

The goal is to understand how these dynamics enable or constrain systemic changes in production and consumption. As such, the project also explores strategic entry points, alliances, and institutional arrangements that can align industrial strategy with short-term climate goals (2030) and long-term resilience (2050), while also considering broader implications for the nature crisis and the need to ensure a just transition.

Key research questions may include:

• What are the specific political-economic dynamics at different points along production-consumption chains, and how do they enable or constrain systemic changes in production and consumption?
• What strategies for intervention are most effective at different points in this chain?
• Which actors, coalitions, and institutional arrangements can align industrial strategy with climate and social-ecological goals, and under what political-economic conditions is this feasible?
• What policy levers and institutional arrangements are most effective in bridging production and consumption to catalyse systemic transformation?

Applicants with a background in Ecological Economics; Politics, Philosophy and Economics; Political Economy; Political and Social Ecology; Governance Studies; Human Geography; Public Policy; Sociology (especially with a focus on sustainability or economic systems); and Environmental Studies or Sustainability Science are particularly encouraged to apply.

The Leeds-based research team works closely with the other partners and collaborators in the Centre (e.g. University of Sussex, Lancaster University and DESNZ) and there is an opportunity to network and work directly with them as part of the PhD programme.