ESRC/NERC PhD studentship exploring the links and feedback between the illegal trade in ivory, elephant extinction risk and human wellbeing in African natural ecosystems.

This PhD will gather evidence for the economic and social drivers of the current ivory trade, and place these into the context of increasing pressures on natural habitats driven by local indigenous population increases and the external commodification of potential agricultural areas or commercial logging and mineral extraction. The nature of human-elephant interactions across land use types will be used to develop predictive models for sustaining populations of megafauna such as elephants in the context of increasing pressures for illegal exploitation or for alternative land uses.

Supervisors: Prof Nicolas Hanley (Economics) & Prof Phyllis Lee (Psychology)

Closing date for applications: 28 May 2011

Applicants should send:

·         cover letter

·         curriculum vitae

·         names and contact details of two referees