We are currently seeking expressions of interest for the following PhD project.

About the position

Location: Parkville campus

Employment Type: Full-time

Duration: 3.5 years fixed-term appointment

Remuneration: The successful applicant will receive a living allowance of $39,500 per year pro rata (2026 full-time study rate) with a top-up scholarship potentially available. See RTP stipend scholarship conditions at: https://scholarships.unimelb.edu.au/awards/graduate-research-scholarships

The Opportunity

This PhD focusses on the social aspects of the project ‘Promoting urban biodiversity using automated assessment of ‘everyday nature’ streetscape metrics’, funded by the ARC, in collaboration with RMIT University, Curtin University, Technical University of Munich, and Technion – Israel Institute of Technology.

Cities around the world are embracing urban greening; however, existing greening metrics fail to consider biodiversity. Biodiverse urban areas are important because cities are hotspots for threatened species and biodiverse greening delivers enhanced ecosystem services. Biodiversity in cities also has important social implications and is linked to increased wellbeing, connection to nature, sense of place, and engagement with First Nations culture.

The project aims to define a metric for ‘everyday nature’ that explicitly considers biodiversity and develop an automated approach to classify vegetation using landscape images and machine learning. Additionally, this project seeks to validate how well the metric predicts both faunal biodiversity and contribution to human wellbeing and connection to nature.

The successful applicant will join the research team and contribute to the wider project but will also undertake their own distinct PhD project. The details of the PhD are open to negotiation, but it will focus primarily on the social elements of everyday nature in urban streetscapes. More specific themes may include: the role that everyday nature in streetscapes plays in human health and wellbeing and the economic benefits this may bring, preferences and drivers of streetscape greening, and the broader social benefits of green streets (e.g., nature connectedness, community cohesion, loneliness and perception of safety).

Undertaking this PhD as part of a larger project has several advantages. First, the successful candidate will be integrated into an already successful research agenda that has been funded by the Australian Research Council. Second, the candidate will benefit from expert supervision from an interdisciplinary and international team of research leaders in social science, urban ecology, and conservation. Finally, the candidate will benefit from being part of outcomes from the research, which may include co-authored publications (where the candidate’s contributions will be recognised through co-authorship), funded symposia, and future grant applications.

Established in 1853, the University of Melbourne is a leading international university with a tradition of excellence in teaching and research. The main campus in Parkville is recognised as the hub of Australia’s premier knowledge precinct comprising eight hospitals, many leading research institutes and a wide-range of knowledge-based industries. With outstanding performance in international rankings, the University is at the forefront of higher education in the Asia-Pacific region and the world.

The Interdisciplinary Conservation Science Research Group (ICON Science), led by Professor Sarah Bekessy, sports a diverse team of researchers working to better understand and manage the interactions between society and our natural environment. We believe conserving biodiversity demands a multidisciplinary approach that reconciles ecological, social and economic dimensions.

Candidate Requirements
The successful applicant will have an excellent academic track record in social sciences, and preferably environmental social sciences or psychology. Applicants must hold an Australian (or equivalent international) Honours or Masters degree, with a significant and relevant research component.

Details of eligibility requirements, including English-language proficiency skills, to undertake a PhD in the Faculty of Science are available at https://study.unimelb.edu.au/find/courses/graduate/doctor-of-philosophy-science/. Applicants should ensure they familiarise themselves with these requirements before deciding whether they should apply.

Enquiries

You are welcome to contact Dr Philippa Bell at bell.p@unimelb.edu.au to discuss your interest.


How to submit an expression of interest

Please submit your expression of interest to Professor Sarah Bekessy at sarah.bekessy@unimelb.edu.au

An expression of interest should include:

• A cover letter that includes a brief statement of the applicant’s suitability
• A brief research proposal (less than 500 words) that fits within the broad project aims and objectives, demonstrates some understanding of the area of research, and outlines the methodological approaches you are interested in pursuing
• A curriculum vitae and academic transcript
• English language proficiency test results (if applicable)
• Names and contact details of 2 academic referees

Expressions of interest will close Tuesday 15th September 2026, 11:55 pm AEST. The successful applicant will be invited to prepare an application to submit to the scholarship round closing Thursday 1^st October 2026. University RTP supported places are announced in December and the successful applicant will be expected to enrol for an early-2027 start.