Positions
Collaborative Studentship PhD (LSE ESRC and Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew) – deadline 14 January 2026
The LSE ESRC Doctoral Training Partnership in collaboration with Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, offers a Collaborative Studentship PhD, commencing in September 2026, on the project ‘Planting Decolonization: Plantation Science and Empire in the Twentieth Century’.
Decolonisation, the process by which colonies gained independence in the mid-twentieth century, was a global process which led to self-governance, but did not stop European empires from exerting informal control over former colonies. Nor did it redistribute the considerable material, intellectual, and political resources accumulated by imperial authorities at the expense of colonies. This historical geography invites several questions: What are the limits of decolonisation in a context of enduring empires? How far did colonial plantation production endure/transform after decolonisation? With what effects? How can these be connected to contemporary legacies?
The proposed research focuses on the durability of plantation economies in the aftermath of decolonisation, viewed through global scientific networks spanning the United Kingdom and its former colonies. Empirically, the research will leverage as yet under-examined archival materials at Kew to examine a range of questions about the production of scientific knowledge in this critical moment of historical transformation. It will draw on correspondence between Kew scientists and post-colonial Agricultural Research Stations as well as private industrial bodies such as the Empire Cotton Growers’ Association to understand the role of private enterprise in lobbying for science that would support the extension of plantation production, and in turn how that lobbying was translated into knowledge shared with agents of agricultural extension in former colonies. This innovative engagement with archival data will also provide glimpses into cultivators’ ideas and practices that diverged from plantation production. The alternatives to the durabilities of the Plantationocene are an important aspect of the research project.
Candidates must have already completed a Master’s degree in a related subject (e.g. Geography, History, Anthropology, or Sociology) and have experience of field-based and/or archival research gained through study or working experience. Suitably qualified candidates should make an application via the portal of MPhil/PhD Human Geography and Urban Studies. Instead of submitting a research proposal, you should clearly cite the Collaborative Studentship project title and outline your suitability for the Studentship within the ‘statement of academic purpose’ section of your application, directly addressing the project description above. Deadline for applications is 14 January 2026.
