PhD scholarship: Resource-Efficient Households, Policy Design and Inequality in Sustainability Transitions

Job No.: 691829

Location: Caulfield campus (with possible collaboration activities at Clayton campus

Duration: 3.5-year fixed-term appointment (subject to satisfactory progress)

Employment Type: Full-time

Remuneration: 

• Australian Research Council scholarship (stipend at Monash rate $37,145 per annum)
• Additional Monash Business School top-up of 2k per annum

We invite applications from outstanding domestic candidates to undertake a PhD focused on how public policies shape resource-efficient living among diverse households. You will also explore how household dynamics and social inequalities influence the effectiveness of policies to shape sustainability transitions across everyday domains such as energy, water, food and waste.

This PhD forms part of the Australian Research Council Discovery ‘Project Empowering households in resource-efficient sustainability transitions’, which is a collaboration between Monash University, RMIT and the University of Manchester. The PhD project will be housed in the Sustainability Transitions Lab (STL) within the Monash Business School.

This opportunity is open to candidates who can demonstrate and present valid and current Australian working rights.

Supervision team

The PhD candidate will be supervised by an interdisciplinary team with international leadership in sustainability transitions and consumption studies:

• Professor Rob Raven, Sustainability Transitions Lab, Monash Business School
• Professor Jo Lindsay, School of Social Sciences, Faculty of Arts, Monash University

The student will be closely integrated into a broader collaborative research team involving Monash University, RMIT University and the University of Manchester.

The Opportunity

Households play a critical yet uneven role in sustainability transitions. While governments increasingly rely on households to reduce resource use and adopt sustainable practices, policies often assume uniform capacities, motivations and access, overlooking household dynamics and social inequalities related to income, tenure, gender, cultural background and location.

This PhD project investigates how policy initiatives across Victoria shape resource-efficient living differently for diverse household groups, and with what consequences for equity, inclusion and transition pathways. The research will focus on policies and programs across energy, water, waste and food systems, examining how they are designed, implemented and experienced by households in practice.

Using in-depth comparative case study research, the project will:

• Map and analyse key policy initiatives supporting resource-efficient living
• Examine how policies interact with household diversity and inequality
• Identify enabling and constraining mechanisms shaping participation in sustainability transitions
• Generate insights to inform more equitable and effective policy pathways

The project directly feeds into the Pathway Appraisal work package of the ARC project, informing the development and assessment of alternative transition pathways that are both socially feasible and equitable.

This PhD is particularly suited to candidates who want to produce empirically grounded research that informs real-world policy and governance while advancing interdisciplinary theory on the role of households in sustainability transitions.

Research Environment

The PhD candidate will be based in the Sustainability Transitions Lab (STL) at Monash Business School (Faculty of Business and Economics), an interdisciplinary research environment focused on societal transformations towards sustainability. The student will engage with scholars working on sustainability transitions, consumption, policy design, urban governance and inequality, and will have opportunities to collaborate nationally and internationally, including potential engagement with partners in the UK.

Essential Skills and Experience

• A background in a relevant discipline such as sustainability transitions, sociology, human geography, public policy, or a related social science field
• Demonstrated experience or strong interest in qualitative and/or comparative research (e.g. interviews, stakeholder workshops, document analysis, case studies)
• Strong analytical and writing skills
• Desirable Skills
• Familiarity with energy, water, food or waste policy domains
• Experience with Multicriteria Mapping
• Interest in interdisciplinary research spanning policy, society and sustainability
• Experience working with policy actors or applied research contexts

How to Apply

This position has a two-stage selection process.

Stage 1: Expression of Interest. To apply, please submit an Expression of Interest (EOI) via email to Mae Wee (mae.wee@monash.edu).

Your EOI must include the following:

• Curriculum Vitae (CV), including details of academic qualifications, research experience, publications (if any), and relevant professional experience
• Certified copies of academic transcripts from all tertiary qualifications
• Evidence of English language proficiency (where applicable, e.g., IELTS, TOEFL, or equivalent)
• A brief cover letter (maximum 3 pages) outlining:
  • Your interest in the topic
  • Proposed research questions and approach
  • Relevant theoretical and methodological orientation
  • How your background equips you to contribute to the project

Incomplete applications (e.g., EOIs submitted without a CV or academic transcripts) will not be considered.

Stage 2: Interview and Formal Application. Candidates shortlisted from the EOI stage will be invited to discuss their ideas prior to submitting a formal PhD application to the Faculty of Business and Economics. The successful candidate will enrol in an interdisciplinary cross-faculty project, with the PhD degree to be awarded by the Faculty of Business and Economics upon completion of the project and the Monash doctoral requirements.

Enquiries: Professor Rob Raven, rob.raven@monash.edu

Applications Close: Tuesday 30 April 2026, 11:55pm AEDT