Trinity is Ireland’s leading university and is ranked 75th in the world (QS World University Rankings 2026). Founded in 1592, the University is steeped in history with a reputation for excellence in education, research, and innovation, which has been inspiring generations of thinkers for over 400 years.
Thrive: Trinity College Dublin's Strategic Plan 2025 - 2030
This fully funded PhD studentship is part of a larger interdisciplinary project, Implementing and Evaluating Nature-Based Solutions for Health in Children and Adolescents, funded through the AIB Trinity Climate Hub Trinity Research Doctorate Award (TRDA) scheme. Nature-based solutions (NBS) are increasingly used to manage drought, flooding, overheating, and environmental degradation, with potential health benefits. However, evidence for the health benefits of NBS remains limited, particularly for children and adolescents – a sensitive developmental period when diet and activity patterns consolidate, and around one-third of lifetime mental disorders begin by age 14. The wider project treats NBS as a measurable exposure intervention, linking environmental change to changes in child and adolescent mental health, physical health, and health-related behaviours across three climate-sensitive settings: Madagascar, Ireland, and the Netherlands.
Application Procedure
Applicants should submit a CV, a cover letter, and a one-page research proposal. Your proposal should work within the framework of the project as described above; we are not looking for an entirely new study design. Rather, we want to understand how you would approach this work: what questions or methods interest you most, what relevant experience you would draw on, and what ideas you might bring to the work. Please send your application to:
Our Values - putting our words into action
Values matter. They are key to the success of our Strategic Plan. We centre our behavioural values around the importance of belonging. We recognise that the university will thrive by each of us respecting and caring for one another. We know we can achieve much more through working together. We know too that we must take responsibility for our actions and be accountable. We must, and will never stop, imagining. And through being nature positive we connect not just with the environment but with our ambitions for a sustainable future.
At Trinity, we are committed to equality, diversity, and inclusion. Trinity welcomes applications from all individuals, including those applicants with disabilities, those who may have had non-traditional career paths, those who have taken time out for reasons including family or caring responsibilities. We also welcome international applicants including those who have been displaced due to war.
Trinity College Dublin is Ireland’s premier University. We are an EU Sustainable Gender Equality Champion and we hold an Athena Swan Silver award, recognising our ongoing work to advance gender equality both within Trinity and in the Higher Education sector. Trinity is committed to supporting work-life balance and to creating a family-friendly working environment.
