Climate impacts on the sustainable operations of community heritage organisations in rural Australia
We are currently looking for a PhD candidate to investigate climate impacts on organisational sustainability of community heritage organisations in rural and remote Australia. Australia’s community heritage sector – comprised of volunteer-managed galleries, libraries, archives, museums and historical societies – serves vital functions in shaping public history. However, the sector faces a sustainability crisis due to mounting pressures that pose a challenge to the long-term futures of many of its institutions and put at risk the diversity and accessibility of the nation’s historical record.
This PhD scholarship is connected to the Australian Research Council Discovery Project ‘Co-creating a sustainable future for the community heritage sector’ (DP250101408). That project aims to collaborate with community heritage organisations from across Australia to co-develop strategies for recognising value, measuring organisational sustainability and creating benchmarks for sustainable practice. The primary focus of this PhD research is to account for the impacts of climate change (e.g. extreme heat, bushfires, flooding events etc) on community heritage organisations, specifically in relation to organisational sustainability. The PhD research will include case study institutions from rural and remote Australia drawn from the larger Discovery Project sample.
Success in this role requires collaboration with the other members of the research team and the case study institutions to deliver a focused project with academic and industry-focussed outputs. The research will be supervised by the Discovery Project’s Chief Investigator, Professor Sarah Baker, with the project’s Senior Research Fellow as co-supervisor.
The intended commencement date of the scholarship is Intake 3 (7 July 2025) or Intake 4 (13 October 2025) and can be based at either the Gold Coast or Brisbane South (Nathan) campus. Remote candidature within Australia will also be considered.
Scholarship details
The project is situated in the Griffith Centre for Social and Cultural Research (GCSCR) at Griffith University. The GCSCR is dedicated to increasing understanding of current challenges facing the modern world. Through the application of innovative humanities and social science research, incorporating the knowledge of academics from a broad range of interrelated disciplines, GCSCR is at the cutting edge of humanities and social science discourse.
The PhD candidate will be attached to the GCSCR’s ‘Safeguarding Heritage’ research program where they will have an opportunity to work alongside a multidisciplinary group of researchers committed to creating new research that deepens our understanding of the challenges and issues confronting heritage in contemporary society.
The selection of applicants for the award of higher degree research scholarships at Griffith University involves consideration of your academic merit and research background. To be successful within this role, you will have a background in critical heritage studies (or associated fields like museology and archival science), leisure studies, sociology, rural studies, cultural geography, or organisational, business and management studies. It is expected the candidate will have experience in qualitative methods, ideally with skills in ethnographic observation, in-depth interviewing and qualitative analysis. It is desirable for you to have evidence of a passion for collaborative research and one or more of the following areas of interest: community heritage, volunteering, climate change, organisational culture, with a strong desire to undertake research in rural and remote Australia. Prior experience working in heritage organisations is desirable, but not essential.
- Expressions of interest are welcome from domestic and international applicants.
- Applicants must have completed, or expect to complete, a bachelors degree with honours equivalent to class 2A honours or above, or a Masters degree (AQF Level 9) incorporating a significant research component of a standard comparable to a bachelor honours degree, or be regarded by Griffith University as having an equivalent level of attainment in accordance with the Equivalent qualifications for HDR program admission. For further information on the eligibility requirements for the program refer here.
International applicants should ensure that English Language Proficiency requirements for the program are met before formally applying. Applicants to research programs will need to show they meet:
- A minimum overall band score of 6.5 on the IELTS (Academic) with no band score less than 6.0 OR
- A minimum score of 575 on the paper-based TOEFL including a score of no less than 5.0 on the TWE OR
- A score of 79 on the internet-based (iBT) TOEFL with no sub-score less than 19
The 2025 Griffith University Postgraduate Research Scholarship has an annual stipend of $34,752 (indexed) for a period of up to three years of full-time study. Please see the GUPRS Conditions of Award for more information.
A successful International applicant will also be awarded a Griffith University International Postgraduate Research Scholarship to cover tuition fees for up to three years. Please see the GUIPRS Conditions of Award for more information.
As a scholarship holder, you will study with a University that ranks among the top 2% worldwide and spans across campuses in South East Queensland. At Griffith University, we’ve worked hard to create a culture that will challenge you to be curious, creative and courageous. We also support the professional and personal development of all our HDR candidates and invest in the skills of our people. Griffith University values diversity, inclusion and flexibility and we encourage Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander, and people of all backgrounds to apply. Griffith's strategic goals are to also increase the proportion of women in senior academic and administrative roles and in Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics and Medicine (STEMM).
For project related enquiries please contact:
Prof Sarah Baker
Email: s.baker@griffith.edu.au
For administration enquiries please contact:
Griffith Graduate Research School
Please do not select the “APPLY” button. All expressions of interest must be submitted to s.baker@griffith.edu.au containing:
- Statement addressing your suitability for the project/scholarship
- Evidence that you have completed a program with the required grades as detailed in the about you section, including a copy of your academic transcript
- A curriculum vitae (CV) using the Griffith CV template.
- Names of two referees
The closing date for expressions of interest is: 5pm Friday 21 February 2025
The preferred applicant will then be invited to apply for the program and scholarship on-line
Get in touch
If you have a question, need some help with your scholarship application, or would like to make a donation, feel free to contact us.