IAPETUS2: Delivering excellence in PhD training across the spectrum of environmental science

The IAPETUS2 consortium will train a new generation of environmental scientists through a structured doctoral programme spanning multiple UK universities. This matters because the UK faces a shortage of skilled researchers who can tackle complex environmental challenges—from climate change and biodiversity loss to water security and pollution. Traditional PhD training often isolates students within single institutions, limiting their exposure to diverse expertise, field sites, and analytical techniques. IAPETUS2 addresses this gap by creating a coordinated network where students access supervisors, facilities, and training across partner universities, research centres, and industry collaborators. If successful, the programme will produce PhD graduates with broader scientific skills and stronger connections to employers in government, environmental agencies, and the private sector. These researchers will be better equipped to design monitoring systems, interpret environmental data, and inform policy decisions that affect flood defences, land management, and natural resource planning—systems that quietly underpin daily life but rarely get noticed until they fail. The project is primarily a training initiative rather than a single scientific investigation. Its impact lies in building the human capital needed for future environmental research, much as earlier doctoral training partnerships have produced the scientists who now lead UK climate modelling and ecosystem monitoring programmes.