Sustainable Resources MPhil/PhD experiences
What is it like to study for a MPhil/PhD in Sustainable Resources? Read the reflections of our students and alumni celebrating Sustainable Resources PhD research over the last decade.
Student blogs
Starting the PhD journey: Insights from the Research Skills Course
UCL EPSRC PhD student Anna Coughlan shares her experience of the a dynamic week-long Research Skills course.
Alumni experiences
Explore the experiences of:
- Jun Rentschler, Senior Economist at The World Bank
- Darshini Ravindranath, Civil Servant in The International Climate and Energy Team
- Florian Flachenecker, Policy Officer in The Recovery & Resilience Task Form at the European Comission
- Tobias Reinauer, Postdoctoral Researcher at Technical University of Denmark
Jun Rentschler, Senior Economist at The World Bank, graduated 2017
What was your background before starting at UCL Institute for Sustainable Resources?
Before starting my PhD at UCL, I completed a BSc and MSc in Economics and spent two years working in government and international development. I was looking to strengthen my technical skills and expand my expertise in the economics of climate change, energy and development.
What were your favourite parts of your PhD experience?
I enjoyed many things about the PhD. For example, being able to invest time in sharpening my technical skills was a luxury and stand-out feature of my time at UCL – especially as I was supported by some world class academics and experts. Being based at UCL Institute for Sustainable Resources also meant that I was able to conduct applied research on pressing sustainability and development challenges, rather than being isolated in the “ivory tower”. Overall, UCL Institute for Sustainable Resources, and UCL more broadly, offered a terrific network of colleagues and fellow PhD students from diverse personal and academic backgrounds. Our lunchtime conversations covered everything from geopolitics to bread baking, and I rarely left a day at the institute without having my mind boggled and horizon expanded.
What did you do after your PhD?
After my PhD I joined the World Bank at its headquarters in Washington DC. Currently I’m a Senior Economist in the Bank’s Sustainable Development group. Our work is all about supporting developing countries in eliminating poverty and promoting green, resilient, and inclusive development. In practice that means working with client governments around the world to identify and tackle their most pressing development and sustainability challenges.
My PhD was key to prepare me for the role. It provided a rigorous training in economics, but it also offered me an opportunity to collaborate with and learn from experts of other disciplines – statisticians, social scientists, energy engineers, climate modelers, and spatial data scientists. The PhD taught me to find robust yet pragmatic solutions to complex challenges, drawing on the tool of rigorous analytics combined with the insights of local knowledge and experience.
Do you have any advice for future students?
For future students, my advice would be – if in doubt – follow and learn from the people that inspire you. It might lead you to topics and places that you didn’t expect or plan for, but the path is likely to be meaningful and rewarding.
Darshini Ravindranath, Civil Servant in The International Climate And Energy Team, graduated 2018
What was your background before starting at UCL Institute for Sustainable Resources?
Prior starting a PhD at UCL Institute for Sustainable Resources, I had an MSc in Environment and Development and a BA (Hons.) in Economics. I also had work experience with diverse organisations including international development agencies (ADB and UNDP), research institutes (LSE), private sector consulting, and NGOs in India and the UK.
What were your favourite parts of your PhD experience?
The best part of the PhD was being a part of a cohort of students working towards a joint goal of understanding some of the greatest complexities and challenges we are faced with. More personally, I relished the opportunity and freedom given to me by UCL Institute for Sustainable Resources to conduct my field research in a manner of my choosing. I spent close to a year in the desert villages of Rajasthan in India researching land use, climate change and its impacts on the people in the region. It challenged me and changed my perspective in the most meaningful way.
What did you do after your PhD?
After graduating, I joined the UK Civil Service where I spent a couple of years as a senior policy advisor on energy policy. I moved teams and I am currently working in the International Climate and Energy team, where I lead on green finance policy. Completing my PhD helped me enhance my analytical skills, both qualitative and quantitative, and particularly the ability to think through and grasp complicated concepts, develop solutions through analysis, and importantly communicate solutions in an accessible manner.
Do you have any advice for future students?
My advice to future students would be to take delight in the time and space provided at the university to focus on a subject matter you are passionate about, and to be a part of as many conversations as you can!
Florian Flachenecker, Policy Officer in The Recovery & Resilience Task Form At The European Comission, graduated 2018
What was your background before starting at UCL Institute for Sustainable Resources?
Before joining ISR, I obtained an MA in European Economic Studies from the College of Europe (Belgium) and an BSc in Economics from the University of Mannheim (Germany) and the Tecnológico de Monterrey (Mexico).
What were your favourite parts of your PhD experience?
My favourite part was that the UCL Institute for Sustainable Resources' culture gave me the perfect combination of the freedom to pursue my own research interests, and academic excellence through my brilliant supervisors and inspiring colleagues to exchange ideas, develop skills and build long-lasting links. My PhD helped me in numerous ways, but crucially it provided me with the required analytical background to support evidence-based policy making. It also helped me further develop a strong sense of self-motivation.
What did you do after your PhD?
After graduating, I joined the Young Professionals Programme of the OECD as an Economist, working on the circular economy, environmental taxes and the monitoring of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. Since then, I have been working at the European Commission, first as an Economist in the Joint Research Centre on environmental innovations and firm growth, and now as a Policy Officer in the Recovery & Resilience Task Force on ensuring a green recovery. I never fully left ISR since I continue to be an Honorary Lecturer.
Tobias Reinauer, Postdoctoral Researcher at Technical University Of Denmark, graduated 2019
What was your background before starting at UCL Institute for Sustainable Resources?
Before undertaking a PhD at the UCL Institute for Sustainable Resources, I completed a BA in political science and law in the Netherlands and UCL Institute for Sustainable Resources’s MSc in Economics and Policy of Energy and the Environment. I also spent time in southern Africa doing a year-long volunteer service in Mozambique and an internship/semester study abroad in South Africa, which made me curious about how developing and emerging economies can transition towards sustainable, low-carbon energy systems.
What did you do after your PhD?
After finishing the MSc, I began a PhD focusing on the development of the sector for industrial-scale biogas systems in Thailand. Building on this research, after finishing, I was a postdoc at the UNEP DTU Partnership in Copenhagen, Denmark, where I studied the markets for small wind turbines and household solar devices for off-grid electrification.