New PhD to shape climate-friendly financing for city development

Glasgow Caledonian University has launched a new PhD programme, in partnership with Glasgow City Council, aimed at creating fair and sustainable financial models for urban development.

The project will focus on ensuring vulnerable communities benefit from city planning, especially in the face of climate change.

The three-year research project, starting in February 2025, will first gather and analyse data to evaluate existing climate-finance models and propose new, climate-justice focused approaches. This work will help shape Glasgow’s wellbeing economy and guide long-term urban development.

The research will then develop practical tools to help take forward these new approaches to climate financing, building on previous work from the Mary Robinson Centre for Climate Justice, while supporting Glasgow's Social Enterprise Action Plan.

Professor Tahseen Jafry, Director of the Mary Robinson Centre for Climate Justice at Glasgow Caledonian University, highlighted the importance of this research: “Climate-just financing is increasingly critical to urban development, ensuring equity, equality, and rights are integrated into financial models for city planning. However, there are few models that effectively address the needs of the most vulnerable populations, and there is a particular gap in transparency, accountability, and progress-tracking in these approaches. These knowledge gaps are some of the areas that this research will look to address.

“The PhD will build on previous research in climate finance and just transition, and the new insights gained will guide future city planning projects in Glasgow, particularly those designed to attract investment while addressing social inequalities. A significant focus of the University’s Strategy 2030 is demonstrably benefiting the city in which we are situated, which is why projects such as this are hugely important.”

Glasgow City Council Leader Susan Aitken highlighted the significance of this research, especially after Glasgow hosted COP26: “As host of COP26, Glasgow helped accelerate, and remains at the forefront of, the climate-finance agenda. We also gave voice to the inextricable link between social and climate justice in developed cities like ours. The creation of this PhD is another fitting legacy which continues to advance these critical agendas.

“Models of climate financing which ensure ordinary citizens don’t carry the cost burden is core to any notion of a just transition. So too is ensuring that our people have the necessary skills to develop, advance and implement these models. I’m proud that the partnership between the Council and Glasgow Caledonian’s Mary Robinson Centre for Climate Justice is a significant step towards doing just that.”

The PhD announcement coincided with a visit from former Ireland President Dr Mary Robinson, patron of the Centre for Climate Justice and Chair of The Elders. During her visit, she spoke about the importance of integrating fairness and transparency into climate finance and praised the PhD programme as a critical step toward creating urban environments that serve everyone, especially those most vulnerable to climate change.

Dr Robinson said: “The launch of this new PhD at Glasgow Caledonian University is a significant step in this direction. By integrating equity, transparency, and accountability into climate finance, we can build urban environments that serve all citizens. True progress demands that we centre the wellbeing of people, especially those most at risk, in every decision we make.”

Dr Robinson’s visit also included a meeting with the University’s climate justice students, offering them a unique opportunity to engage directly with a global leader in the field.

Mary Kerr, Climate Finance Manager, Glasgow City Council, represented the Council at the launch of the new PhD programme at the University’s Glasgow campus.

Picture caption (left to right) - Professor Tahseen Jafry, Director of the Mary Robinson Centre for Climate Justice; Dr Mary Robinson, former Ireland President and patron of the Mary Robinson Centre for Climate Justice; Mary Kerr, Climate Finance Manager, Glasgow City Council; Professor Andrea Nelson, Pro Vice-Chancellor Research at Glasgow Caledonian University.