Postgraduate research opportunity

Building Energy Commons: Law, Governance, and Community Power in African Renewable Energy Transitions

Sustainable Transitions - Building Energy Commons: Law, Governance, and Community Power in African Renewable Energy Transitions - Leverhulme Doctoral Training Programme 2026-27

Details

Project area title: Building Energy Commons: Law, Governance, and Community Power in African Renewable Energy Transitions

Course: Applicants wanting to undertake this research project should apply for a PhD in Management.

Funding: The University of Essex is offering two Masters plus PhD research scholarships for students to participate in a range of Sustainable Transitions DTP projects.

Overview

This is an opportunity for a person from an underrepresented group to undertake a fully funded masters degree followed by a fully funded interdisciplinary PhD under the ‘Sustainable Transitions – Leverhulme Doctoral Training Programme’ at the University of Essex.

Only UK domiciled applicants who meet the following criteria may apply:

Not already have a Master’s degree
Be from a low-income household background as evidenced by, for example, being in receipt of a full maintenance loan or Special Support loan during their undergraduate studies.

and/or

Be one of the following categories of ethnicity:

Black African
Black Caribbean
Black Other
Mixed – White and Black Caribbean
Mixed – White and Black African
Other mixed background (including Black African, Black Caribbean and Black Other)

The successful applicant would study an appropriate masters degree, such as:

While Renewable Energy Communities (RECs) are internationally recognised as decentralised, community-driven clean energy models, their implementation in African contexts remains uneven and under-researched. The project investigates the institutional, social, and environmental conditions that enable effective local energy governance, with particular attention to how international, regional, and national environmental rights can guide equitable and participatory REC development. This will strengthen inclusive, resilient, and rights-based community energy futures in Africa and globally.

Supervisory team

Professor Peter Bloom

Primary Discipline Supervisor

Business

Dr Godswill Agbaitoro

Secondary Discipline Supervisor

Law

Interdisciplinary focus

This project integrates sustainable energy governance, cooperative management, and environmental law to examine how renewable energy communities can be developed and scaled across East and West Africa. The research will focus on organisational democracy, community ownership models, and participatory energy decision-making, supported by legal analysis of environmental rights frameworks. Methods include case studies, qualitative interviews, stakeholder workshops, and policy and regulatory analysis to link organisational practice with rights-based governance.

Training and support

You will be supported through the Sustainable Transitions training programme which provides initial training in interdisciplinary research methods, training in the secondary discipline within the project area and ongoing training throughout the duration of the programme. All doctoral scholars benefit from the support of Proficio which entitles you to £2,500 that can be used to purchase training courses either within or external to the University. Additionally Sustainable Transitions scholars are entitled to £10,000 that can be used to cover research costs and further training. Scholars are encouraged to audit masters and degree level course where appropriate. You will also have the support of the Sustainable Transitions management team, as well as your own supervisory team.

All Sustainable Transitions scholars will become part of the Centre for Environment and Society, through which ongoing events and networking opportunities are available.

Person specification

This opportunity would suit a candidate with a background in management, sustainability or, development studies, with an interest in community-led energy transitions in Africa.It is not necessary for the candidate to have prior training in law , as this will be provided during the programme.

Research proposal

The project area is broadly defined, leaving scope for the applicant to develop their own specific research proposal as part of the application. The successful candidate will further develop their proposal in close consultation with the supervisory team.

Supervision

The primary discipline supervisor takes the lead responsibility for supervising the project. For further detail relating to supervision see the Guidance for Applicants (.docx) document.

Additional background information

In East and West Africa, expanding access to affordable, reliable, and sustainable energy remains a central challenge for social and economic development. Although national electrification strategies have advanced, large populations, particularly in rural, peri-urban, and informal settlements, continue to lack consistent access to clean and secure energy. Centralised grid expansion is often insufficient to meet demand in an equitable manner due to persistent infrastructural, financial, and governance constraints. Renewable Energy Communities (RECs) have emerged as a promising decentralised approach that aligns with local development ambitions and climate objectives.

RECs refer to locally governed, community-owned energy systems in which citizens collectively participate in the generation, distribution, and management of renewable energy. They operate through inclusive organisational models, often using cooperative structures that prioritise democratic decision-making and shared benefits rather than profit maximisation. RECs have grown significantly in Europe, supported by EU directives that recognise citizen-led energy initiatives as instruments for accelerating decarbonisation, enhancing energy democracy, and increasing system resilience. Their proliferation in Europe provides a rich body of policy, regulatory, and practical experience that can inform context-specific adaptations in African settings, while highlighting lessons related to financing, governance, rights, and local participation.

Despite this potential, African experiences with RECs remain fragmented and under-researched. Core challenges include financial sustainability, access to capital, technical capacity for maintenance, and integration into national energy markets. Governance structures vary widely, and while some initiatives adopt participatory approaches, others reproduce hierarchical or donor-driven project models that limit community agency.

Legal and regulatory environments further shape outcomes. Many African states participate in regional and international agreements that articulate environmental rights, including rights to a healthy environment, public participation, and sustainable development. These commitments are unevenly incorporated into national legislation and energy regulation, creating gaps between formal rights and their material implementation. Additionally, many attempts to drive RECs in Africa either neglect or pay little attention to its impact on environmental rights and the issues that may arise. Linking environmental rights with energy governance offers a foundation for enhanced accountability, equity, and long-term sustainability of RECs.

Organisational design remains central to enabling successful energy communities. Effective RECs require democratic decision-making, transparent financial administration, and institutional arrangements that reflect local social and cultural priorities. Cooperative management traditions have deep historical roots in African socio-economic organisation, yet these practices are not consistently integrated into energy policy or project design. Strengthening the relationship between cooperative governance, organisational democracy, and energy transitions may support more culturally aligned and socially legitimate energy pathways.

This project addresses a need for interdisciplinary research that integrates sustainable energy management, participatory governance, and environmental rights. Through comparative case studies in selected African contexts, the research will identify mechanisms for scaling RECs that are financially viable, legally grounded, and community owned, providing evidence to inform policy, civil society actors, and community-led energy initiatives.

Importantly, this project is closely aligned with the research agendas of the Centre for Organising, Values, Equality and Resilience (COVER) and the Human Rights Centre at the University of Essex. COVER’s focus on collective organisation, values, equality and resilience complements the project’s emphasis on cooperative governance, community energy models and socio-technical transition pathways. Meanwhile, the Human Rights Centre’s expertise in rights-based approaches to environmental governance supports the research’s attention to international, regional and national environmental rights frameworks. The student will thus benefit from a rich interdisciplinary environment, access to specialist networks, and the opportunity to link empirical enquiry with high-level theoretical and policy work in both governance and human rights.