New Centre for Doctoral Training will equip graduates with essential skills for the green industrial revolution

A new £18 million Centre for Doctoral Training in Green Industrial Futures (CDT-GIF) has been launched to develop the next generation of innovators and leaders with the advanced skills needed to drive the UK’s transition to net zero.

The global energy transition is creating immense demand for skills in decarbonisation technologies and sustainable systems integration. However, there is a growing shortage of postgraduate-level talent required to develop and deploy vital solutions like carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS), green hydrogen, sustainable fuels, CO2 emissions removal and energy systems optimisation.

By combining innovative research projects with advanced technical training in energy systems, policy, economics and public engagement, the CDT-GIF addresses the need for multifaceted, industry-literate talent trained in systems thinking.  This highly-skilled talent is urgently needed to spearhead industrial decarbonisation projects and the deployment of green technologies as the UK drives towards its net zero commitments.

The Centre, which is funded by UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) through the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), is hosted by four leading UK universities – Heriot-Watt University, Imperial College London, University of Bath and University of Sheffield.

CDT-GIF is now open for applications from bright and ambitious individuals looking to develop a career at the forefront of the green industrial revolution.

Professor Mercedes Maroto-Valer, Director of the new CDT and UK industrial decarbonisation champion, said: 
“The CDT in Green Industrial Futures builds directly on the outstanding foundations laid by the £20 million UKRI Industrial Decarbonisation Research and Innovation Centre (IDRIC).

“Through IDRIC, we have established strong partnerships across industry, government and the skills sector. This has allowed us to co-create a CDT programme that will produce graduates with the attributes and skills urgently needed to deliver the green industrial revolution and the UK’s net zero ambitions.”

The four-year doctoral programme combines focused research with a comprehensive slate of technical and professional training modules, industry placements, and at least one international research experience to visit world-leading demonstration and pilot facilities.

Graduates will emerge as true interdisciplinary systems thinkers, knowledgeable across key decarbonisation technologies, and equipped with essential professional skills like business modelling, impact delivery, policy influence and public engagement.