Based at the University of York, The Leverhulme Centre for Anthropocene Biodiversity (LCAB) aspires to stimulate a profound shift in environmental thinking, recasting 'biodiversity loss' and ‘ecosystem degradation’ perspectives into a more complex, realistic, and nuanced picture of Anthropocene change.

Using an interdisciplinary perspective that integrates natural and social sciences, the arts and humanities, LCAB researches the changing relationship between humanity and the natural world, and how we might maintain and develop a sustainable Earth. The Centre represents an interdisciplinary collaboration between multiple departments at the University of York, the University of Sherbrooke, University College London and the University of St Andrews. LCAB recognises biological gains as well as losses, and identifies the circumstances under which changes are perceived as positive or negative. It aims to understand and inform society’s response to these changes.

Most accounts of biodiversity change are framed as stories of decline or disaster. However, the human modification of ecosystems and human-assisted movement of species around the world have generated and continue to generate gains as well as losses of biodiversity. Furthermore, they provide benefits to people as well as harm. LCAB seeks to understand the under-studied societal and biological processes that underpin biodiversity gains, and the consequences of those gains, in order to inform and influence society’s responses to these changes.

Our interdisciplinary approach to understanding, interpreting and responding to the challenges of the Anthropocene is helping to identify opportunities to increase the future sustainability of our planet, steering us towards what might be regarded as a 'good' Anthropocene. We are interested in supporting interdisciplinary PhD studentships that explore the ways in which human activity enhances as well as diminishes biological diversity. You will interact and communicate with each other and the wider LCAB academic community to develop interdisciplinary thinking and skills, which we believe are vital to addressing the complex challenges of the Anthropocene.