This is My Environmental Journey
Curating careers to inspire a diverse and inclusive future in environmental science
"This is My Environmental Journey" (TIMELY) is a NERC Opening up the Environment 2025 project. It aims to inspire and support underrepresented students, researchers, and professionals to pursue careers in environmental science. A key but under-addressed barrier is the lack of accessible, relatable, and inspiring career narratives, which limits individuals’ ability to envision a future in the field.
TIMELY responds to this challenge by curating and showcasing diverse career journeys through art-based methods, including curated exhibitions, creative storytelling, and visual elicitation. The project will identify role models from underrepresented groups, those with non-linear career paths, and individuals transitioning from other disciplines. Their stories will feature pivotal moments, opportunities, and achievements. These will be brought to life in the exhibition This is My Environmental Journey, presented both in person at the University of Warwick and online to ensure broad accessibility.
In this project, we will:
- Map and assess Warwick’s existing diversity and inclusion practices in environmental science.
- Co-create a scalable, transferable framework for curating career journeys. Researchers, professionals, partners, artists, and people with lived experience will define criteria for selecting role models, structuring narratives, and applying creative storytelling techniques.
- Organise in-person and online exhibitions to showcase diverse environmental career stories through multimedia storytelling, personal narratives, and visualisations.
- Form new partnerships with academic institutions, exhibition networks, and training providers. This will engage a broad range of stakeholders and audiences, build inclusive practices, and develop a platform for long-term change to improve diversity, inclusion, and interdisciplinarity in environmental science.
To ensure the project reflects and speaks to its intended audiences, we are recruiting People with Lived Experience (PWLE) as Co-Creators. Co-Creators will work with the project team to shape the content and form of our exhibitions and other relevant activities.
We welcome applications from individuals with lived experience in underrepresented backgrounds in environmental science, including but not limited to:
- Environmental scientists from underrepresented groups, such as ethnic minorities and women
- Environmental science professionals, such as technicians or professional services staff
- Scientists or professionals with non-linear career paths, such as those with career breaks due to caring responsibilities or who have transitioned into environmental science from other sectors
- Early-career researchers, including current PhD students or recent graduates from the University of Warwick
About the Role
PWLE Co-Creators will contribute to a series of co-creation workshops and related activities. Together, we will explore how the exhibitions are designed, how environmental science is represented, and how we can help environmental scientists and professionals imagine their futures within the field.
Time commitment:
- Approximately four 2-hour workshops between October 2025 and March 2026
We offer:
- Recognition as a member of this NERC-funded project
- Invitation to the exhibition launch event
- Opportunities to contribute to real institutional and sector-wide change
- Paid involvement (hourly rate at Grade 5 SP 22) for Warwick PhD students or alumni not currently employed by the university
How to Apply
To apply, please complete this form by the end of Monday, 22 September 2025. You will need to submit your CV and a short personal statement addressing:
- A brief introduction and your motivation for joining the project
- Relevant background or lived experience
- Your availability to participate in workshops from October 2025 to March 2026, especially during Term 1 of the 2025/26 academic year
Thank you for your interest in helping to create a more inclusive future for the discipline.