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Causal and adaptive learning for agronomic decisions and knowledge exchange in sorghum

Project summary

Program
PhD
Location
St Lucia
Research area
Agricultural, veterinary and food sciences, Economics

Project description

This PhD is embedded within SorGain, a research program aimed at improving sorghum productivity by closing the gap between actual and water-limited yield potential across Queensland and New South Wales. 

Growers and advisers currently rely on diverse evidence sources, yet outcomes vary across environments and seasons, and the evidential basis of recommendations is not consistently evaluated alongside how knowledge is translated into practice.

This project will examine how diverse agronomic evidence can support defensible sorghum management decisions and how the resulting recommendations are communicated, interpreted and applied by researchers, growers, and advisers.

Project objectives

  • Develop a causal evidence framework linking sorghum agronomic decisions with the pathways through which supporting evidence reaches growers and advisers.
  • Apply and refine the framework using existing and emerging evidence to examine uncertainty, competing explanations and transferability across sites and seasons.
  • Examine how appraised evidence is exchanged and used through sorghum knowledge networks.
  • Assess the usefulness, feasibility and transferability of the method for SorGain and other agricultural research programs.

The research will draw on field trials, crop models, Earth observation, farm records, meteorological and soil data, stakeholder evidence, and project decision records. 

Methods will include contribution analysis, process tracing, interviews, workshops and observation of knowledge-exchange activities.

Research environment

You will be based at the Centre for Crop Science, QAAFI, UQ St Lucia. QAAFI as well as SorGain project provides a multidisciplinary environment across agronomy, physiology crop modelling, system assessment, and agricultural extension. 

Subject to data governance and ethics approvals, you will work with trial and National Variety Trials data, crop models, Earth observation, farm records, meteorological and soil data, plant-available water estimates, yield-gap analyses, and project decision records.

You will engage with researchers, growers, and advisers through SorGain’s Knowledge Partnership Network and relevant National Grower Network activities across Queensland and New South Wales. 

Standard UQ computing, data-management, and qualitative-analysis resources will support the research. The project is analytical and engagement-based.

Domestic travel will be involved to interact with different stakeholders.

Scholarship

This project is supported by the Research project scholarship.

This scholarship includes:

  • living stipend of $39,220 per annum tax free (2026 rate), indexed annually
  • tuition fees covered.

This scholarship includes:

  • living stipend of $39,220 per annum tax free (2026 rate), indexed annually
  • tuition fees covered.
  • Single Overseas Student Health Cover (OSHC).

Learn more about the Research project scholarship.

Supervisor

Preferred educational background

Your application will be assessed on a competitive basis.

We take into account your:

  • previous academic record
  • publication record
  • honours and awards
  • employment history.

A working knowledge of Monitoring, Evaluation, Research and Learning (MERL) would be of benefit to someone working on this project.

You will demonstrate academic achievement in the fields of agricultural science, agricultural extension, rural sociology, or a closely related discipline and the potential for scholastic success.

A background or knowledge of mixed-methods research, evidence synthesis, causal reasoning, qualitative interviewing, and/or quantitative data analysis is highly desirable.

How to apply

You must submit an expression of interest (EOI) by 20 October, 2026 20 October, 2026.

Before you apply

  1. Check your eligibility for the Doctor of Philosophy (PhD).
  2. Prepare your documentation.
  3. If you have any questions about whether the project is suitable for your research interests, contact Associate Professor Sudhir Yadav (sudhir.yadav@uq.edu.au).

When you apply

To apply, submit an expression of interest (EOI) for the program. You don't need to apply separately for the project or scholarship. How to submit an EOI

In your EOI, complete the ‘Scholarship/Sponsorship’ section with the following details:

  1. Are you applying for an advertised project: 'Yes'
  2. Project: 'Research project scholarship'
  3. Scholarship Code Listed in the Advertisement: SORGHUM-YADAV
  4. Link to Scholarship Advertisement: https://study.uq.edu.au/study-options/phd-mphil-professional-doctorate/projects/causal-and-adaptive-learning-agronomic-decisions-and-knowledge-exchange-sorghum

Submit an EOI

This project is not available to domestic students

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