News, Jobs, Events, Opportunities and lots more...
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Quick round up of this week's news, jobs and events
News
Announcing Round 2 Flex Fund awardees
We are delighted to announce new funding for three environmental research projects. Together they examine and evaluate opportunities to encourage people to get more involved in climate action
- By empowering young people in climate decision-making
- Strengthening pro-environmental values amongst British Muslims
- Improving our understanding of how acts of caring in communities can lead to a more sustainable future for us and the planet.
The three winners of the second round of the UKRI Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) funded Advancing Capacity for Climate Environment Social Science (ACCESS) Flex Fund competition will share £750,000. The projects will all start this autumn and run for approx. 18 months.
Making a Net Zero Society: Follow the Social Science
A few weeks after the report was published, we received very positive feedback from central and devolved government departments, industry and partners.
Now we look forward to the next few months when we will be attending meetings and events to further promote the report. We hope to discuss in more detail how ACCESS can support organisations to embed more environmental social science skills and expertise in their work.
If you are interested in how ACCESS can support you with the next steps and recommendations outlined in the report. Please get in touch. Please find a review of the report on The Bennett Institute, University of Sussex website.
This film is from the “Taps Aff!”, a Flex Fund Round 1 project that looked at experiences of water scarcity in rural Scotland. The twelve-month project was led by Elizabeth Lawson from Newcastle University and Laura Major at the University of Strathclyde. The project aimed to develop and test methods for communicating experiences of water scarcity and its management with those planning responses to water scarcity and a wider public.
Events
AI for Net Zero: Accelerating the Net Zero Transition with AI Conference
Monday 16 to Thursday 19 December, University of Exeter
The organising committee are delighted to call for submissions for papers or posters exploring the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in addressing net zero challenges. Topics which align with one or more of the following themes are encouraged:
- Energy
- Transport
- The Environment
Agriculture and food system
AI innovation
The closing date for submissions is Monday 7 October.
Public attitudes towards gasification technologies in the UK, Germany and China and their susceptibility to the Nasty Effect, TARG:ET Webinar
Tuesday 8 October at 1pm
This TARG:ET webinar is presented by ACCESS Co-Investigator Chris Jones from Portsmouth University. Chris will be reporting on the findings of a study investigating public attitudes towards two forms of gasification (coal and waste gasification) using an online survey distributed to demographically representative samples of the public from the UK, Germany and China.
Register here
UK Government ARIs as a research-policy engagement channel, Universities Policy Engagement Network Webinar
Wednesday 16 October, 1 to 2 pm, Online
Areas of Research Interest (ARIs) now exist for all UK Government departments and some agencies. The UK Government ARI Hub has been welcomed as a way of quickly finding public policy-related research needs and as a way of identifying potential engagement and impact opportunities.
But some key questions remain. Beyond the slick functionality of a database, is there a blackhole into which carefully crafted emails disappear? Are some live ARI questions actually out of date? Are our internal efforts to promote ARIs bearing fruit? And are some channels being dominated by the ‘usual suspects’, making it harder for others to cut through the noise?
Join this webinar to hear more about the findings and participate in a discussion on what steps might be taken to improve the ARI engagement process, and build greater inclusion, awareness and engagement with the UK’s policy-related research needs.
Register here
Digital Animals
Wednesday 16 October, 15.30-17.00, Lecture Theatre B, Streatham Court, University of Exeter.
Digital Animals (2024) explores how digital technologies are being introduced into animal farming in UK agriculture, and asks what social, political and ethical implications this digital transformation might have for the sector. The film draws on our research on this topic and aims to start a public discussion about what kind of technology we want in animal farming and how this should be governed.
The film screening be followed by a panel discussion and Q&A with the filmmakers, farmer Andy Gray (Elston Farm) and Dr Catherine Broomfield (Centre for Rural Policy Research, University of Exeter). Food and drinks will be available following the Q&A.
Visual Revelations - Using cartoons in research from Imagined Disciplines - Creative Club, University of Exeter
Wednesday 16 October, 2 to 4 pm, Penryn Campus and Wednesday 23 October, 2 to 4 pm, Streatham Campus - University of Exeter staff only.
Imagined Disciplines - Creative Club is a PhD research project by Rebecca Edgerley at the University of Exeter, which is investigating how creative interventions shape interdisciplinary practices amongst university professionals and postgraduate researchers. Through techniques such as collage, poetry and performance, Creative Club invites participants to express and share their perspectives about different ways of knowing, doing, and supporting research.
Festival of Social Science
Saturday 19 October to Saturday 9 November
The UK’s biggest celebration of social science research returns this October for its 22nd year.
The Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) Festival of Social Science is an annual celebration of the social sciences, with events run by 41 research organisations across the UK.
Rethinking Energy Geopolitics. A UKERC Webinar
Monday 21 October, 3 to 4 pm, online
The webinar will draw on the recent UKERC publication 'Rethinking Energy Geopolitics: Towards a Geopolitical Economy of Global Energy Transformation', an output of the UKERC research theme 'UK Energy in a Global Context'.
Register here
The Ministry of Environmental Disasters: Exhibition
Saturday 9 to Saturday 16 November, 10 to 4 pm
The University of Surrey will be hosting an interactive eco-poetry gallery exhibition that will include pieces by esteemed artists and poets themed around how we treat the environment.
If you're in Guildford and into eco art or poetry, drop in. There is also an eco-poetry workshop on 9 November and throw your own work into the mix!
Save the Date: Global Tipping Points Conference 2025
Monday 30 June to Thursday 3 July
The second Global Tipping Points Conference will be a ‘call to action’ to the research community, policymakers, and business to raise awareness and understanding of the importance of tipping points and to accelerate the required action.
The Global Systems Institute at the University of Exeter, the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research and the Max Planck Institute for Geoanthropology will co-host the event.
Call for research sessions must be submitted by 26 November 2024
Training
Systems Mapping for Environmental Domains - More places have become available
More places have become available so we have extended the deadline to register interest to Friday 25 October.
Register here
Nature Health & Wellbeing CPD Course
Monday 17 March, Thursday 20 March, Monday 24 March, Thursday 27 March 2025, 9 am to 1.15 pm, University of Exeter
Sessions will be delivered by a team of experts from the European Centre for Environment and Human Health contributing to the course, some of whom have led on the Nature and Prescription Handbook and have authored the WHO ‘call to action’ on nature, biodiversity and health, and the recent report on Green Social Prescribing and its effectiveness in tackling and preventing mental ill health.
Jobs
ACCESS Project Manager, University of Exeter
We are looking for an experienced project manager who will be responsible for supporting the Exeter project team working on this ESRC funded project.
ACCESS is a team of world-leading social science and interdisciplinary experts led by the Universities of Exeter and Surrey with the Universities of Bath, Leeds & Sussex and the Natural Environment Social Research Network (Natural Resources Wales, NatureScot, Natural England, Environment Agency and Forest Research).
The closing date for applications is Tuesday 22 October
Post Doctoral Researcher posts at the University of Southern Denmark's Climate Cluster
Funding
The APEX Awards Webinar
Tuesday 8 October, 3 to 4.15 pm
Learn more about the 2025 round of the APEX Awards, run by the Royal Society in partnership with the Royal Academy of Engineering, and the British Academy.
The APEX awards (Academies Partnership in Supporting Excellence in Cross-disciplinary research) are now open and offer established independent researchers an exciting opportunity to pursue genuine interdisciplinary and curiosity-driven research to benefit wider society.
Register for the webinar here
Enhancing proposals for ClimateXChange research project
Tuesday 8 October at 12 p m, online
ClimateXChange’s online lunchtime webinar will equip participants with knowledge and best practice tips to write successful bids tailored to meet the specific requirements of ClimateXChange research projects. Researchers from academia and consultancies interested in conducting their projects are invited to attend.
For more information click Read more
British Academy Senior Research Fellowships to open soon
The Academy will be inviting applications for Senior Research Fellowships starting on 4 October with a deadline of 13 November 2024. Up to 12 awards are expected to be offered this year, funded by the Leverhulme Trust, the Thank-Offering to Britain Fund, and the Donald Winch Fund.
More information about the Senior Research Fellowships and instructions on how to apply will be available on our website after the 4 October launch.
Did you know? The Academy’s additional needs funding programme offers support to applicants and award-holders who face barriers to being able to make applications or to fully exploit the research opportunities offered by core British Academy funding, through caring responsibilities, ill-health, disability, or other special needs. The call for additional needs funding is open continuously and applications are considered monthly.
British Academy Funded Fellowship with FCDO
Early- and mid-career researchers in the Humanities and Social Sciences are invited to apply to work with the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) on one of three key areas: security and growth in India, energy transition in Africa and citizen-state relations in Africa.
The closing date for applications is Wednesday 27 November
Opportunities
A Call for Papers: Young Energy Researchers
The World Sustainable Energy Days (WSED) are a leading annual conference on the energy transition and climate neutrality with over 650 participants from more than 60 countries. A call for papers from young energy researchers has gone out.
The closing date for submissions is 10 October
Nuffield Foundation/POST Fellowship for PhD students in natural and social sciences
PhD students and recent PhD graduates in any natural or social sciences are invited to apply for a fully funded 13-week fellowship in UK Parliament, supporting its use of research evidence. This is a great opportunity to see how Parliament works up close.
The closing date for applications is Sunday 20 October
Invitation to shape the research agenda for sustainable development in Wales and the EU
Natural Resources Wales (NRW) are representing Wales as part of a pan-European project, CASRI, funded by the European Union. CASRI's mission is to generate and provide the knowledge that stakeholders need for a sustainable and just transition.
As part of this project, NRW are running a workshop in Cardiff on Wednesday 13 and Thursday 14 November. They are looking to bring together experts who can network and help one another to solve research and innovation sustainability challenges cooperatively and be involved at the European scale. The themes of particular interest are:
- Resilient, net-zero, circular production systems
- Biodiversity and climate
If you are interested please contact Kester Savage
Info
National biodiversity strategies under-utilize the potential for individual behaviour change
Analysis for this paper conducted by Rode, Moreno Soares, Colleony, Turbe, Chadwick & Marselle was part of the Intergovernmental Panel Biodiversity & Ecosystem Services’ (IPBES) Assessment on the diverse values and valuation of Nature.
It's an extension of the work ACCESS Co-Investigator Melissa Marselle presented in an ACCESS webinar Applying the Behaviour Change Wheel to Biodiversity Policy.
The paper concludes "Moving forward, there is a clear need to enhance biodiversity policy strategies by incorporating insights from behavioural science and behaviour change frameworks. This implies specifying target behaviours and groups, diversifying intervention types to include the full range of options available (e.g. environmental restructuring, coercion, and modelling), and involving a wider range of actors for effective implementation."
‘There’s no helpline’: how mental health services can support young people with climate distress
What is climate distress? How can mental health services help support young people? This new study from Marc O Williams and others is based on a qualitative pilot study with three stakeholder groups involved in youth mental health counselling services in England: young people, mental health counsellors, and strategic partners. explores this important area of mental health.
Severe climate change may increase violence against women
Research from UCL, University of Exeter, South African Medical Research Council and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill investigates the relationship between climate change and violence against women. Insightful work with important recommendations.
Introduction to UUCN
The UK Universities Climate Network (UUCN) have created an ‘Introduction to UUCN’ slide deck for new and prospective members. It gives an overview of who they are and what they do, how to become a member, and how to get involved.
View the slide deck here
What is it really like to be a special adviser?
Special advisers are some of the most important yet misunderstood figures in government. They play vital roles – as the voice of their minister in the department, shaping policy agendas and managing the media.
As a new government gets up and running and scores of new SpAds get to grips with their roles, this special four-part podcast series, from the Institute for Government, lifts the lid on what SpAds do, how they do it, and why they’re indispensable to modern government.
Reimagining food systems and food futures: a visual approach
In this report by ACCESS Flex Fund awardee, Catherine Price examined a temporary exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, called FOOD: Bigger than the Plate.
"This paper offers a visual journey into some of the potential possibilities and options for ensuring food systems become more resilient. Whilst the exhibition was about illustrating how a more sustainable, just and delicious food future could be achieved, as the findings show, there are deeper meanings attached to the images of the exhibits. What I believe the images of the exhibition do, is to challenge us to think about food and our relationships with food. What is revealed are the possible ways in which we can reimagine the future of food if we are prepared to be challenged in our thinking."
The People and Nature Survey for England has just been published
This report covers April 2023 to 31st March 2024.
What colour is disaster?
What colour is disaster?, is a brilliant artwork by Freddie Yauner which was delivered to the newly elected MPs in the UK Parliament.
“On first sight, the print looks like a recognisable paint colour chart but in fact each name and description presents a warning of a future that this new cohort of MPs has the power to help change...What Colour is Disaster? is inspired by Professor Ed Hawkins ‘warming stripes’.
