Research
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New Publications
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Calls
New round of ESPON calls
ESPON is a five-year programme for applied research into all aspects of European territorial development. UK researchers in the academic and private sectors are invited to submit proposals before 28th June. Eight new research themes have been identified to support the analytical needs of policy stakeholders, including: Territorial Impact Assessments; using applied results from ESPON as a yardstick for cross-border spatial planning and development; identifying and exchanging best practice in developing regional integrated strategies in Europe; metropolisation and polycentric development in Central Europe - evidence based strategic options; territorial performance monitoring; best development conditions in European metropolis - Paris, Berlin, Warsaw; selective migration and unbalanced sex ratio in rural regions; and, smart institutions for territorial developments. More…
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Research
New methods for valuing intangible ecosystem services
Some 'intangible' ecosystem services, such as the aesthetic and cultural value, as well as the recreational use of land, are particularly difficult to price. New research has proposed three explorative methods to value these more intangible services. The research analysed intangible ecosystem services in two areas in the urban fringe of Copenhagen, Denmark: Springforbi and Søllerød. These areas have been developed primarily for aesthetic and recreational use. The research tested three methods to explore possible ways of quantifying the ecosystem services from the aesthetic appreciation and recreational qualities: firstly, an analysis of the original landscape evaluation procedures that were performed in the 1930s and 1940s when the two areas were created; secondly, a measurement of recreational use of the two areas; and thirdly, an economic evaluation using figures from real estate prices. The research suggested that, for these two cases in Denmark, the soft ecosystem services may in fact be rivals to the harder services, such as conservation and CO2 sequestration. Although a range of soft and hard services are present in both areas, hard services are not unique to any specific area, unlike aesthetic and recreational values. By exploring these three methods, the research has taken preliminary steps in possible ways to evaluate these price-elusive ecosystem services and highlights the need for planners and policy-makers to consider them in their decision-making. More…
Scottish Social Attitudes Survey
The 2009 Scottish Social Attitudes Survey reveals that people trust the Scottish Government to act in Scotland's best interests rather than the UK government by a factor of more than two-to-one. The survey shows 61% people trusting the Scottish Government to act in the country's interests, compared to 25% for the UK government. The survey also shows a continued growth in those who think that the Scottish Government is the institution with most influence over how Scotland is run. This finding increased to 33% in 2009 from 28% in 2007, and continues a trend which began since the beginning of that decade. It compares with 39% who felt the UK Government had most influence in 2009 - a fall from 47% in 2007. The Scottish Social Attitudes Survey (SSAS) was launched by the Scottish Centre for Social Research in 1999 following devolution. The Office of the Chief Researcher has funded a core module of questions on attitudes to government in Scotland since 2004. There was no survey in 2008. Fieldwork for the 2009 SSAS took place between April and September 2009. Around 1,500 face-to-face interviews are carried out annually (1,482 in 2009) with a representative sample of the Scottish population. More…
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Events
Meeting – ‘2nd BSA Food Study Group Conference’
5th – 6th July 2010: The British Library Conference Centre, London.
The aim of this second conference is to explore the interface between food, society and public health through a sociological lens. Understanding patterns of food consumption, food acquirement or food production offers wider insights into social class, ethnicity, self-identity and the life course, and implications for national and global inequalities. Food systems and eating practices are changing in response to the worldwide economic downturn and ever present environmental concerns, including climate change. This raises many questions, including: How are people responding? Is there a return to a ‘make do and mend’ mentality in relation to food? Are families passing on food skills and knowledge in a bid to ‘pull together’ and cope with change? Are food systems and eating practices becoming more sustainable? What about food production and consumption in less developed countries? The conference sessions will explore how changing food systems are impacting on food security and livelihoods in developed and less developed countries. Is innovative action being taken to maximise the use of locally grown food, both in terms of improving sustainability and with regard to the taste/enjoyment of food? Do current policies and interventions to improve diet and reduce levels of obesity remain pertinent, or do we need new solutions in a changed and changing world? Academics, practitioners, policy-makers and other research users are encouraged to come together to explore these themes over the two days. More…
Training – ‘IMPACT Health Impact Assessment Course’
14th – 18th June 2010: Foresight Centre, Liverpool.
IMPACT is based in the Division of Public Health, a World Health Organisation Collaborating Centre, at the University of Liverpool. IMPACT aims to improve health and reduce health inequalities locally, nationally and internationally, through Health Impact Assessment (HIA). More specifically they seek to promote the integration of HIA into policy planning, through HIA Research, consultancy and training. The next IMPACT Health Impact Assessment course will run from 14th to 18th June. Please email for further information and an application form. More…
ippr Event – ‘A climate of politics: Getting China on board’
15th June 2010: Central London venue.
This is the second event in a series hosted by ippr, Christian Aid and WWF-UK, exploring the international politics of climate change and aiming to illuminate the way forward. This event will ask: What does China want from climate negotiations? How can we better engage with China? It will explore the reasons behind the perceived rejection by China of a more ambitious set of climate targets and of any internationally binding obligations. It will discuss the increasing dominance of China in the global economy, her domestic decision-making processes and how both relate to China's agenda on climate change. Also to be discussed is why industrialised countries seemingly failed to engage effectively with China prior to Copenhagen and what diplomats and negotiators must do in the run up to COP16 in Mexico to ensure that the same mistakes are not repeated. More…
SNH Event – ‘Rural/urban myths and interdependencies’
3rd June 2010: Battleby Conference Centre, Perth, Scotland.
This event, organised by Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH), will look at settlements as parts of ecosystems, including the way that resource use, waste, transport, energy, food and water networks connect the built environment to the wider countryside. It will examine some of the myths that result in divisions between rural and urban issues in policy making, with examples of better integrated policies and decisions. The event will also inform thinking on the development of both the Land Use Strategy and Ecosystems Approach by Scottish Government and SNH. It seeks to provide increased understanding of how sustainable settlements within wider ecosystems help build resilience to social and environmental change, including climate change. More…
Conference – ‘The Steady State Economy’
19th June 2010: Leeds.
Never-ending economic growth is not possible on a finite planet; nor is it improving well-being. This conference will bring together NGOs, academics, businesses, politicians, the media, and the general public to explore an ecologically and socially responsible alternative to economic growth: the steady state economy. Keynote speakers will be given by: Peter Victor (Professor in Environmental Studies, York University, Canada); Andrew Simms (Policy Director, New Economics Foundation); Dan O’Neill (European Director, Center for the Advancement of the Steady State Economy); and, Tim Jackson, by video (Professor of Sustainable Development, University of Surrey). In addition, critical issues will be addressed in ten interactive workshops. Workshop speakers include Kate Pickett (co-author of ‘The Spirit Level’), Molly Scott Cato (Economics Speaker for the Green Party), Roger Martin (Chair of the Optimum Population Trust), David Fell (Director at Brook Lyndhurst), Stephan Lutter (Researcher at the Sustainable Europe Research Institute), among others. More…
Symposium – ‘Safer, greener, healthier school travel planning: Transforming rhetoric into reality’
20th May 2010: The Guoman Charing Cross Hotel, The Strand, London.
The School Transport Bill, introduced in 2004 to overhaul outdated school travel planning, paved the way for a number of new Government initiatives. Central to the strategy for school transport was the need to find workable alternatives to unsustainable levels of car usage. In March 2009, the House of Commons Transport Select Committee published its second report on school transport, and whilst expressing disappointment at the lack of progress on aspects of school travel planning before the introduction of 14-19 diplomas, the committee of MPs recognised that “there is no single 'magic bullet' solution to improving school travel”. The report did, nevertheless, outline a series of key recommendations, including: rethink the potential for concessionary bus fare schemes for young people; review the ‘statutory walking distances’ framework; assess the impact of the introduction of new 14-19 diplomas on student travel costs; Local Authorities must work within Multi-Agency frameworks to integrate and deliver transport, health and education objectives for school travel; and, collect and disseminate examples of good practice in local school transport. To coincide with National Walk to School Week 2010, this symposium aims to offer a timely opportunity for local practitioners, schools and other stakeholders to assess the progress made at the local level since the report’s findings, and consider future initiatives to develop more effective and innovative local school travel plan strategies. Delegates will have the opportunity to debate, share good practice and network with colleagues from across the school transport and local authority landscape. More…
Conference – ‘Delivering on 2020: Putting Scotland at the forefront of climate change policy, action and jobs’
16th June 2010: Our Dynamic Earth, Edinburgh.
This interactive one-day conference will: hear from the Rt Hon. Alex Salmond MSP, the First Minister of Scotland, about the Government's approach to climate change and why Scotland can not only set an example to the rest of the world but also put renewables at the heart of its sustainable economy; explore some of the obstacles to that ambition; offer practical examples of how small changes in the way our businesses operate can effect substantial savings not only to the climate but also to the public purse; present cases of how private business and the public sector can adopt more sustainable practices; and, explore key aspects of the roadmap for change that will help inform the way ahead. It seeks to provide a unique opportunity for Scottish business, industry, government and civic society to contribute to Scotland's planned low carbon economy by feeding into an interactive discussion with polling and debate with those most intimately involved in policy formulation. More…
Conference – ‘Managing outdoor events and their impacts’
16th June 2010: Centre in the Park, Norfolk Heritage Park, Sheffield.
The way in which people use the countryside continues to change. As part of our concern as a society to improve people’s quality of life, to address the rising tide of obesity and to provide a sense of adventure, there are a wide range of promoted routes and events being made available. Attempts to broaden the range of visitors and to take them to places they would perhaps never visit brings with it responsibilities to the users themselves but also to the environment and the people who live and work in the countryside. Recent growth in the provision of managed routes and trails and the organisation of large scale charity events requires countryside managers and event organisers to deploy a wide range of skills to satisfy the needs of participants. They also require managers and organisers to reconcile conflicts with the environment and to recognise the interests of other users who may see none of the benefits but only the aggravation of large numbers of people often in an unfamiliar environment. This one-day conference aims to: help providers, managers and policy-makers understand contemporary patterns of rural recreation and the implications for countryside management; identify the safety issues arising from the growth of large scale events; present practical solutions for managing the environmental effects of concentrated recreational visits; introduce delegates to the practical application of environmental impact assessment; and, provide advice on the social issues that arise when communities are affected by intensive use of their local countryside. More…
Lunchtime Seminar – ‘Uncommon sense: the role of risk-taking in innovation’
28th May 2010: Young Foundation, Bethnal Green, London.
Heather Sim, the founder and chief executive of Space Unlimited, will be giving a lunchtime seminar on the topic of risk-taking and innovation. Space Unlimited is a pioneering social enterprise and recent addition to the Young Foundation family as a new member of the Learning Launchpad portfolio. Space Unlimited gives young people and businesses an unusual experience of creativity and innovation. Teenage pupils take on the role of consultants, applying their skills and ideas to pressing issues facing real clients. Risk and uncertainty are explicit ingredients in the Space Unlimited methodology. In this lunchtime seminar, Heather will be reflecting on the insights and surprises from her journey so far and sharing her views about why the skills for innovation are so relevant today, which skills are important and yet less developed, about the experiences that help develop these skills and about the varied ways in which young people, educators and business people tend to approach uncertainty. More…
RESOLVE Seminar – ‘The impact of Green political parties under coalition government: Lessons from New Zealand’
24th May 2010: University of Surrey.
In this seminar, Jeannette Fitzsimons will provide a timely and thought provoking reflection on the opportunities and limits of Green Party impact in national policy debate under coalition governance arrangements. Jeanette Fitzsimons served as New Zealand’s Green party co-leader and a parliamentarian from 1992 until stepping down in December 2009. Ranked New Zealand's “most trusted politician”, Jeanette Fitzsimons reflects on lessons from her experiences of 14 years of policy advocacy about sustainability under a variety of coalition governance arrangements. More…
Conference – ‘National Sustainable Schools’
Various dates in June 2010: Multiple locations.
This annual conference seeks to provide a valuable opportunity to hear national speakers, network and share experience with like-minded participants, and to access and review new resources that support sustainable schools. The conference will take place in four different locations: Peak District (4th June); Newcastle (8th June); London (16th June); and Bristol (25th June). More…
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Online
Play Shaper Website
A new website aimed at helping local authorities to provide child-friendly communities has been launched. Play Shaper, developed by Play England, Playwork Partnerships and SkillsActive, provides a range of resources and support for those involved in planning and managing children's play. Play Shaper is a national professional development programme for senior managers involved in the planning, design, and management of our communities. Play Shaper aims to raise awareness of the importance of children’s play, and to facilitate the creation of child-friendly public spaces. More…
Civic Voice ‘Love Local’ Campaign
Civic Voice, the new national charity for the civic movement in England, was launched on 17th April, and revealed the first results from their 'Love Local' campaign. Love Local is Civic Voice’s campaign to uncover the local DNA of different places – Love Local will reveal what makes places distinctive and people proud to live there. Anyone can join by completing a short survey asking what you love about your area and why and send some images. Civic Voice will build a frequently updated digital mosaic of the results – showing what people love about different parts of England and encouraging others to give voice to their feelings too. Early results indicate that the most loved features include: lots of open space and gardens; having a natural setting and views; a friendly and spirited community; well cared for historic buildings; and, a range of cultural and community activities. More…
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New Publications
EEA Report – ‘Land in Europe: Prices, taxes and use patterns’
This report explores why developments in land use patterns across Europe are generating considerable concern, particularly in relation to the achievement of environmental goals. Land use trends — such as urban sprawl and land abandonment — are jeopardising the future for sustainable land use. Moreover, these trends endanger the achievement of European environmental goals in areas such as biodiversity protection and water management and also hinder the effectiveness of instruments in these areas, including the Natura 2000 network and the Water Framework Directive. More…
Relu Policy and Practice Note – ‘Collaborative frameworks in land management: A case study on integrated deer management’
Wildlife populations move across landscapes ignoring human boundaries, and may be viewed as a resource or a nuisance. Wild deer management demonstrates how conflicts arise between neighbours who have different management goals. Although deer are a key component of the natural environment their feeding activity limits plant growth and biodiversity in woodlands and other habitats. They are highly valued, provide employment through stalking and game meat production, and encourage tourism, but also cause traffic accidents. Although deer are not owned by anyone, the right to hunt them rests with the landowner. They provide an opportunity to investigate collaborative management processes involving landowners and interested stakeholders. This policy and practice note highlights where collaboration over natural resource management is effective, why it is effective, and what the barriers are, using wild deer in the UK as a case study. More…
CSIRO Report – ‘Our future world: An analysis of global trends, shocks and scenarios’
This report defines megatrends as ‘collections of interlinked trends that will change the way people live and the science and technology products that they demand’. The megatrends presented in the report are based on analyses of over 100 trends contributed by leading scientists and business development staff across CSIRO. The report identifies megatrend one as ‘more from less’. In a world of increasing demand for depleting natural resources, from minerals to water to fish, coming decades will see a focus on resource use efficiency and a major global effort on extracting more from less. The second megatrend is ‘a personal touch’. Growth of the services sector, now representing over 70 per cent of the Australian economy, is being followed by a second wave of innovation aimed at tailoring and targeting services en masse, to individual customers. The third is ‘divergent demographics’, recognising the growing contrast between ageing OECD populations experiencing lifestyle and diet-related health problems, and high fertility rates and problems of not enough food for millions in poor countries. Megatrend four notes that more and more of the world’s people are ‘on the move’, changing jobs, moving house and travelling more often and commuting further to work. The fifth megatrand is dubbed ‘i World’, predicting that everything in the natural world will have a digital counterpart. Report co-author Dr Stefan Hajkowicz says that the megashocks of our future world will have profound and far reaching implications for people’s lives. More…
New Journal Paper – ‘Building human agency: a timely manifesto’
This Building Research and Information journal article, by Cole et al., describes a Manifesto on bioclimatic design and human comfort that embodies key priorities of leading built environment researchers. The Manifesto states that absolute comfort is a privilege not a right, and that buildings should provide their inhabitants with "multiple adaptive opportunities optimizing health, satisfaction and productivity". The article examines the Manifesto in terms of how it captures and represents a shift in thinking that has occurred over the past few years, away from technological and technocratic solutions to comfort provisioning and towards reframing building energy consumption as a social and ethical challenge in which comfort plays a key role. More…
New Report – ‘Climate change and health’
Climate change is capable of influencing the health of the population in many different ways, both mentally and physically. Worldwide, one of the largest health effects is likely to be malnutrition, followed closely by a rise in the number of people affected by malaria, diarrhoeal diseases and natural disasters. The effects in the UK are likely to show a different pattern, with a change in the seasonal distribution of deaths likely to have the largest impact. Increases in food and water borne diseases can also be expected along with higher skin cancer incidence. A rise in the number of floods and heatwaves could increase physical and mental stress amongst the population. Between October 2009 and March 2010, a Defra-funded report was put together with the intent on providing in depth information of the extent of climate change in the West Midlands and the effects that climate change could have on the Region’s health up until the 2080s. The document includes an investigation into: the direct effects of temperature on health; climate change, air pollution, respiratory diseases and allergens; climate change, food, water and vector borne diseases; climate change, indoor environments and health; climate change, ultra-violet radiation and health; impacts of extreme weather events on health; climate change and health inequalities; and, recommendations for adaptation strategies. More…
ippr Policy Brief – ‘Water Security: Global, regional and local challenges’
Around the world, global water problems continue to grow, adversely affecting people, prosperity and national security. This policy brief examines the scope of the problem and identifies a number of important policy considerations for addressing the issues related to this complex matter. While the management of the world’s water resources takes place primarily at the local level, this paper focuses on more complicated issues relating to the international management of trans-boundary water resources, an area of water security that does not currently receive enough attention in the literature. The paper begins with an overview of the current global water problem, considering it from social, economic and environmental perspectives, and focusing on the challenging issue of trans-boundary waters. A second section considers the global policy framework in place to address the issue of water insecurity, before a final section evaluates various policy alternatives, including rule of law initiatives that might help to strengthen this framework. This policy brief is one of a series supported by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC). More…
Forestry Commission Report – ‘Urban health and health inequalities and the role of urban forestry in Britain: a review’
Forest Research, with the University of Melbourne, has recently completed a desk-based review to explore urban health inequalities and to identify the links between trees, woods and health in urban populations. It outlines current gaps in research and identifies opportunities for a focus on urban forestry and health and well-being in urban areas. The key health benefits of urban forests and green space are identified to be: long and short term physical benefits associated with obesity, life expectancy, heart rate and blood pressure; attention and cognitive benefits associated with restoration, mood and self esteem; physical activity benefits associated with use of trees and woods; self reported benefits in terms of health and life satisfaction; and, community cohesion benefits through social contact fostered by trees, woods and forests. Two groups that could especially benefit from a focus on urban forestry and health are children and poor communities. More…
New Report – ‘Local food and climate change: The role of community food enterprises’
Community food enterprises can play a role in helping to tackle the challenge of climate change through empowering local people and communities to take action. This is the main message from this new report, which identifies the potential for communities on a local level across England to take action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in every part of the food chain, including transport. The report was launched at the Making Local Food Work for People and Planet Conference. Making Local Food Work is a five-year programme which aims to help communities across England to take control of their food and where it comes from by supporting a range of community food enterprises. These include farmers’ markets, community-owned shops, community supported agriculture, food co-ops, Country Markets and much more. Peter Couchman, Director of Making Local Food Work and Chief Executive of the Plunkett Foundation, commenting at the launch said, “Community food enterprises help people to take ownership of their food and where it comes from. This feeling of ownership has helped many to take on the challenge of climate change through a variety of community-led initiatives and enterprises. This report is designed to challenge us all to realise that there is no one simple solution to climate change, but there are steps that, by supporting and being engaged with community food enterprises, we can all take.” More…
New Book – ‘Shaping neighbourhoods for local health and global sustainability’
This new publication gives an insight into the research of the WHO Collaborating Centre for Healthy Cities. It includes findings from the recently completed Sustainable Urban Environments EPSRC project (SOLUTIONS), lessons from two study visits to Freiburg and ongoing work linking health and sustainable development through urban regeneration and planning. It seeks to provide useful tools, checklists and examples for researchers, students and practitioners. More…
UNEP Report – ‘Global Biodiversity Outlook: Third Edition’
The third edition of ‘Global Biodiversity Outlook’ (GBO-3), produced by the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), confirms that the world has failed to meet its target to achieve a significant reduction in the rate of biodiversity loss by 2010. The report is based on scientific assessments, national reports submitted by governments and a study on future scenarios for biodiversity, and is subject to an extensive independent scientific review process. It warns that massive further loss of biodiversity is becoming increasingly likely, and with it, a severe reduction of many essential services to human societies as several "tipping points" are approached, in which ecosystems shift to alternative, less productive states from which it may be difficult or impossible to recover. The Outlook argues, however, that such outcomes are avoidable if effective and coordinated action is taken to reduce the multiple pressures being imposed on biodiversity. The document notes that the linked challenges of biodiversity loss and climate change must be addressed by policy-makers with equal priority and in close co-ordination, if the most severe impacts of each are to be avoided. Conserving biodiversity and the ecosystems it underpins can help to store more carbon, reducing further build-up of greenhouse gases; and people will be better able to adapt to unavoidable climate change if ecosystems are made more resilient with the easing of other pressures. The Outlook outlines a possible new strategy for reducing biodiversity loss, learning the lessons from the failure to meet the 2010 target. More…
CSE/ippr Report – ‘Moderating the distributional impacts of personal carbon trading’
A study completed by the Centre for Sustainable Energy in 2008 indicated that the introduction of a system of personal carbon trading (PCT) - based on an equal allocation of carbon allowances to every adult – would be broadly fair but that a small proportion of low-income households would be made worse off by PCT. These are households that cannot easily lower their energy use, for example because there are many children living at home, or the house is unconnected to the mains gas network. The Institute for Public Policy Research (ippr) recently commissioned CSE to find out whether the system could be tweaked in order to moderate the negative impacts on low-income households. CSE therefore looked at two approaches for making the system fairer; the first examined alternatives to giving every adult the same amount of credits - can the allocation be skewed in favour of the ‘losers’? The second approach explored the financial compensation route. Modelling suggested that the first approach would not reduce the number of ‘losers’ (because whilst some households gain credits, others lose them), but it would shift the deficits burden onto households which choose carbon-intensive lifestyles and which could therefore avoid deficit through behavioural change and no/low cost measures. The second approach modelled a system of financial compensation for ‘low income’ households. The analysis showed that the costs of doing so vary considerably depending on a range of factors, but that there are basically two options: providing financial compensation to low-income ‘losing’ households for the exact value of their allowance deficit or providing compensation to all ‘low income’ households, regardless of household allowance balance. The first option costs considerably less than the latter, but it would be information intensive and could lead to perverse incentives to increase emissions. More…
WWF Report – ‘Riverside tales: Lessons for water management reform from three English rivers’
In 2009, a number of plans were finalised that will impact on how water is managed for years to come: the 2009 Periodic Review of Water Company prices; the Water Framework Directive River Basin Management Plans; and the 25-year Water Resource Management Plans. This report focuses on the impact of these plans on unique chalk streams under stress – the Itchen, the upper Kennet and the tributaries of the upper Lee (the Mimram and the Beane). It examines the outcomes for each in order to understand whether government, regulator and water company plans will restore and protect these important rivers for people and nature. On the basis of the assessment of the decisions made through these planning processes, conclusions are developed and lessons identified for future reform. More…
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Jobs and Training
Jobs and Training opportunities around the Sustainable Development Research network (including a new position on the SDRN Co-ordinating Team) are now updated frequently on the ‘Jobs and Training’ page of the SDRN website…
The SDRN Mailing is a moderated information resource and dissemination service for SDRN members. You can make use of this service by sending any information for inclusion in the mailing to Sarah Bell.
To join or leave this list, please email Sarah Bell or visit the JISCmail website.
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