College of Social Sciences

Sustainability issues touch on every aspect of our lives today. Whether or not this topic is already guiding your research, we are sure that it can inform your work and contribute to its development.

Due to the increasing importance of sustainability (for the world, but also in institutional, funder, and policy agendas) we held a short series of four linked Research and Knowledge Exchange Workshops to explore collaborative and interdisciplinary opportunities for research.

Each session included glimpses of inspiring research, highlights of funding opportunities, and time to network and discuss potential research development.

Our workshop programme will featured sessions on Governance and Sustainability led by Dr Jill Robbie, Education and Sustainability led by Dr Mia Perry; Mental Health and Sustainability led by Prof Jude Robinson; and Ecologies and Sustainability led by Dr John Shi.

 

8th March: Governance and Sustainability

This workshop is relevant to all colleagues across disciplines who are interested in research relating to governance and sustainability, and who wish to explore the challenges and opportunities of research in this theme. We aim to showcase research in governance and sustainability at Glasgow University, to share information on the funding opportunities relevant to this theme, and to share best practice and experiences of stakeholder engagement.

The programme of the event is as follows: 

Session 1: Research Project Examples

• Prof Iain MacNeil and Prof Irene-Marie Esser - "Sustainability from a Corporate and Financial Law Perspective"
• Dr Giedre Jokubauskaite - "Outsourcing Sustainability"
• Dr Jill Robbie - "Decentralised Water Technologies for Sustainable Rural Communities"

These presentations will outline three diverse projects which are concerned with governance and sustainability. The researchers will outline the challenges and opportunities of their research as well as ways of enhancing interdisciplinary engagement through their research.

Session 2: Funding Opportunities

Dr Anna Chadwick, Deputy Research Director for the School of Law will give a presentation on current funding opportunities within the theme.

The researchers who presented in session 1 will then share how they funded their current projects including success stories and lessons learned.

Session 3: Stakeholder Engagement

• Monique Campbell, Community Engagement Officer - "Best Practice in Community Engagement"
• Ana Miranda, Knowledge Exchange Associate - "Best Practice in Partnerships in LMICs"

These presentations outline best practice in relation to stakeholder engagement. The researchers who presented in session 1 will then again share how they engaged with stakeholders including success stories and lessons learned.

 

12th April: Education and Sustainability

This workshop is for those interested in research into sustainability relating to education (youth, communities, school, non-formal, etc.) and public engagement.

The aim of this workshop is to highlight current research in education and sustainability at the University; to outline the funding landscape relevant to this area; and to network and brainstorm interdisciplinary collaborations and pathways for research.

Part 1: Research Project Examples

Ria Dunkley – Sustainability and Ecopedagogy: Working partnerships to explore impacts of experiential learning

Ben Murphy – Sustainability and Schools: “Walk the Global Walk” Project 

Mia Perry – Education and Sustainability in International Development 

Presenters will outline the challenges and opportunities of their research and ways of enhancing interdisciplinary engagement through research

Part 2: Funding Opportunities 

Mike Osborne, Director of Research for the School of Education, on funding pathways within this area 

Presenters who presented in Part 1 will asked to comment in relation to their funding streams, success stories and lessons learned.

Part 3: Networking and Sandbox activity

Participants will be matched with colleagues from other discipline areas to put various types of sustainability expertise into relation with others, and to explore how we can innovate creative research responses to particular sustainability issues, contexts and/or funding avenues.

 

28th June: Ecologies and Sustainability

This event explores research into sustainability relating to ecologies that study the relationships between living organisms, especially humans, and their physical environment, including sustainable management (e.g. SDGs), adaptation and conservation strategies (e.g. nature-based solutions), and the mitigation of hazards and risks responding to the climate and environmental crises at local, regional, and global scales.

The aim of this event is to highlight current research in ecologies and sustainability in the college; to outline current funding opportunities within the theme; and to network interdisciplinary research collaborations and pathways across the college.

Part 1: Research Project Examples

•  Cecilia Tortajada
• Global water megatrends
• Jiren Xu
• Luanhe Living Lab: Synergies and trade-offs between SDGs at the sub-national scale
• Carl Cyrus Anderson
• Nature-based solutions for landslide risk reduction in Catterline, Scotland: Public preferences for green or grey measures
• John Shi
• Sustainability at scale: Groundwater investigation for rural community-use in Lobitos, Peru

Presenters will outline the challenges and opportunities of their research and ways of enhancing interdisciplinary engagement through research

Part 2: Funding Opportunities

Fabrice Renaud, Director of Research for the School of Interdisciplinary Studies, will give a presentation on current funding opportunities within the theme.

Presenters who presented in Part 1 will be asked to comment in relation to their funding streams, success stories and lessons learned.

Part 3: Networking activity

Matched with colleagues from other discipline areas, participants will be split into three breakout rooms to explore how we can work together to innovate creative research ideas for ecologies and sustainability issues and various funding opportunities.

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First published: 8 March 2021