THE UNIVERSITY OF WARWICK
Sustainable
Futures
Shaping the world of tomorrow
Contents
3
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Introduction
4
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Behavioural Science
6
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Connecting Cultures
8
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Cyber Security
10 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Energy
12 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Food
14 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Global Governance
16 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Innovative Manufacturing
18 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . International Development
20 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Materials
22 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Science and Technology for Health
24 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sustainable Cities
26 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The University of Warwick
27 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Contacts
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University of Warwick Sustainable Futures
Sustainable Futures:
Shaping the world of tomorrow
Picture a world where there is a fair and sustainable supply of food, or envisage a planet
with affordable, clean energy. Imagine cities that can comfortably cope with rapidly
growing populations. Consider our increasingly aged populations being provided with
appropriate healthcare.
For our planet to realise such ambitions, our greatest minds will need to work in
collaboration and across disciplines to identify solutions. This is where Warwick’s Global
Research Priorities (GRPs) make such a difference: bringing together our renowned
research expertise to explore issues at a global scale.
We tackle cyber security and the supply of food. We apply our insight to sustainable
energy and the international development of a globalising world. We make an impact on
citizens’ health and wellbeing, and on the cities in which they may be living.
Scientists from our Innovative Manufacturing and Materials GRPs work in areas of vital
importance to the world economy, and to the fabric of 21st century life.
We also look at connecting cultures, behavioural science and global governance – all
issues that underpin some of the world’s seemingly intractable problems.
Throughout 2015, our GRP programme hosted a series of international events probing key
issues around the central theme of Sustainable Futures to coincide with the renegotiation
of a number of key global development agendas. These included the UN's 2030 Agenda
for Sustainable Development and the landmark Conference of Parties (COP21) Climate
Change Adaptation Agreement. Over the next 15 years, these agendas will be used as the
guiding principles to shape how nations frame their strategies and policies with a focus
on: alleviation of poverty and hunger; social justice and equality for all; health reform;
sustainable energy; climate change adaptation; sustainable economic growth; urban and
infrastructure resilience; and reducing inequality between countries. Each of these areas
are ones in which our GRPs can make a demonstrable contribution.
In this brochure, we highlight examples of research that is aiming to find solutions for
some of these future challenges. We explore how small changes in human behaviour
can help to reduce climate change, how our researchers are working towards eliminating
poverty and gender inequality and how we can ensure future generations are living in
safe, inclusive and secure societies. We hope that you enjoy reading about our efforts to
tackle these future global challenges.
www.warwick.ac.uk/grp
3
Global Research Priority
Behavioural Science
The study of human behaviour is an integral
component to understanding influential activities
with international impact, from the instigation of
wars to billions of people releasing greenhouse
gases and contributing to climate change. Enabling
individuals to make more informed decisions will
ensure the sustainable growth of societies in which
populations can thrive. This is a key motivator for
researchers in the Behavioural Science GRP, who are
analysing human behaviour, developing methods of
predicting behavioural patterns and implementing
solutions that help change them for the better.
The effects of behaviour can be compounded by
multiple actors. As an example, obesity is often
the result of an individual overindulging, but
can also be attributed to the behaviours of food
manufacturers, supermarkets and advertisers.
Analysing the multifaceted factors that govern
decisions as seemingly simple as making a purchase
provides essential insight into real-world economic
phenomena and society. This is precisely the type of
research undertaken by academics within the GRP
who focus on studying the economy and psychology
of consumer welfare. Anticipating trends that will
either positively or negatively impact financial and
social development is essential for governments
and industry.
At the personal level
Individual decisions, such as seeking early diagnosis
and disease treatment, investing money wisely
and stopping smoking have a collective impact,
and contribute to the development of a healthy
and financially stable society that can continue to
sustain itself into the future. In order to support
this objective as the global population continues
to grow, researchers in the GRP are focusing on
the study of behavioural economics. One area in
particular is the analysis of subjective wellbeing,
particularly in the context of economic productivity,
as governments are interested in these as
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University of Warwick Sustainable Futures
corroborating factors when measuring standards of
living to plan for future strategies. “There is ample
research at Warwick aimed at addressing what
social factors influence people’s wellbeing and
how wellbeing responds to specific government
policies,” says Professor Thomas Hills, Academic CoLead of the Behavioural Science GRP.
More specifically, in order to support the economy
for generations to come, the GRP’s researchers
are interested in devising methods to help people
understand and respond to risk, and make better
financial decisions. One project is funded by a
Leverhulme Trust grant to examine whether and
how people can reliably value goods and services,
and analyse how the inability to do so would
impact public policy. Research themes include
intertemporal choice, choice under risk and
uncertainty, and social choice. Academics within
the GRP have also developed strong links with the
financial services industry, are undertaking research
projects with regulators such as the Financial
Conduct Authority and are working with consumer
organisation Which?.
A changing climate
If we do not change our current practices, polar
ice shields will continue to melt and sea levels
rise, causing extreme weather events, including
catastrophic flooding and drought. Therefore,
an area in which human behaviour can make
a substantial difference is climate change, as
emphasised by the 2015 Conference of Parties
(COP21) in Paris and the agreement by 195
countries to keep global warming below 2 °C.
In recognition of this, one of the GRP’s behavioural
design projects is being undertaken in collaboration
with an energy management company, Honeywell
Building Solutions, to encourage employees
to be conscious of – and reduce – their energy
consumption. Unlike the home, employees have
no financial incentive to reduce
energy, but the GRP’s research
has found that individuals are
very receptive to changing
their behaviour. The challenge
stems from the fact that many
are unaware of the activities
that consume the most energy
and are not equipped with
information on how and when to
take action. This has prompted
the researchers to devise ways
of sending timely messages using appealing
technological architecture to help workers make
better energy efficient decisions. Projects like this
are not only aimed at driving positive behavioural
change, but also at enhancing knowledge and
improving attitudes – generating change with
lasting impact.
“There is ample research at Warwick aimed
at addressing what social factors influence
people’s wellbeing and how wellbeing
responds to specific government policies”
Thomas Hills
Professor and Academic Co-Lead of the Behavioural Science GRP
Technological interactions
As technology permeates our everyday
communication, researchers in the GRP also
document collective behaviour at an unprecedented
scale from sources such as Google, Wikipedia,
Flickr and Twitter. This enables them to understand
behaviour in a natural environment quickly and
economically. The researchers’ interdisciplinary work
aims to determine whether this data can be used
to measure human behaviour and anticipate future
actions. As well as contributing empirical research to
the behavioural science field, the GRP’s studies are
aimed at delivering predictions of practical value to
external commercial and government stakeholders.
The development of societies worldwide is
highly dependent upon human behaviour, as the
decisions of today will help mould the world of
tomorrow. It is for this reason that scientists in the
GRP are dedicating interdisciplinary research to
help inform positive choices, such as paying taxes,
conserving energy and engaging in productive
social behaviour to the benefit of both human and
environmental wellbeing.
To learn more about the Behavioural Science GRP, visit:
www.warwick.ac.uk/behaviouralscience
www.warwick.ac.uk/grp
5
Global Research Priority
Connecting Cultures
Dynamic connections between cultures have
shaped and moulded our world over millennia.
In recent years, however, unprecedented
technological advances have completely
transformed the way we interact. Instantaneous,
real-time communication between people
on opposite sides of the world and speedy,
international travel for the masses are just two
examples of the possibilities many of us now take
for granted. At a time when the global is turning
into the local, the concept of ‘nation’ is becoming
increasingly blurred, with nation states struggling
to serve the social needs of their citizens. Added to
this, modern-day conflicts and security concerns are
fuelling discourses of instability and mistrust.
Against this backdrop, the need for meaningful
cross-cultural understanding and exchange has
never been greater. Warwick’s Connecting Cultures
GRP draws on knowledge and insights from a range
of different fields, spanning literature, politics and
economics, thus enabling researchers with diverse
backgrounds to make rich and positive contributions
to contemporary debates on what divides and what
connects different cultures.
Advancing cultural knowledge
Through both applied and theoretical research,
the scholars working on this GRP are channelling
several cutting-edge initiatives, including a series
of workshops and seminars on emerging themes
in Queer Studies, which link academic research on
cultural issues with poignant societal questions.
As Alison Ribeiro de Menezes, Professor in the
School of Modern Languages and Culture, and
Academic Co-Lead of the Connecting Cultures
GRP, points out: “Questions of cultural memory,
migrant representations and translation are all
interconnected and offer avenues to further
understand the profound changes our globalised
societies are undergoing”.
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University of Warwick Sustainable Futures
Understanding cultural
encounters and cross-cultural
dialogue as creative and
constructive processes opens a
conduit for fresh perspectives
and poignant questions. Work
on contemporary debates in
intercultural studies is sharpened by collaborations
with international colleagues, which cut across
cultural divides and inform the development of new
research directions.
Memory and culture
Dialogue about past traumas between different
cultures and communities is vital for restoring
connections and promoting cross-cultural empathy
and cohesion in an increasingly globalised society.
Thus researchers across multiple disciplines at
Warwick focus on memory in its broadest sense, in
both national and transnational contexts. In Theatre
Studies, projects are investigating the importance of
collective memory and rites of passage in Africa. As
part of this, Yvette Hutchison, Associate Professor of
Theatre and Performance, is exploring how aesthetic
choices can affect how theatre makers engage
audiences with material steeped in colonialism or
conflictual, disavowed memories. Meanwhile, in
French Studies, research is being undertaken into
how the Holocaust affects French collective memory,
while Hispanic Studies researchers are exploring
how war and dictatorship have shaped memory in
Spain and throughout the wider Hispanic world.
Memory-themed research is also being carried
out in the context of climate change. With adverse
weather events as a result of global climate change
representing a growing challenge, Warwick
researchers are exploring how memories of these
events can lead to greater resilience. Joanne GardeHansen, Associate Professor in Culture, Media and
Communication, is attempting to forge a deeper
understanding of the remembering and forgetting
practices of recently flooded communities in the
UK, enabling more connected flood memory work
across scales that reveals how communities can
support their own adaptive capacities in a changing
climate. “I have been collaborating with researchers
in São Paulo and Belo Horizonte, Brazil, because
comparing, contrasting and connecting the soft
communication and cultural aspects of water
governance may identify ‘gaps’, and we may be
able to use media, creativity and culture research to
explore those gaps further if we know what works,”
she states.
Religion, rights and social justice
In the 21st century, religion has re-emerged as a
force to be reckoned with in the public sphere.
Underpinning many recent public policy debates,
such as gay marriage, abortion and the funding
of faith schools, as well as its role in providing
social support services to dispossessed and
impoverished communities, religion still plays a
vital role in modern-day society. It is therefore a
key research interest to Arts, Humanities and Social
Sciences researchers at Warwick. Surrounded by
diverse, multicultural populations in Coventry,
Birmingham and the West Midlands, the University
is well placed to host studies that address global
questions of inequality, poverty, reconciliation and
social justice. These studies would have far-reaching
impact, encouraging dialogue that transcends the
boundaries between different faiths and academic
disciplines, and tying in closely with other research
themes within this GRP.
“Questions of cultural memory, migrant
representations and translation are all
interconnected and offer avenues to
further understand the profound changes
our globalised societies are undergoing”
Alison Ribeiro de Menezes
Professor in the School of Modern Languages and Culture, and
Academic Co-Lead of the Connecting Cultures GRP
In a world where intercultural encounters are
becoming increasingly commonplace, it is more
important than ever to understand what unites and
separates people in different cultures. Through
interdisciplinary research that facilitates multiple
perspectives, the academics working within this
GRP are making rich contributions to contemporary
debates in the field and facilitating constructive,
cross-cultural conversations that strengthen
human ties.
To learn more about the Connecting Cultures GRP, visit:
www.warwick.ac.uk/connectingcultures
www.warwick.ac.uk/grp
7
Global Research Priority
Cyber Security
In a world increasingly connected by electronic
systems, the importance of cyber security continues
to grow. Issues related to privacy, data breaches,
cyber attacks and surveillance can trigger worries
of a modern-day dystopian society, which is
why effective governance, ethics and public
administration, delivered through technology and
policy, are of paramount concern for researchers
in the Cyber Security GRP. Building secure
environments will enable future societies to invest
in vital technological advancements.
The power and control required to protect the data
generated by the billions of devices connected to
the Internet are unprecedented, and we may not yet
be sufficiently prepared for incoming cyber threats.
Researchers in the GRP are addressing this concern
through multifaceted and interdisciplinary research,
including the use of adaptive systems, game theory,
behavioural economics and mechanism design.
One area in particular involves the threat modelling
of systems to identify threat actors, techniques,
motivators and the impact of security breaches such
as authentication hacks, where the attacker defeats
security protocols by mining and entering login
information and posing as a legitimate user.
Threat prevention and protection
Technological developments forecast within the next
decade include goods with IP addresses that will
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University of Warwick Sustainable Futures
track the world around them, pets with SIM cards
that transmit their health status and equivalent body
monitoring for humans. Protecting this personal
data from theft is essential to ensuring the continued
existence of populations willing to invest their trust
in technologies that will shape the progression of
our societies.
In recognition of this, researchers in the Cyber
Security GRP are dedicated to creating a secure
environment by researching cyber-physical
systems, vehicle cyber security, smart cities,
digital forensics, advanced network defence and
counterfeit protection as, historically, vulnerabilities
in automated systems such as connected vehicles
and steel plants have been exploited through
cyber attacks. “The Internet of Things (IoT) presents
new hacking and data theft opportunities, some
of which could be directly harmful and even life
threatening – as in the case of hacked networked
health equipment,” highlights Professor of Politics
and Philosophy Tom Sorrell.
To address such a challenge, the EPSRC-funded
UK Research Hub for Cyber Security of the IoT has
recently been launched. Carsten Maple, Cyber
Security GRP Academic Co-Lead and Professor of
Cyber Systems Engineering at the Cyber Security
Centre in the Warwick Manufacturing Group (WMG)
leads the Privacy and Trust Stream and projects in
Transport and Mobility, and Control Systems and
Supply Chain. More broadly, research will examine
how data is stored, transmitted and used to ensure
privacy is maintained, and will analyse how consent,
privacy and protection issues are addressed. As
diminishment in the functionality of the IoT
would result in the loss of business capacity (e.g.
automated systems in the manufacturing sector), a
key aim for the researchers is to sustainably increase
its capacity to bolster the economy and provide the
vital exchange of data needed to run many areas
of industry.
The individual target
As smartphones and tablets have opened gateways
to personal threats, the GRP is also researching
cyber threats at the individual-target level, including
hacking, stalking, trolling and revenge porn. More
specifically, Assuming Online Identities is an
interdisciplinary project investigating how best the
police should deal with the apprehension of online
paedophile groomers by exploring key factors such
as forensic linguistics and the correlation with online
identity performance; the ethics of undercover
policing to classify conversations relevant to
prosecutions for paedophile activities online and to
train other investigators; and the harmful impacts of
grooming on the child in relation to outright sexual
abuse. The GRP’s work is now directly impacting the
training of undercover police officers.
Security for all
To sustain public confidence regarding the way
corporations and governments handle personal
information, the economic valuation of data, such
as the ownership of data flows emerging from the
IoT, is being modelled by academics in the GRP.
This will enable them to design property rights,
derivative assets and trading institutions that will
provide societies with efficient, secure and effective
cyber structures.
“While the scientific, economic and social
consequences of cyber security might well be
beneficial, they are as yet poorly understood,” says
Professor of International Security and Academic
Co-Lead of the Cyber Security GRP, Richard
Aldrich. Warwick is working alongside industry and
government to ensure that the public, policy makers,
human rights organisations and the media are not
playing catch up by reacting to security breaches of
the past but preparing for the future. Collaborating
with the Trustworthy Software Initiative, WMG’s
Cyber Security Centre at Warwick is hosting a
£1 million programme (Make Software Better) to
enhance cyber security by making sure that the
software underpinning our everyday tools and
technologies is trustworthy.
“The Internet of Things presents new
hacking and data theft opportunities,
some of which could be directly harmful
and even life threatening – as in the case
of hacked networked health equipment”
Tom Sorrell
Professor of Politics and Philosophy
Forward thinking
Warwick has also collaborated with government
and industry to develop cyber security learning
guidelines for undergraduate degrees, as cyber
security was previously considered a separate
discipline to computing and the development
of applications, systems and technology, without
students learning how to secure them. As the
next generation of cyber security developers and
sentinels, it is imperative that students become
researchers and policy makers who have the
knowledge and skills to safeguard new and
existing technologies.
Managing societal risk of any nature, whether it
be international terrorism, organised crime or
socioeconomic change is imperative to protecting
us against the challenges of the future, which is
why the Cyber Security GRP focuses on both the
technological and the behavioural elements of
cyber attacks.
To learn more about the Cyber Security GRP, visit:
www.warwick.ac.uk/cybersecuritygrp
www.warwick.ac.uk/grp
9
Global Research Priority
Energy
Sustainability is a core driving force behind
research into new energy solutions, especially as
there is a need to drastically reduce greenhouse
gas emissions globally. At the Conference of
Parties (COP21) in December 2015, the signing
of a binding agreement by 195 countries to
limit climate change to a 2 °C increase set a new
precedent. More than ever, governments, societies
and individuals have a responsibility to reduce their
energy consumption, which is why scientists are
striving to improve the efficiency of our transport,
homes and cities internationally.
Through diverse projects, researchers in the
Energy GRP are tackling fundamental science
and engineering challenges, such as the need to
reduce the carbon intensity of the energy we use
by replacing fossil fuels with renewable and nuclear
alternatives, and the need to create methods that
can balance supply and demand on a temporal basis
by developing energy storage that works effectively
at the small (e.g. portable electronics) and large (e.g.
grid storage) scale. At the economic level, there is
also a need to understand how quickly societies can
implement solutions affordably.
Future electrical demands
To minimise the release of vast quantities of
environmentally devastating levels of CO2, we
require innovative strategies that can cope with
the continually increasing energy demands of a
growing global population. Therefore, researchers
in the Energy GRP are very much focused on the
ways in which the structure of the energy industry
is changing, the forecasted increased reliance on
renewable energy, as well as the need for more
effective energy management systems.
At present, electrical grids worldwide are one
directional in terms of energy flow – from the power
station via the grid to the consumer. In the future,
electricity will flow two ways, and consumers will
also produce energy and send it back to the grid.
Therefore, a key challenge being investigated by
researchers in the GRP is how to manage the energy
flow required and generated by millions of people.
As sustainability is of paramount importance, the
academics are exploring the use of different types
of renewable energy (solar, wind etc.) that flow
into the same grid. This would replace the huge
electrical power stations currently in place while still
providing the same level of energy. An additional
challenge being explored by the GRP’s researchers
is how energy can be stored to enable its efficient
management on and off peak, such as through the
use of big central storage systems in the form of
compressed air underground or pumping water up
a hill and releasing it to drive a turbine.
“As a result of our broad world view, we are regularly invited to work closely
with government and industry bodies to advise on future policies in
these areas”
David Greenwood
Professor of Advanced Propulsion Systems at the Warwick Manufacturing Group (WMG)
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University of Warwick Sustainable Futures
Another important area of investigation for the GRP’s
academics is developing better power electronics to
enable the more efficient conversion of chemical to
electrical energy and back again. “Power electronics
is the key enabler for future sustainable electrical
grid systems,” elaborates Professor Phil Mawby,
Academic Lead of the Energy GRP. It is for this
reason that semiconductors – highly efficient energy
conductors – represent an exciting area of study. In
20-30 years, they will work alongside the automated
IT infrastructures required to trade energy between
different renewable sources and monitor storage.
Transport systems
As a significant ‘green’ energy contributor, electrical
transportation is becoming increasingly available
to the public as a replacement for polluting
combustion engines. Recognising that there will be
an increased need for sustainable technologies in
the future, researchers in the Low Carbon Transport
area of the Warwick Manufacturing Group (WMG)
are developing new battery technologies, power
electronics and electric machines – considering
science-led product innovations as well as innovative
manufacturing processes for these systems. “We
model and test their application across a wide
variety of sectors, including motor scooters,
passenger cars, construction machinery, railways,
ships and power grids,” explains David Greenwood,
Professor of Advanced Propulsion Systems at WMG.
“As a result of our breadth of knowledge in this
area, we are regularly invited to work closely with
government and industry bodies to advise on future
policies in these areas.”
Warwick has a £13 million Energy Innovation Centre,
which includes a battery characterisation laboratory,
an electric/hybrid driver test facility and a battery cell
pilot scale-up line for producing cells based on new
chemistry research. The overarching aim is to help
ensure the UK has secure, environmentally friendly
and affordable power for future generations.
Energy governance
Working interdisciplinarily, researchers are
also looking at how governance affects energy
consumption. One key area is China, where current
trends in energy consumption and the country’s
heavy reliance on coal are not sustainable. “The
government is investing vast amounts of money
on its clean energy agenda and trying to force a
fundamental change,” says Professor of Politics
and International Studies Shaun Breslin. “We have
a project that investigates how the government
is trying to govern the Chinese market with a
particular focus on the role and significance of local
governments.” As China’s energy consumption can
have a global impact and the contribution of policy
makers is essential to effecting change, this research
is focused on the social, economic and political
factors in play.
Addressing the multifaceted energy challenges
we will be facing into the future requires multi- and
interdisciplinary solutions, especially as demands
grow and our fossil fuel sources become depleted.
This is why the Energy GRP is invested in the
development of new technologies that will support
energy storage, enable the sustainable use of
energy to power small- and large-scale electronics,
and contribute to the creation of more efficient
energy management strategies.
To learn more about the Energy GRP, please visit:
www.warwick.ac.uk/energygrp
www.warwick.ac.uk/grp
11
Global Research Priority
Food
Increasing pressures on natural resources, including
land, water, pollinators and natural enemies of
pests are further limiting our capacity to sustainably
produce and supply food for a growing global
population. In line with the second Sustainable
Development Goal to ‘end hunger, achieve food
security and improved nutrition, and promote
sustainable agriculture’, researchers in the Food
GRP are dedicated to providing solutions in the
areas of food production and supply, environmental
and social sustainability, governance, social justice,
nutrition and public health.
Exacerbating the pressures on the food supply chain
are climate change and the impacts of the increasing
distribution of crop pests and diseases worldwide.
Therefore, a key area academics in the Food GRP
investigate is the effect of pests and diseases
on crop losses and waste. “This is accomplished
through the development of methods to forecast,
monitor and manage pests and diseases to enable
“Mass consumption of sweetened snacks
has underpinned a new wave of foreign
investment in sugar production in the
Global South”
Benjamin Richardson
Professor of International Political Economy
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the cultivation of damage-free crops with as little
environmental impact as possible,” explains the
Dr Rosemary Collier, Director of the Warwick Crop
Centre in the School of Life Sciences and Academic
Co-Lead of the Food GRP.
More specifically, the researchers are exploring how
weather data can be used to forecast the timing
of pest insect attacks on crops to accurately target
control measures. Already, the GRP’s research has
contributed to the development of mathematical
models to forecast the activity of vegetable crop
pests, which are currently used by the fresh produce
industry. In collaboration with colleagues throughout
Europe, Warwick is also developing pest control
toolkits for the sustainable use of pesticides through
community action to address Directive 2009/128/EC
of the European Parliament.
Zeroing in on fertiliser, water and pesticides, the
School of Life Sciences is furthermore exploring
ways to enhance and accelerate crop breeding,
leading to varieties targeted to thrive in challenging
environments that, in future, may be supported
by fewer resources. As integral components of a
healthy diet, the researchers focus on brassica,
carrot, onion, lettuce and beans, which corresponds
with the GRP’s goal of enabling populations not only
to survive but also to lead healthy and active lives.
Food and politics
At the other end of the spectrum, researchers
in the GRP are analysing the international
political economy of sugar, which includes issues
surrounding the governance of food and global
trade, and the effect on food consumption –
particularly in impoverished regions. “Mass
consumption of sweetened snacks has underpinned
a new wave of foreign investment in sugar
production in the Global South,” says Associate
Professor of International Political Economy
Benjamin Richardson. This has triggered the
expansion of large-scale, highly-industrialised farms,
which have lowered the cost of sugar but also led to
job losses and rural dwellers losing their land.
The aim of the GRP’s work is to identify opportunities
to transition to a healthier and fairer food system.
The researchers have already identified how counter
movements, such as health advocates warning
about the costs of diseases like diabetes, trade
unions fighting for better pay and local residents
advocating to protect the environment, are changing
the way sugar is produced and consumed and
challenging the profit-driven nature of food and
farming. Working with NGOs to promote better
labour and environmental standards in the sugar
industry, the GRP is helping to inform revised
sustainability standards implemented by the
certification body Bonsucro, an international notfor-profit organisation dedicated to supporting
and recognising the production of sustainable
sugar cane.
Overconsumption and disease
Exploring the scarcity of healthy food found in
many poor, urban areas, researchers within the GRP
are working on a new project, The Economics of
Food Deserts, to understand why healthy food is so
expensive and how this correlates with the global
obesity epidemic and the associated soaring health
costs – an area of vital importance to the healthcare
industry. In parallel, research is being undertaken
from a historical perspective to explore the roots of
‘healthy’ diets, wherein the ideological frameworks
informing our understanding of food are questioned
– such as how perceived changes in the importance
of calories and vitamins in the 19th century affected
diets – to provide solutions to issues surrounding
consumption and the development of disease.
Policy decision support
As the population is predicted to grow to 9.6
billion by 2050, producing nutritious food in a safe
and sustainable way is essential to combatting
hunger. Professor Jim Smith and Dr Martine Barons
from the Department of Statistics are developing
novel methods for providing decision support by
coherently integrating expert judgements based on
probabilistic modelling in scenarios posing a threat
to food security.
With Professor Elizabeth Dowler from the
Department of Sociology and Dr Collier, they have
devised a new methodology capable of integrating
diverse areas of expertise to produce robust and
defensible decision support with respect to the
effect of spending cuts and other policy decisions
enacted at local government level. Working closely
with Warwickshire County Council, a decision
support system is being developed to enable local
council officers and members to evaluate the likely
effect of policy choices on household level food
poverty. As part of creating this system, probabilistic
supply chain models of food types defined within
the consumer prices are being developed in
collaboration with other Food GRP members.
The simultaneous existence of heightened food
costs and the scarcity of food have contributed to
widespread concern regarding the effect of food
production at both the human and environmental
levels. The GRP’s multidisciplinary research is
dedicated to providing scientific and social
solutions that will enable the world to be fed
sustainably, fairly and well far into the future while
safeguarding the land and reducing pressures on
our natural resources.
To learn more about the Food GRP, please visit:
www.warwick.ac.uk/foodgrp
www.warwick.ac.uk/grp
13
Global Research Priority
Global Governance
The challenges we face in the 21st century are
increasingly global in nature, transcending the
traditional boundaries of nation states. From
regional conflicts and the refugee crisis to
food security and transnational crime, many
contemporary problems have evolved beyond the
remit of national governments, sparking debates
about the changing role of governance in the
world. Interdependence and interconnectedness
are key features of our present-day society, calling
into question the relevance of state sovereignty.
Rather than endorsing a particular vision of global
governance, this GRP operates as a conduit for
critical scholarship on issues that cross borders and
may even affect the entire planet. With a strong
emphasis on multidisciplinary work, the GRP’s
scholars apply their expertise in fields such as law,
economics, politics and engineering to the most
pressing global governance challenges. Together,
they are exploring how meaningful cooperation
on a broad spectrum of transnational governance
issues – from climate change to finance – can
be achieved.
International finance
Liberalisation, deregulation and unprecedented
technological advances have led to the
globalisation of financial markets, making it very
difficult for national governments to exercise
control over the financial system. “In particular, the
fallout from the global financial crisis of 2007-9
has exposed the limits of state-based governance
in an age of substantive and complex financial
interconnectedness,” explains Lena Rethel,
Associate Professor of International Political
Economy and Deputy Academic Lead of the Global
Governance GRP. “Recent events have shown that
despite limited reforms after the crisis, the global
financial system is far from crisis-proof.”
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University of Warwick Sustainable Futures
Academics within the Global Governance GRP
are addressing the challenges presented by
international finance through a number of ambitious
and forward-looking studies, which focus on a
breadth of topics including the governance of
sovereign debt, ethical issues related to the financial
crisis and the intersection between international
financial institutions and human rights. Moreover,
in a world where alternative approaches to financial
governance – for instance, FinTech and Islamic
finance – are disrupting the traditional model,
there is an urgent need to understand how such
approaches cause institutional change, as well as
the socioeconomic implications of these changes.
Associate Professor Rethel’s research is making
strides in this area; she is examining Shariah
compliance in Islamic finance and considering how
regulatory arrangements for Islamic finance are
being implemented at global and regional levels.
Advancing human rights and labour standards
The researchers within this GRP are also working
to develop and apply frameworks for measuring
the effectiveness of different global governance
mechanisms that promote respect for human rights
and labour standards in the corporate sphere.
As part of this, they are considering the complex
interplay between different types of industries,
corporations, workers, actors and geographical
locations – and how these factors impact labour
standards and human rights issues.
More specifically, the research of Professor
of Organisation Studies Juliane Reinecke has
examined sustainability standards in the coffee
industry, conflict minerals in the Democratic
Republic of the Congo and broader social and
consumer movements. One project, entitled After
Rana Plaza, analysed the governance response to
the 2013 Rana Plaza disaster in which over 1,100
Bangladeshi garment workers were killed when
the factory collapsed. Professor Reinecke and her
colleagues examined the roles played by different
actors – for example, by global trade unions,
policy makers and civil society, among others – in
contributing to the regulation of labour standards
in Bangladeshi factories. “This incident illustrated
how Western brands rely on outsourcing, and also
on dangerous practices, to produce low priced
goods that consumers enjoy,” she says. The project
“The ways global issues on the policy
agenda are handled (or mishandled) have
profound implications for material welfare,
social justice, democracy, peace, and
perhaps even humanity’s very survival”
Lena Rethel
Associate Professor of International Political Economy and Deputy
Academic Lead of the Global Governance GRP
led to work with the UK’s Ethical Trading Initiative,
whereby the team helped develop broader
lessons for UK companies sourcing products from
developing countries.
Crisis leadership
In an increasingly connected world, the size and
extent of international crises are growing, making
a compelling argument for the creation of more
effective, accountable and legitimate global
governance institutions. In response, academics
within this GRP are investigating the complex
forces that contribute to the emergence, success
and failure of governance efforts to manage global
crises. A deeper understanding of these issues is
essential, helping towards the realisation of the UN
Sustainable Development Goals, which among other
factors call for inclusive and sustainable economic
growth, access to justice for all and effective,
accountable and inclusive institutions.
Today, with a growing list of globalised issues, a
lack of governance institutions to address them
and a range of private actors stepping in to fill
the gaps, questions of democracy, legitimacy and
accountability are key concerns. The research in
this GRP therefore has important implications for
societies throughout the world: “The ways global
issues on the policy agenda are handled (or
mishandled) have profound implications for material
welfare, social justice, democracy, peace, and
perhaps even humanity’s very survival,” summarises
Associate Professor Rethel.
To learn more about this GRP, visit:
www.warwick.ac.uk/globalgovernance
www.warwick.ac.uk/grp
15
Global Research Priority
Innovative Manufacturing
The manufacturing sector is of considerable
economic, social and environmental significance –
the industry contributed £150.7 billion of the UK’s
national economic output in 2013. However, the
sector is under considerable strain. From increased
competition for resources to the need to meet the
demands of an ever growing population, there are
many challenges facing the industry. Compounding
these challenges is the fact that the sector is
increasingly being asked to do more with less – less
water, energy and materials – to help society reduce
its impact on the global environment.
Researchers in the Innovative Manufacturing GRP
are turning these challenges into opportunities
by establishing a global centre of excellence
in multidisciplinary research. They are creating
innovations to advance manufacturing under
the umbrella of the circular economy, agrimanufacturing and industrial biotechnology.
Closing the loop
While it should come as no surprise that resources are
not infinite, for centuries, society has been consuming
them as though they are. “We cannot continue to
use resources the way in which we currently use
them,” notes Academic Co-Lead of the Innovative
Manufacturing GRP Associate Professor Guy Barker.
“We cannot continue to use resources the
way in which we currently use them. We
have to make more sustainable products
in the future”
Associate Professor Guy Barker
Academic Co-Lead of Innovative Manufacturing GRP
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University of Warwick Sustainable Futures
“We have to make more sustainable products in
the future.” As such, the GRP’s team is committed
to developing the circular economy, whose goal is
to keep resources in use for as long as possible. It
is an idea that directly challenges society’s current
paradigm in which resources are made, used and
disposed of with little thought for the future.
Against this backdrop, the academics in the GRP
are chasing many ideas to advance the circular
economy. “One of them is water,” shares Dr Kerry
Kirwan, Academic Co-Lead of the GRP. “For example,
we flush a lot of valuable stuff away in our water, and
we are working on many projects to recover things
like phosphates and precious, heavy and rare earth
metals.” Researchers are also exploring symbiotic
research projects – ones through which materials
once considered waste are recovered and used
as resources.
The GRP’s academics are not only developing the
new technologies upon which the future circular
economy will depend, they are also working with
industry members to develop whole new business
models and forms of enterprise. Through these
activities, the researchers are setting up a framework
that will enable its research to provide genuine value
to society.
Improving agri-manufacturing
Agricultural production has many challenges lying
ahead. By 2050, there will be 2 billion more people
on the planet than there are currently. As a result,
the global demand for resources required to feed
these people – such as land, energy and water – will
spike. Increasing urbanisation and industrialisation
will also put pressure on land requirements,
while environmental change, water availability,
soil degradation and biodiversity loss will likely
threaten food security. “Feeding the world is a big
international challenge,” Dr Kirwan underscores.
As such, researchers in the GRP are innovating along
the whole agricultural supply chain – from field to
fork – to solve these challenges. Some projects are
looking at ways to reduce inputs into the agricultural
system, such as water and energy; others are aiming
to maximise outputs, such as food quality and
nutritional value.
The biggest focus for the GRP’s academics, however,
is their commitment to creating and improving
machinery. “We are spending a good portion of our
time looking at the mechanical side of agricultural
production, such as processing, transporting and
refrigerating,” Dr Kirwan shares. Ideas for extending
the shelf life of food, through methods including
improved packaging, are also of interest. Combined,
the GRP’s activities have the power to help offset the
staggering amount of food that is grown but never
consumed – approximately one-third of food grown
every year is lost or wasted.
Industrial biotechnology innovations
Given its potential to provide resource-efficient
solutions to looming future challenges concerning
food production, chemical pollution, and health and
environmental protection, the UK is committed to
developing a strong bioeconomy. In a bioeconomy,
all economic activity would be derived from biobased products and processes.
To help create this economy, academics in
the GRP are exploring opportunities within
industrial biotechnology and have tied together
the University’s expertise from the life sciences
through to synthetic biology. Many of the GRP’s
multidisciplinary researchers are working on
projects related to standard enzyme design. “If we
use enzymes instead of chemicals in processes, we
can reduce the amount of pollutants from a system
and the amount of resources it requires,” Dr Barker
enthuses. Researchers are also busy developing
novel nanoparticles, manipulating organisms'
biological pathways and developing synthetic
polymers produced from biomass materials.
From the need to do more with fewer resources, to
feeding a growing population without damaging
the natural environment, society is facing a breadth
of challenges that innovative manufacturing has
the power to conquer. For this reason, members of
the Innovative Manufacturing GRP are invested in
developing new technologies that will support the
circular economy, agri-manufacturing and industrial
biotechnology and, as a result, improve the lives of
people across the globe.
To learn more about the Innovative Manufacturing GRP, visit:
www.warwick.ac.uk/innovativemanufacturing
www.warwick.ac.uk/grp
17
Global Research Priority
International Development
Important progress has been made on reducing
poverty in recent decades. Yet, although the first
Millennium Development Goal – to halve the 1990
poverty rate by 2015 – was achieved five years
ahead of schedule in 2010, poverty remains a major
global problem in the 21st century. According to
recent estimates, over 12 per cent of the world’s
population lives at or below US $1.90 a day and
more than 2 billion people in developing countries
live on less than US $3.10 a day. With too many
people living with too little, it is unsurprising that
the first UN Sustainable Development Goal sets out
to ‘end poverty in all its forms everywhere’ between
now and 2030.
Added to this, inequality is also a huge problem,
with half of the world’s wealth in the hands of just
1 per cent of the total population. A recent UN
Development Program report said that income
inequality increased by 11 per cent in developing
countries between 1990 and 2010 – a trend that is
widely recognised to be a consequence of uneven
economic growth.
In the face of these injustices, the International
Development GRP is exploring innovative ways
to solve the critical problems of poverty and
inequality. Research is truly multidisciplinary, with
academics from a range of backgrounds – spanning
engineering, economics and history – working
together to forge robust solutions to some of
the world’s greatest development crises. “As
International Development scholars, our work is
charged with an urgency and a seriousness, but
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University of Warwick Sustainable Futures
also, given our global developmental problems,
imagination,” says Jonathan Vickery, Associate
Professor at the Centre for Cultural Policy Studies.
Gender and development
Gender equality is a fundamental human right and
a key underlying principle of the UN’s founding
Charter. As pointed out by the UN Population Fund,
equality between genders is ‘a precondition for
advancing development and reducing poverty’. In
spite of advances that have closed the gap between
women and men in recent decades, gender
inequality remains a huge problem. Advancing
the political participation of women and girls, and
facilitating their social and economic empowerment,
are therefore major challenges for the future –
especially in developing countries.
Researchers working within this GRP are critically
engaging with these issues through a number
of impactful projects. For instance, Professor of
Economics Christopher Woodruff is studying the
position of women workers in the textile industry
in Bangladesh. To address the issue that many
women fail to progress from the lowest end of the
labour market – a common trend throughout the
developing world – Professor Woodruff has helped
to create a training project that helps Bangladeshi
women textile workers to acquire the skills and
confidence they need to advance into leadership
and management positions. Meanwhile, Ann
Stewart, Professor of Law and Academic Co-Lead of
the International Development GRP, is developing
a gendered understanding of care and social
“We are forging a new understanding
of what development means in the
21st century and using this to shape
the agenda on critical perspectives
in development”
Ann Stewart
Professor of Law and Academic Co-Lead of the
International Development GRP
reproduction, which is shaping new perspectives on
gender, law and women’s rights in our current global
social and economic context.
Spotlight on South Asia
According to the World Bank, South Asia is home
to the highest number of people living in extreme
poverty in the world, while in Africa there are more
poor people today than there were in 1990. The
International Development GRP operates two major
regional research hubs in South Asia and Africa to
address some of the substantial challenges that
underpin these statistics. Persistent discrimination
and repression correlate with higher poverty levels;
therefore, understanding why such attitudes and
behaviours exist, and how they spread, will help
to pave the way for a more equitable society in
the future.
The GRP’s regional focus on South Asia has led to
support for a project entitled Another India, in which
UK scholars are working with counterparts from
Indian universities to discuss research on poignant,
multi-layered topics including discrimination and
the caste system in India and the UK. “A number of
events have been held in New Delhi and Mumbai
involving NGOs, arts, policy and activist speakers
and audiences,” states Sarah Hodges, Associate
Professor of History. By drawing
together a diverse range of
actors, these events challenge
global inequality and place the
justice agenda at the forefront of
key debates.
Shaping the agenda
Through multiple approaches and critical
analysis, academics in this GRP are broadening
the theoretical and empirical boundaries of our
knowledge of international development. “We are
forging a new understanding of what development
means in the 21st century and using this to shape the
agenda on critical perspectives in development,”
affirms Professor Stewart.
Researchers within the GRP are also contributing
to a deeper understanding of unfair and unjust
societal structures on a global scale, leading them
to challenge the existence of such structures and,
consequently, paving the way for meaningful
progress towards justice and equality. In turn, by
focusing on innovative ways of addressing pressing
issues, the International Development GRP at
Warwick is creating bridges between research
and policy, boosting worldwide efforts to reduce
poverty and enhance social justice and rightsbased development.
To learn more about the International Development GRP, visit:
www.warwick.ac.uk/internationaldevelopment
www.warwick.ac.uk/grp
19
Global Research Priority
Materials
An understanding of the complex nature of
materials is essential to building the future of
our societies, from transportation and national
security to health technologies and smartphones.
A core challenge in this area is the characterisation
of advanced materials: how they form and their
complex properties. Greater insight would enable
the development of more sophisticated tools and
the creation of new materials to meet highly specific
requirements while considering environmental and
societal impacts.
Sustainability is a core principle that spans
across the Materials GRP research themes, which
include: functional materials, structural materials,
biomaterials, nano to macro characterisation and
multiscale modelling. An important objective of the
GRP is to develop more sustainable technologies
for the synthesis of materials that apply to a variety
of industries, including personal care, defence and
oil. “We have a strong interest in exploring ‘green’
and more efficient synthetic methods to modify
and prepare functional materials,” elaborates
Professor Rachel O’Reilly, Academic Co-Lead of the
Materials GRP.
Her research group has already worked with BP to
develop new degradable and detectable polymers
to use in enhanced oil recovery, addressing a major
industrial challenge, as conventional polymer
flooding methods are limited to the recovery of
only about 20-40 per cent of reservoir oil. More
specifically, the team has been exploring new
responsive polymers and nanoparticles that can
be recycled but are also capable of degradation to
prevent marine build up. A key new development
has been the creation of fluorescent detection
methods for polymeric materials that enable close
tracking and detection in the field. A projected
trial date in the North Sea has been scheduled for
2020. In the next decade, the GRP researchers could
drastically improve oil recovery practices while
safeguarding the environment.
Building blocks
The pressures caused by a growing global
population, such as the exhaustion of our resources,
the impact of greenhouse gases on climate change
or the ubiquitous burden of disease, are driving
researchers worldwide to develop innovative
solutions. As much of the research that falls under
the Materials GRP area also applies to other fields,
studies can range from devising new ways to
manufacture lightweight and more fuel-efficient
composite aircraft to developing materials and
methods to manufacture custom-made patientspecific surgical implants.
Engineers working in the field of additive
manufacturing (known commonly as 3D printing),
are able to address new challenges and demands
quickly and effectively. “We are currently working
with a large aerospace manufacturer on a £13.4M
project called Horizon (AM) alongside the University
of Sheffield and other industry partners to carry
out research on the application of 3D printing in
“We have a strong interest in exploring ‘green’ and more efficient synthetic
methods to modify and prepare functional materials”
Professor Rachel O’Reilly
Academic Co-Lead of the Materials GRP
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University of Warwick Sustainable Futures
the production of components for aircraft,” says
Assistant Professor Simon Leigh, who is head of
the Digital and Material Technologies Laboratory.
Through this, the researchers are shaping the future
of transportation.
Health recovery
Another demanding challenge being explored
by the GRP's researchers is maintaining the
wellbeing of an increasingly ageing global
population. One area they are focusing on is the
development of more effective ways to replace
and store donor tissues for regenerative medicine
and transplantation, which can be achieved by
combining polymer and carbohydrate chemistries.
“Inspired by how fish survive in the Arctic, we have
worked with Warwick Medical School and the
School of Life Sciences to develop new materials
to enable us to freeze donated blood, without the
need for toxic organic solvents,” explains Associate
Professor of Chemistry and researcher at the
Warwick Medical School Matthew Gibson. “We are
also making simple, colour-changing nanoparticles
that enable rapid detection of bacterial toxins or the
bacteria themselves.”
as we continue to require more effective methods
of treating diseases. For instance, cryopreservation
enables far more effective storage of biological
tissues for lifesaving transplantation surgeries
and blood transfusions. The researchers are
additionally working with industry partners and the
NHS to translate new technologies from the lab to
the bedside.
In the same way that past challenges and the
demands of modern life have spurred innovations
ranging from the X-ray to 3D-printed prosthetics,
future challenges will require scientists to create
materials with diverse functionalities, customised
to specific applications. In response, teams within
the Materials GRP spanning the physical and
engineering sciences are working together to
understand materials at the atomic and molecular
scales for new and improved applications of
technological and societal importance and, in turn,
striving to counteract the tide of negative impacts on
the environment and our depleting resources.
To learn more about the Materials GRP, please visit:
www.warwick.ac.uk/materials
To date, interdisciplinary work within the GRP on
cryopreservation has received significant funding
from the EU to develop the technology further
and train researchers. Through public lectures and
dissemination of their findings, the researchers are
also raising awareness of how materials science is a
vital contributor to the preservation of public health
www.warwick.ac.uk/grp
21
Global Research Priority
Science and
Technology for Health
The global population is predicted to reach 9.6
billion by 2050, raising questions as to how
practitioners and policy makers can contribute
towards keeping individuals healthy at all ages,
in line with the third Sustainable Development
Goal (SDG). This would limit the burden placed
on the economy, healthcare industry and society.
As academics play a key role in informing policy,
healthcare strategies and behaviour, scientists
in the Science and Technology for Health GRP
are dedicated to addressing threats to wellbeing
through interdisciplinary research. Specifically,
they focus on health improvement in resourcepoor settings, early diagnosis and treatment, and
healthy ageing.
In recognition of the need for improved healthcare
solutions worldwide to cope with the increased
burden of disease, researchers in the GRP are
working with Warwick’s Centre for Applied Health
Research and Delivery (W-CAHRD). W-CAHRD
brings together researchers, disciplines and
organisations to devise innovative healthcare
solutions. A key priority is improving the provision of
medicine in resource-limited nations, and research
areas include enhancing the education and training
of community health workers, modelling infectious
diseases, providing nutrition in slums and enabling
access to care for ill children.
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University of Warwick Sustainable Futures
From the beginning
As stated by the World Health Organization’s
Campaign for Violence Prevention, stopping
child abuse is imperative to individual and public
health, especially as violence against infants and
younger children can lead to psychiatric disorders
and even suicide in teenage years or adulthood.
Safeguarding the development of our population
and eliminating child abuse is therefore an urgent
objective for the GRP’s researchers. Exploring
the role of early parenting in the aetiology of
mental health problems and subsequent abuse
is at the core of much of the work undertaken in
this area. An ongoing UK-based project is Parents
Under Pressure, a 20-week home-visiting support
programme for alcohol and/or drug-dependent
parents of children under two and half years of age.
It was launched due to findings that dependent
parents can be less responsive and sensitive to an
infant’s physical and emotional needs, as well as the
correlation identified between drug dependency
and child maltreatment.
Brain and behaviour
At the other end of the spectrum, increased
life expectancies in the past few decades have
resulted in an ageing global population with
amplified healthcare requirements. Dementia, for
example, affects 36 million people worldwide,
and this number is expected to double every
20 years. This is why researchers in the GRP are
working with psychologists, neurologists and
neuroscientists to provide innovative solutions for
neurodegenerative diseases.
One project is providing vital communication
opportunities for individuals affected by conditions
such as locked-in syndrome, which causes the
complete loss of muscle movement, cutting off
verbal and non-verbal communication lines despite
full brain capacity. “We use electroencephalography
(EEG) to obtain direct brain recordings for braincomputer interfacing, which enables individuals
to communicate via a computer,” says Professor
of Bioengineering and Academic Co-Lead of the
Science and Technology for Health GRP. As EEG
machines can cost £70,000 each, the team is also
working on sophisticated algorithms that require
fewer recordings, in order to develop solutions that
can be implemented in the home.
Data analysis and disease
Providing new technologies that enable early
diagnosis and treatment for neurodegenerative
diseases is vital for supporting healthy ageing, which
is why extracting the most information possible from
brain imaging data is essential. Scientists in the GRP
are thus developing statistical methods for magnetic
resonance imaging (MRI), to observe the brain’s
function and structure. For example, in Alzheimer’s
disease – the most common form of dementia – the
cortex thins and certain structures reduce in size.
“Neuroscientists depend on statistical methods to
discern which changes in brain structure are real,
and which are due to chance,” explains Head of
Neuroimaging Statistics Professor Thomas Nichols.
A fundamental challenge of this work is controlling
false alarms when searching the brain for changes.
There are hundreds of thousands of volume elements
or ‘voxels’, each presenting an opportunity for a false
detection. Dr Nichols develops methods for detecting
brain changes that precisely control this risk of false
alarms, while still being as sensitive as possible.
Wearable technology
Another challenge we are beginning to face as an
ageing society is maintaining independence into old
age. In the UK, for example, life expectancy is now
81.5 years, meaning the elderly must be equipped
“Implants will likely play a big role, as they
would provide continuous data and could
be charged using electrolytes in the blood”
Christopher James
Professor of Bioengineering and Academic Co-Lead of the Science and
Technology for Health GRP
to live healthy lives even as their mental and physical
faculties decline. Academics in the Health GRP are
addressing this issue through the development of
wearable activity monitors – such as those created
with off-the-shelf Android smartwatches – that
enable the analysis of patterns from physiological
and behavioural data, such as accelerometry. This
allows the researchers to remotely monitor how
individuals are coping with daily tasks and/or any
ailments. For example, using a specific app, patients
with mental health disorders, such as bipolar, can
be monitored to assess whether they are having a
manic or depressive episode.
Researchers in the GRP are already thinking about
the future of wearable technologies. “Implants
will likely play a big role, as they would provide
continuous data and could be charged using
electrolytes in the blood,” elaborates Professor
James. “They would provide passive activity
monitoring and also physiological data, such as
heart rate, blood pressure and glucose levels.”
The challenges associated with global population
growth and increased life expectancy include
providing sustainable healthcare solutions for the
digital age. Therefore, from birth to old age, the
Science and Technology for Health GRP combines a
range of disciplines, including science, technology,
engineering and mathematics (STEM), psychology
and social sciences to help individuals and society
while relieving pressures on the economy.
To learn more about the Science and Technology for Health GRP, visit:
www.warwick.ac.uk/scienceandtechforhealth
www.warwick.ac.uk/grp
23
Global Research Priority
Sustainable Cities
The year 2007 marked a turning point in human
history when, for the first time ever, more people
lived in urban than in rural areas. With cities
around the world continuing to grow upwards
and outwards, it is projected that by 2050 some
70 per cent of the world’s then 9.6 billion-strong
population will live in cities. Unsurprisingly,
this rapid pace of urbanisation is creating huge
challenges for governments and policy makers,
particularly when it comes to ensuring that urban
inhabitants have a good quality of life and access to
effective services.
As set out in the UN’s Sustainable Development
Goals, governments and policy makers across
the world face the uphill task of making cities and
other human settlements ‘inclusive, safe, resilient
and sustainable’. The Sustainable Cities GRP
is confronting this challenge head on through
identifying effective social, scientific and business
responses to increasing urbanisation.
Disease and urban environments
Guaranteeing that urban populations have access
to adequate health services is vital. Professor
Matt Keeling, based in the Department of
Maths and School of Life Sciences, is working
with colleagues at Warwick’s Infectious Disease
Epidemiology Research Group to create a more
holistic framework for dynamic disease modelling.
Using a range of techniques – from mathematical
models and statistical analysis to field experiments
and questionnaires – the team is exploring
underlying drivers of disease risk, ranging from
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University of Warwick Sustainable Futures
demography and behaviour to land use and
climate change. Developing multidisciplinary
approaches for predictive modelling will lead to a
better understanding of the dynamics of disease
transmission, in turn enabling the creation of more
robust and effective health services.
Art in the city
The GRP is also considering the increasingly varied
ways that art engages with, and is integrated in, urban
contexts. Dr Nicolas Whybrow, Reader in Theatre
and Performance Studies, contends that questions
of urban space are paramount to understanding and
shaping the future of civilisation: “Via their inherent
preoccupation with creativity and culture, the arts and
humanities have a decisive role to play in shaping as
well as drawing conclusions about the constitution of
urban futures as public space, habitable space and
sustainable space,” he states.
Currently, Whybrow is preparing a collaborative,
practice-based research project entitled Sensing
the City, which will involve a series of site-specific
studies on urban rhythms, atmospheres, textures,
practices and patterns of behaviour. Through
considering interactions with public space and the
experiential and creative sides of everyday living,
the project findings will be used to revitalise urban
regeneration initiatives.
Secure and resilient infrastructures
According to Jon Coaffee, Professor in Urban
Geography and Academic Co-Lead of the
Sustainable Cities GRP, “sustainability and
resilience priorities have increasingly focused on
cities because of the particular vulnerability of
densely populated political, economic and cultural
centres, the interdependencies of these networked
infrastructures and as a result of continued and rapid
urbanisation”. The urban environment is becoming
more and more complex, with large-scale urbanbuilt infrastructure seen as critical nodes within
the intertwined networks of urban areas. A range
of security risks have emerged, which threaten
the social and economic function of such critical
infrastructures, amplifying the pressure upon cities
to keep citizens safe, healthy, prosperous, wellinformed and supplied with essential services.
In the Faculty of Social Science, Professor Coaffee
and the Resilent Cities Laboratory are working with a
large number of city authorities and utilty providers
across Europe to develop a comprehensive,
multifaceted and mutually reinforcing concept for
the enhanced security, resilience and sustainability
of urban infrastructure. This work will assist a range
of built environment professionals achieve the goal
of enhancing urban and infrastructural resilience.
Harnessing data for smarter cities
City-scale data on health, environmental and
economic trends is vital for informing evidencebased policies, particularly in the context of
burgeoning urban populations. The Warwick
Institute for the Science of Cities, in partnership with
the Center for Urban Science and Progress (CUSP)
in New York focuses on devising innovative methods
for gathering city-scale data and transforming
this data into knowledge. As part of this, some
Sustainable Cities researchers are working hard
to develop and improve urban instrumentation
for data collection across city infrastructures.
The Intelligent and Distributed Systems Lab, for
instance, is conducting cutting-edge research into
peer-to-peer overlay topologies, which will help
optimise the performance of pivotal information
aggregation tasks.
Moreover, with ever-increasing and constantly
changing volumes of city-wide information, there
is an urgent need for urban informatics and smart
visualisation systems to synthesise and interpret
this data. Warwick’s Informatics Group is actively
pursuing solutions in this field, focusing particularly
“Sustainability and resilience priorities have
increasingly focused on cities because
of the particular vulnerability of densely
populated political, economic and cultural
centres, the interdependencies of these
networked infrastructures and as a result
of continued and rapid urbanisation”
Jon Coaffee
Professor in Urban Geography and Academic Co-Lead
of the Sustainable Cities GRP
on applications in the engineering, manufacturing
and healthcare sectors. By drawing on advances
in big data to determine interdisciplinary solutions
to some of the world’s biggest future urban
challenges, this GRP plays a key role in shaping the
development of more sustainable cities. And with
the global spend on Smart Cities technologies set
to grow from US $8.1 billion in 2011 to $39.5 billion
in 2016, there are many exciting opportunities for
continued innovation in this field.
With cities constantly evolving and changing, a
major future challenge is for governments and other
actors to provide the apparatus for urban citizens to
advance socially and economically. The researchers
in this GRP are paving the way for this through their
diverse range of research projects that contribute to
the development of resilient and sustainable cities.
To learn more about the Sustainable Cities GRP, visit:
www.warwick.ac.uk/sustainablecities
www.warwick.ac.uk/grp
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The University of Warwick
Warwick is place of learning that constantly imagines, realises and creates the future. We
are really proud of what we have achieved in such a relatively short period of time. And
we are excited about what our future holds too.
We have earned a reputation for independent thinking and academic excellence
that serves us well regionally, nationally and internationally. We have helped develop
thousands of students, with lots of our alumni going on to do great things. And, we have
been rising in every significant academic league table. The QS World University Rankings
ranked Warwick as one of the top 50 universities in the world. We were also named
third fastest rising young university in the world by the Times Higher Education Young
Universities Summit, and the fastest rising university in the UK.
We are a University that’s founded on academic excellence, and which champions
independent thinking. It has provided the perfect foundation for world-class research:
Warwick ranked 7th overall in the UK in the most recent Research Excellence Framework.
Our international research reputation attracted the £92 million National Automotive
Innovation Campus to our Coventry home. This groundbreaking research hub was funded
by the UK government’s Research Partnership Investment Fund, Jaguar Land Rover and
Tata Motors, and is due to open in 2017.
Warwick is also one of the five university partners in the prestigious Alan Turing Institute,
founded to promote the development of advanced mathematics, computer science,
algorithms and big data for human benefit.
Building on our ethos of academic excellence, we believe that ensuring a sustainable
future for all should be at the back, and the forefront, of all our minds. Through
programmes such as the GRPs, many of our academics and students are committed
to addressing the world’s immediate concerns without jeopardising the needs of the
next generation.
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University of Warwick Sustainable Futures
Contacts
For further information, please contact:
GRP Programme
The University of Warwick
Coventry
CV4 7UW
GRPResearch@warwick.ac.uk
www.warwick.ac.uk/grp
Designed by Research Media
www.researchmedia.com
www.warwick.ac.uk/grp
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THE UNIVERSITY OF WARWICK