environment – Page 4

Artificial Intelligence and future transport and mobility: What do cities want and how can urban planning respond?

By Ransford A. Acheampong Filed Under: All posts, Cities and Environment, Digital Futures, Energy and Environment, Environment, Inclusive Growth, Science and Engineering, Science and Technology, Urban Posted: September 14, 2023

Experts agree that automated driving technologies constitute perhaps the most significant transformation in urban and transport planning since the invention of the private motor vehicle. In this article, Dr Ransford A. Acheampong assesses how policy-makers have an urgent responsibility to create alternative urban futures in which we are able to meet our everyday mobility needs […]

A critical question: what should we do with the UK’s plutonium stockpile?

By William Bodel Filed Under: All posts, Energy and Environment, Science and Engineering Posted: August 30, 2023

The UK is currently storing around 140 tonnes of plutonium, mostly arising from its civil nuclear programme over the past 60 years. What should we, as a nation, do with it? Should we use it as fuel for future reactors, or dispose of it as waste? The latest position paper from the Dalton Nuclear Institute […]

Data and Decision Making: how AI and data tools can help influence evidence-based policy change.

By David Topping Filed Under: Cities and Environment, Digital Futures, Environment, Science and Technology, Urban Posted: July 6, 2023

It is crucial that policymakers have access to the increasing collection of datasets across our natural environment and other sectors such as health and economics. Currently, much of this data is spread across a variety of platforms which work in silo, making it difficult for users to analyse, assess and ultimately deliver improved policy outcomes. […]

Delivering on climate commitments: restricting global warming to 1.5C

By Angela Mae Minas Filed Under: All posts, Cities and Environment, Energy and Environment, Environment, Science and Technology Posted: June 27, 2023

In 2015, world leaders committed to holding global warming to well below 2C whilst pursuing efforts to limit warming to 1.5C as part of The Paris Agreement at COP21. It is now expected that the world is likely to hit this level of warming within the next five years. In this article, Dr Angela Minas […]

Spreading like wildfire: the need for a UK Fire Danger Rating System (FDRS)

By Gareth Clay Filed Under: Cities and Environment, Environment Posted: June 26, 2023

In a rapidly changing world under pressure from climate change we are seeing alterations in the pattern of fires, especially in places where wildfires have not been viewed as a major threat such as the UK. Fire Danger Rating Systems (FDRS) provide a measure of the threat posed by wildfires, and are informed by fuel […]

Razing the neighbourhood: consequences and alternatives to council estate demolition

By Nick Thoburn Filed Under: All posts, British Politics, Cities and Environment, Growth and Inclusion, Levelling up Posted: April 17, 2023

Post-war council estates suffer a barrage of stigmatising representations. Central and local governments, think tanks, and property companies call them ‘sink estates’ and ‘concrete monstrosities’. In television dramas and feature films, council estates are invariably grim and crime ridden. These representations have real-world effects. They establish social moods and opinions that encourage and justify the […]

Trashing the future: failures of UK plastic recycling policies and next steps

By Helen Holmes Filed Under: All posts, Cities and Environment, Energy and Environment, Science and Technology Posted: March 28, 2023

We are all familiar with the problem of plastic waste – which has a devastating effect on marine life and oceans. Plastic recycling seems complex and difficult and we are right to be concerned about the impacts waste plastic is having on our ecosystems. The One Bin to Rule Them All (One Bin) project team […]

Location, location, location: finding sites for nuclear power plants

By Adrian Bull Filed Under: All posts, Energy and Environment, Renewables, Science and Engineering, Science and Technology Posted: March 13, 2023

Expanding nuclear power should be a key priority as the government aims to cut its carbon emissions. However, finding suitable sites to accommodate the proposed plants raises new questions. In this article, based on the Dalton Nuclear Institute’s position paper, Siting implications of nuclear energy, Professor Adrian Bull gives his view on how policymakers can […]

The Plastic Problem: moving from a linear to a circular economy.

By Thomas Franklin Filed Under: All posts, Energy and Environment, Science and Technology Posted: March 9, 2023

Plastics have enabled society to progress at an unprecedented pace and have facilitated momentous advances in technology. However, it is the inherent durability of plastic which largely accounts for both its success and the plastic waste problem we now face. Our behaviour and choices as consumers or producers of plastic waste are of great importance […]

Under the weather: Reimagining mobility in the climate crisis

By Stephanie Sodero Filed Under: All posts, Cities and Environment, Energy and Environment Posted: February 23, 2023

Transport systems are essential to the movement of people, things, and services. When disrupted, as during severe weather, social and economic costs are high. Communities are vulnerable to extreme weather – whether in Canada or in the UK. In this article, Stephanie Sodero, drawing on research using Atlantic Canadian hurricane case studies, explores how communities […]