At Leeds, we strive to promote research and learning that makes an impact on global challenges and is truly interdisciplinary. Our focus is on six key areas: health, water, food, energy, culture and cities.
Through these, we can examine sustainability from a number of perspectives including low carbon solutions, transport, ecology, cultural values, climate change and hydrology. We support these key research themes, as well as a wide range of other research activities that link with sustainability.
Sustainability shapes everything we do – what we teach, learn, buy, use and share. It is a fundamental part of ensuring we have a positive impact on everyone and everything.
Find out more about how to embed sustainability into your research in the context of your discipline and other useful resources below.
Some of the benefits of incorporating sustainability into your research are;
Why Research Sustainability?
Choosing Your Topic
Each year Sustainability Services hosts a limited number of dissertations which align with key priorities. Key areas for 2019/20 include reducing single-use plastics, carbon management, students as Leeds residents and embedding sustainability in the curriculum. We encourage you to submit your ideas around each of these topics to sustainability@leeds.ac.uk.
When developing ideas you may find it useful to consider how the UN Sustainable Development Goals align with your research. Take a look at student research presented at the University of Leeds Annual Student Sustainability Research Conference and the UN Sustainable Development Goals Knowledge Platform at sustainabledevelopment.un.org/topics to help you with formulating ideas.
NUS has created the guide ‘From Art to Zoo Management: embedding sustainability in UK higher and further education’ to highlight examples of how sustainability has been embedded across disciplines.
The University of Exeter has also published an Education for Sustainability Topics Quick Guide which is available at www.exeter.ac.uk/sustainability/education/quick_guide/topics.
Opportunities
Living Lab
The Living Lab is open to everyone. It brings together students, staff and partners from research, teaching and operational teams to co-produce innovative and transformational solutions to real-world sustainability challenges, using the campus as a test-bed. It is interdisciplinary and drives continual, sustainable improvement by tackling global challenges at the local scale.
Whether it is a research-led campus design addressing the challenges of climate change, trialling new sustainability initiatives with staff or students, or integrating biodiversity and wellbeing, the Living Lab programme is open to all staff and students across the University. It’s about people, processes and infrastructure and focuses on the cultural and social sciences as well as STEM.
*NEW OPPORTUNITY* EA Leeds FAS NFM programme
The Leeds Flood Alleviation Scheme Natural Flood Management (Leeds FAS NFM) programme will implement NFM measures across the River Aire catchment with the aim to reduce peak flow in Leeds by 5% in a 0.5AEP event, between 2039 and 2069.
The Environment Agency would like to work with a student/groups of students to:
- Collate baseline measurements at the Brownlee Triathlon Centre site and deliver the NFM measures across each of the sites.
- Create and deliver a monitoring programme to assess whether the implementation of the NFM measures are helping the project meet the aims outlined in the Critical Success Factors document (see attached). This can be site specific or on a catchment scale.
- Produce and design information boards to inform the public of the work on the site
- Gather evidence on the effectiveness of different NFM measures. How well do the NFM measures:
- Reduce flood risk
- Improve water, soil and/or air quality
- Store carbon
- Improve environmental habitat and biodiversity
View further information and to apply click here.
Living Lab for Air Quality
One of our flagship projects, the Living Lab for Air Quality is just getting underway. To find out more about how we are measuring and mapping air quality in and around the University of Leeds Campus click here.
LivingLabScape: i-Tree Leeds Campus Survey
This project is a collaboration between the Sustainability Service and Leeds4Trees – a partnership of LEAF (Leeds Ecosystem, Atmosphere & Forest Centre), the United Bank of Carbon (UBoC) and Leeds City Council. We are exploring the value of trees and green spaces across campus as a pilot study for a City-wide project. The findings of the project will enable us to take an even better account of the value of trees when planning campus development. You can use the map below to explore the details of the project’s findings so far and read more about the project here.
LivingLabScape: Biofiltration Systems
The Sustainability Service and Estates Services have collaborated with the School of Civil Engineering to investigate the design and configuration of biofiltration systems for sustainable urban drainage in the UK climate, using the University campus as a test-bed. This is part of the LivingLabScape stream of projects.
Biofiltration systems are landscaped Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems (SuDS) that provide rainfall-runoff reduction, peak flow attenuation and stormwater runoff treatment. They have a small footprint so can be retrofitted into the existing urban landscape which makes them ideal for locations such as the University of Leeds campus. The project, therefore, aims to assess feasibility and opportunities for their uptake in this context.
Phase 1 of the project is already complete and has included lab-based work to establish the appropriate soil matrix. Phase 2 focusses on plant growth trials and has just got underway with the installation of 24 biofilter columns at our Bardon Grange site in Leeds. PhD student Andrea Aiello will carry out 6 months of investigations to establish the optimum biofilter design and recommendations for Phase 3 – a pilot biofilter on campus!
The Food Waste Living Lab
Food waste is a global challenge and the University of Leeds aims to lead the way in innovative approaches to reducing waste from our catering, cafes and restaurants. We are therefore developing a Food Waste Living Lab. The Sustainability Service has collaborated with the School of Chemical & Process Engineering (SCaPE) and the Centre for Doctoral Training for Bioenergy to look at the feasibility of a variety of technological and behavioural approaches. We have also been developing an interdisciplinary network of food waste research across the University to allow us to take a more collaborative approach moving forwards. Sustainability Services are currently working with SCaPE to analyse the recommendations so keep an eye out for the next phase soon.
In the meantime, you can read a blog of a recent interview with the students involved here.
Mixed Ability Sports
The Mixed Ability Sport (MAS) model is yet to be applied to a University setting but could prove an effective way to increase sports participation in underrepresented groups, as well as to achieve greater social inclusion and community building. The Living Lab is, therefore, collaborating with the Sustainability Research Institute (SRI) and the Sport & Physical Activity Service (SPA) to carry out a pilot project to evaluate whether there is a need for a MAS offering at the University of Leeds. Find out more here.
Last Mile Deliveries
Large numbers of courier vehicles deliver parcels and packages to our Schools and Services around campus. Staff and students increasingly utilise the benefits of online orders with next day delivery to support research, teaching and operational activities. Such volumes of vehicle movement have an impact on congestion as well as local air quality.
We have made great strides in reducing the volume of vehicle movement by working with Go Getter Dispatch bike couriers to deliver campus post. However, goods and parcels delivered by external courier services remain a complex and fragmented challenge that is difficult to monitor and manage. The Facilities Directorate is, therefore, collaborating with the Institute for Transport Studies to map the flow of courier vehicles around our campus and to highlight potential future improvement projects that might help reduce local congestion and pollution.
LivingLabScape: Sustainable Garden
Based on the gold award-winning RHS flower show entry in 2012 by the University’s water@leeds, the Sustainable Garden is an excellent example of collaborative working between the Facilities Directorate, Leeds University Union and academic staff. It provides a multi-functional space for staff, students and visitors.
All can engage in the cultivation of the edible garden, wildflower areas, soft fruit hedgerows, insect houses and pocket habitats. Regular gardening sessions allow volunteers to learn new skills, research pods are utilised for undergraduate student study, and the space as a whole offers a valuable teaching area, particularly for Biology and Geography modules.
We are in the process of summarising some of the recent research activity that has taken place in the Garden and will share it here soon.
Creating Sustainable Futures
As part of Broadening at the University of Leeds, one of our ten Discovery Themes is called Creating Sustainable Futures. This UK Green Gown Award-winning project offers students across the University the opportunity to study sustainability modules as part of their degree. Students are able to tackle real-life sustainability challenges through practical projects. Research findings, data and solutions are shared with university operational staff, local communities and businesses to drive continual sustainable improvement.
Sustainable Labs
Our Sustainable Labs Working Group was established in 2013 to support and monitor the implementation of sustainability actions to reduce the impacts of our laboratory network. It brings together Lab Managers, Technicians, Academics and Estates Services from across the University to work together collaboratively and share best practice.
We regularly host S-lab events and seminars to take forward our sustainability projects such as Reuse@Leeds:labs which allow users to share items like electrical equipment, glassware and chemicals through our popular reuse site.
Examples of past projects and research can be found below. The dissertation projects all aligned with Living Lab principles. The Living Lab is able to offer funding to projects that meet the core principles of the programme. We are particularly looking for projects that require seed funding to get off the ground or match funding as part of a collaborative partnership. This might be between Schools, Faculties, Services or even external stakeholders. Find out more at: sustainability.leeds.ac.uk/the-living-lab To view Living Lab research opportunities that the Sustainability Service have identified, as well as current projects already taking place please CLICK HERE. A water consumption study on the University of Leeds Western Campus Single-use plastic reduction at UK higher learning institutions: Motivations and best practice Development of a Process for Identifying and Managing Labour Risks in the University of Leeds Supply Chain (Living Lab project) A Worthy Investment? Evaluating the Utility of Carbon Footprints for Informing Environmental Policy Within Organisations (Living Lab project) Impacts of the University of Leeds’s Palm Oil Supply Chain on Biodiversity in Southeast Asia (Living Lab project) Making Laboratories Greener: Barriers to Energy Efficiency at the University of Leeds (Living Lab project) Should the University of Leeds Use Biomass for Space Heating? An Assessment of Technology Options and Associated Feedstocks (Living Lab project) If you have completed a sustainability-themed dissertation or research project and would like to share your findings with us please contact us.
Examples
Madeleine Eaves – School of Civil Engineering
2019
David Burt – MSc Climate Change and Environmental Policy
2019
Saul Diez Lozano – MSc Sustainability and Consultancy
2017
James Townsend – MSc Sustainability and Climate Change
2012
Jonathan Withey – MSc Sustainability: Business, Environment and Corporate Responsibility
2012
Emma Sturtevant – MSc Sustainability and Climate Change
2012
Ben Smith – MSc Sustainability: Business, Environment and Corporate Responsibility
2012
Share Your Research
Sharing your sustainability research can help to inspire others. If you have researched sustainability as part of your dissertation or research project, then let us share your findings.
Email your dissertation or report plus any accompanying photos or images to sustainability@leeds.ac.uk.
If you share your sustainability research or findings on social media then please tag us @UoL_Sus.
Where to start? The Final Chapter web pages contain lots of useful information for undergraduate and taught postgraduate students working on research projects or dissertations. It covers choosing your topic, doing a literature review, structuring your work and critical thinking. You can also watch videos of staff and students from the University of Leeds sharing their top tips for success. Visit library.leeds.ac.uk/info/1401/academic_skills/108/dissertations to find out more. Dissertation Workshops Skills@Library host a number of dissertation workshops where any student (UG or PGT) can find out how to integrate sustainability into their work, and the benefits of doing so. Find out more and book at: library.leeds.ac.uk/info/1400/study_and_research_support The Student Sustainability Research Conference Stuck for a project idea? Can’t think how sustainability applies to your subject? From Art to Zoo Management Not sure how sustainability applies to your subject? Check out NUS’s ‘From Art to Zoo Management‘ guide and see some examples of how your discipline could apply to sustainability. Contact the team We are always happy to help any student with queries on doing a sustainability-themed project. Visit the contact us page and leave us a message telling us what specific questions or data needs you have!
Support
CLICK HERE to explore the diversity of work presented at the Annual Student Sustainability Research Conference, which attracts presenters from across all Faculties at Leeds, sharing their research or curricular projects which have a focus on sustainability themes.