SDG 15 – Life on Land
Research
In November 2022, UK Research and Innovation funding was confirmed for Biurbs, a collaborative research project between UEL’s Sustainability Research Institute (SRI), the University of Manchester, and the University of West England. This project aims to empower communities, environmental professionals and local authorities to enhance the natural capital of urban areas. The UK Government's Nature Positive 2030 Report recommends that businesses, organisations, and authorities address biodiversity loss with the same urgency as climate change and adopt specific targets to address it – which has created a necessity to consider how biodiversity can be enhanced in planning applications. SRI is leading an evaluation of spatial planning tools to understand how biodiversity can play a synergistic role in meeting diverse policy objectives and land-use demands. This work will help inform the development of practical tools and guidelines for assessing the economic value of biodiversity across different land uses and scales.
Teaching
In 2023, Natural England commissioned UEL researchers to design a series of workshops and surveys for children and young people (CYP) to share their feelings, beliefs, and behaviours related to the natural environment. The study was led by Dr Darren Sharpe, Associate Professor in the School of Health, Sport and Bioscience, and Nora Morocza, Research Fellow in Health and Environmental Behaviour Change, in collaboration with researchers at the University of Central Lancashire. Strong evidence shows that time spent in nature benefits physical and mental health. In recognition of this, the UK Government’s 25-year Environment Plan includes a commitment to encourage children to spend time in nature, both in and outside of school. The study sought to provide CYP with meaningful opportunities to participate in nature surveys and assess the feasibility of engaging CYP in advising on future nature surveys.
Operations
Thanks to a donation from the Woodland Trust a joint effort by the Stratford Rotary Club and UEL staff, a mini woodland has been established at UEL’s Docklands campus. Staff, students, and volunteers came together to plant 190 native trees, including rowan, silver birch, downy birch, hawthorn and blackthorn. The mini woodland is part of UEL’s wider effort to create spaces for urban biodiversity across its campuses, which also includes several wildflower meadows.
Outreach
Dr Michael Pinsky's Pollution Pods are five interconnected domes that replicate the varying levels of air pollution found in London, New Delhi, São Paulo, Beijing, and a remote peninsula in Norway. Created in 2017 by Dr Pinsky, Reader in Fine Art at UEL’s School of Architecture, Computing and Engineering, the installation allows visitors to physically experience the different pollution levels of each location as they move between the pods. This artwork emerged from Dr Pinsky’s research into the potential of art to influence public perceptions of climate change and pollution. Pollution Pods are frequently featured at major environmental events to raise awareness of air pollution’s impact on human and nonhuman life on Earth. In 2023, an iteration of Pollution Pods was installed at the 28th United Nations Climate Change Conference in Dubai, allowing conference delegates to sample the air of some of the world’s most polluted cities.