Environment and energy

Shaping academic and policy debates around the environment, energy and sustainability

Our research in this area plays a key role in shaping academic and policy debates concerning the environment, energy (its production, consumption and governance) and sustainability. Our strength in this area is also reflected in the leading contribution we make to the undergraduate MA degree in Sustainable Development.

One project in this area is Jan Webb and her team's research on Heat and the City, through which they are contributing to energy governance and enabling the UK Government to create district heat networks that can deliver clean heating for low-energy buildings.

Another project is Claire Haggett's investigation of community involvement in the development of wind farms. This has produced a novel framework for identifying communities and their relationship to project benefits and impacts. It has provided best-practice guidelines for community involvement and has shaped Scotland's national energy policy.

Research staff

Relevant publications

Some of our key publications are listed below. For more detailed lists please visit our personal pages on People.

Claire Haggett (with Mhairi Aitken and David Rudolph), 2016. Practices and rationales of community engagement with wind farms: awareness raising, consultation, empowerment. Planning Theory & Practice, 17(4), pp.557-576.

Rachel Howell (with Simon Allen), 2017. People and planet: Values, motivations and formative influences of individuals acting to mitigate climate change. Environmental Values 26, no.2: 131-155.

Lynn Jamieson, 2020. Sociologies of Personal Relationships and the Challenge of Climate Change. Sociology, 54(2), pp.219–236.

Niamh Moore, 2015. The Changing Nature of Eco/Feminism: Telling Stories from Clayoquot Sound. Vancouver: UBC Press.

Jan Webb (with D. Hawkey, H. Lovell, D. McCrone, M. Tingey, and M. Winskel), 2016. Sustainable Urban Energy Policy: Heat and the City Abingdon: Routledge