About

About our research

Our group brings together researchers from a wide range of disciplines to help individuals and organisations embrace sustainable development.

Working across the physical, natural, biological, and social sciences, we focus on:

  • Aviation and the environment 
  • Climate literacy and carbon management
  • Circular economy
  • Education for sustainable development

The societal relevance and impact of our aviation research was acknowledged as outstanding in the latest UK Research Excellence Framework exercise (2021). 

We also have leading roles in national and international bodies tackling the effects of unsustainable development, including the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and the United Nations Environment Programme.

Our training and consultancy services are used by hundreds of individuals and organisations in the UK and internationally.

Our research themes

  • Aviation and the environment

    Our research helps shape policy and practice on sustainability challenges including climate impacts, local air quality and aircraft noise. We support the development of evidence-based policy and practice at both the national and international level.

    Chairing, membership and participation in influential sector bodies, including:

    • Airport Council International’s global Airport Carbon Accreditation 
    • ECATS International Association
    • European Aviation and Environment Working Group (EAEG)
    • UK Sustainable Aviation Coalition
    • International Civil Aviation Organization’s Committee on Aviation Environment Protection (ICAO-CAEP)
    • UK Jet Zero Council
    • UK Civil Aviation Authority Environmental Sustainability Panel

    Leading and/or contributing to international assessments, including:

    • Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Working Group I and Working Group III
    • United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Emissions Gap Report
    • Potential for incorporation of aviation’s non-CO2 impacts into the European Emissions Trading Scheme

    And providing environmental management training to airports around the world, on behalf of ACI Global Training.

  • Climate literacy and carbon management

    We are a world-leading provider of carbon literacy training - contributing to a global education programme to help citizens, businesses and public bodies move to low carbon and zero carbon ways of working.

    Our work includes developing and delivering courses to:

    • enterprise partnerships
    • local authorities
    • arts groups
    • social housing providers
    • museums
    • schools and colleges

    We also run train-the-trainer sessions and undertake research to evaluate the impact of carbon literacy training.

  • Circular economy

    Part of the University’s Waste 2 Resource Innovation Network, we lead Manchester Met’s research on new ways to use and re-use resources.

    We provide support to organisations moving from a ‘linear’ consume-and-dispose economy to a circular approach based on reuse and recycling.

    Our specialisms include:

    • waste management
    • awareness raising and education
    • circular materials, particularly plastics
    • product design
    • manufacture and product life extension
    • circular business model innovation
  • Education for sustainable development

    We are a founder member of the UK Consortium on Sustainability Research to build on our commitment to sustainable development.

    We help individuals and groups to build the knowledge, skills and attributes needed to support sustainable development.

    Some aspects of sustainable development can be complex and changeable, and we reflect this in our training.

    Involving researchers from several disciplines gives us the ability to tailor our approach to needs of the organisations we work with, whether they are community groups or policymakers. The support we provide ranges from hosting informal discussions to running formal courses.

    Our training role helps us better research the wider provision of education for sustainable development.

Our featured research

Publications and partners