Policy@Manchester

👏 Professor Emma Barrett and Dr Joseph Lee have recently contributed to a new parliamentary briefing - What is the metaverse and what impacts will it have for society? 💡 By 2026, it's expected a quarter of all people will spend at least an hour a day in the metaverse 📄 This briefing, published by POST, UK Parliament, summarises what this might mean for sectors like business and education, and explores potential safeguarding risks and legal challenges 👉 You can read the briefing in full here: https://lnkd.in/eQnwTTBe

⚡The environmental threats of climate change and extreme weather are forcing us to rethink our energy production and usage. 🔎Dr Robin Preece, Dr Eduardo Martínez-Ceseña and Professor Paul Jarman examine why the quickest, cheapest and most realisable of our net zero decarbonisation strategies are based on electrifying heating and transport. 🔊Listen to a short snippet of the article below 🔗 This article forms part of our publication, On Resilience. All articles from On Resilience are available in audio form. Read or listen here: https://lnkd.in/eA6Yduxw

📣 Yesterday we welcomed academics, local government officials, civil servants, and elected politicians to our #GMPolicyHub seminar on the Safety of Women in Public Spaces. 📋 Prof Rose Broad and Dr Caroline Miles presented their new research into the scale of abuse faced by women runners. They were joined by Eve Holt from GM Moving and Emma Moseley from Trafford Council. 👉 Prof Rose Broad and Dr Caroline Miles recommended that the abuse of women in public spaces needs to be recognised and become part of the Violence Against Women and Girls ('VAWG') agenda. 💭  You can sign up to Policy@Manchester's newsletter to find out about future seminars, and get in touch if you would like to find out more about this new research. https://lnkd.in/g-NcBWxe

🍃 Decarbonising our society will require a long-term stance to build public support for climate strategy. 🗳️ Professor Mat Paterson and Dr Paul Tobin suggest that the new government could draw on a two pronged strategy approach to tackle the backlash against net zero. 🌍 A ‘green industrial revolution’, could generate investment and jobs through technological innovation. 👇 Read the article here:

📑 This week sees the launch of the Manchester Measuring Inequalities Toolkit, supported by Policy@Manchester. 🤝 Produced by academics at the University, in partnership with Manchester City Council, the toolkit forms part of the Making Manchester Fairer programme. 🔎 The methods presented in this open-access resource can be used to investigate inequalities in any setting.  🔗 Explore the toolkit here: https://shorturl.at/XFOtm

🏫 Rates of persistent school absence have increased considerably since the COVID-19 pandemic, with no signs of returning to pre-pandemic levels. 👨👩👧👦 Schools need flexibility and support to develop attendance monitoring and support systems, which are responsive to the needs of all pupils and their families. 🏛 In our new article, Professor Caroline Bond argues that increasing rates of school absences should be tackled through multi-agency local solutions which take on board parental feedback and the experiences of teachers, and local authority specialists. 📰 Read it here: https://lnkd.in/e29tbTy9 School of Environment, Education and Development at The University of Manchester

🌍 This week is #NetZeroWeek, which aims to bring together the key stakeholders needed to unlock the benefits of reaching Net Zero. 💡 Net Zero is where the emissions of greenhouse gasses, and the removal of those gasses, are equal. 🚢 One way to reach Net Zero is through the decarbonisation of major industries such as shipping and aviation. 📄 In their article Dr Simon Bullock, Professor Alice Larkin and Dr James Mason researchers at Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research, based at The University of Manchester, outline what the shipping sector needs to do to play its part in meeting climate change goals, both in the UK and globally. 👇 Read the full article here 

📈 Obesity rates amongst children in the most deprived areas of the UK are rising rapidly. 🧃 Taxes on sugary drinks have been effective in reducing sugar consumption amongst young people - but what further steps can be taken to help people make better choices and reduce social costs? 📰 Public Sector Focus have featured our recent article by Professor Dame Rachel Griffith: The childhood obesity crisis - driven by deprivation. ➡️ Read the piece in their latest issue here: https://lnkd.in/e-USk8mN [flickread.com]

🌍 All developed economies have set the goal of carbon-neutrality by 2050. ⚡ Achieving a high proportion of renewable energy production in the UK is only possible with suitable energy storage infrastructure, to bridge periods of low power generation from wind or solar energy.  🔋 In our new article, Professor Robert Dryfe, explores how long duration energy storage technologies, like batteries, could solve this challenge and makes recommendations as to how policymakers can support their roll out. 📰 Read it here - https://lnkd.in/ebjcEfVQ

🚨 Last chance to sign up to GM Policy Hub's seminar on Women's Safety in Public Spaces. 👂 Hear about the latest research from Dr Caroline Miles and Prof Rosemary Broad with new and original data, as well as external speakers from local government and the third sector. 🎟 To attend, please email policy@manchester.ac.uk with your name, title, and organisation, as well as any dietary and access requirements. 📆 Wednesday, 17 July 2024 ⏰ 1:00 – 2:30pm (with registration and light lunch from 12:30pm) 📍 The University of Manchester, Oxford Road (room to be shared on registration) ➡️ Find more details here: https://lnkd.in/eha6xp2P