The carbon footprint of the music industry

Climate scientists at our Tyndall Centre are partnering with Bristol-based band Massive Attack to jointly examine the carbon footprint of the music industry.

Utilising data from the Massive Attack touring schedule will provide information and guidance to the wider music industry to reduce negative environmental impacts.

GrowGreen project

Our academics are involved in GrowGreen, a five year, EU-wide project that promotes nature-based solutions to climate change.

The project involves a range of citizens, business and public-private partnerships in neighbourhoods and across cities to promote learning, sharing and replicating nature-based solutions and strategies to urban sustainability challenges.

Changing how international policy organisations understand and manage environmental problems

Research by Alliance Manchester Business School has demonstrated how large-scale transitions are needed to deliver significant climate change.

This has transformed how reducing greenhouse gas emissions is understood and addressed by the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and has fed directly into policy recommendations made by the European Environment Agency.

Setting the standard for cleaner skies

Research from our School of Natural Sciences and the National Centre for Atmospheric Science formed an integral part of informing new regulatory standards on emissions of non-volatile particulate matter (nvPM), the metric used for aircraft emissions regulation. The work has enabled two new international standards for soot emission measurement; contributed to an aircraft emission regulatory update, affecting air quality around the world; and is also driving a reduction in global aviation soot in new aircraft engines.

Sustainable Cities MOOC

Our academics have contributed to a free massive open online course (MOOC) developed with Lund University, the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) and ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability.

83,000 students around the world have used this to explore key trends of urbanisation and sustainability and apply this in advancing sustainability in cities around the world.

African Cities Research Consortium

Our African Cities Research Consortium (ACRC), funded by the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) as part of UK Aid, will tackle complex problems in some of Africa’s fastest growing urban areas.

Over six years, our research will generate new evidence to catalyse integrated, sustainable, inclusive approaches to urban development in partnership with frontline humanitarian responders, effective policy influencers, local government networks and deeply rooted civil society groups.

Mobilising Urban Living Labs to create sustainable infrastructure

Our research on Urban Living Labs has transformed sustainable infrastructure provision locally, and enhanced capacity in East Africa, South America and the Philippines.

Locally we’ve shaped £26m of infrastructure investment by Manchester City Council as well as replacing 20,000km of delivery van trips with e-cargo bikes. Globally, we’ve delivered walkability action plans and improved road safety for 5.8m citizens across East Africa, South America and the Philippines.

Equity and Merit Programme

Our Equity and Merit Programme supports the brightest minds from some of the least developed countries in Sub-Saharan Africa – Ethiopia, Malawi, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda and Zimbabwe – to develop skills for sustainable development in their home countries.

Thanks to funding by the University and the generosity of our donors, more than 300 international students have completed master’s programmes with us.

Cultures of Anti-Racism in Latin America

Our three-year project, Cultures of Anti-Racism in Latin America (CARLA), is funded by AHRC.

It explores how artists in Argentina, Brazil and Colombia address racial diversity in their work, and how they use their art to challenge racism.

Global inequalities

Global inequalities is one of our five research beacons.

We support dedicated Institutes, Centres and Networks to foster world-leading interdisciplinary research into making our city, our region, our nation, and our world a fairer and more equal place to live.

Advancing STEM skills in Africa

Our Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics is using its global research status to advance innovative STEM training and infrastructure development for research communities across Africa.

This includes the Development in Africa with Radio Astronomy and Big Data programmes, supporting self-sustaining research communities and investment in new research infrastructure in Africa.

Capacity-building for NGOs, businesses and government

We deliver free activities and resources for the public, private and third sector including vocational training, executive education and continued professional development.

We’ve helped create a pioneering NGO Explorer to build networks, increase transparency and provide potential for commissioning of work with NGOs through a searchable database.

Our annual Prometheus programme offers learning and development opportunities for third-sector leaders to make their organisations grow and be economically sustainable.

Influencing international and national employment policies to promote inclusive labour markets

Our Work and Equalities Institute is providing the evidence base to inform global employment debates and policies.

Research in three key areas is undertaken: minimum wage and collective bargaining; the gender pay gap; and precarious work.

This work is shaping guidance produced by international policy bodies and national policies of multiple countries, and is also providing evidence for European trade unions in their interactions with EU and national policymakers.

FutureDAMS Approach

As part of our world-leading FutureDAMS programme, we’ve produced a guide (PDF) to propose a series of steps and principles for conducting public, private and community stakeholder engagement in decision-making around water-energy-food-environment (WEFE) interventions.

This is underpinned by the principle that better decisions are generated when a broad range of stakeholders are included in a genuinely participatory manner.

Energy poverty

Our researchers have established a framework to explain how domestic energy deprivation affects households and communities.

Through a prolific programme of European-wide engagement – 100 events, 200 high-level presentations, ten policy briefs, two sets of EU member state energy poverty reports, and three pan-EU energy poverty reports – our research shaped the policy direction of the European Commission’s Vulnerable Consumer Working Group, the body responsible for developing EU energy policy.

Water procurement

We sell exclusively One Water on campus, an ethical company that donates all of its profits to fund clean water systems in Africa while costing the same as other water brands.

Right to Water app

We’re working in partnership with the community activist group, Pani Haq Samiti in Mumbai, on a Right to Water App and campaign to identify and remove barriers to the approval process for water connections.

Smallholder irrigation development

Millions of smallholder farmers worldwide lack access to reliable and cost-effective water supplies for irrigation.

We’re working with small-scale farmers in Africa and Asia, governments and development agencies to design and assess technological, economical and institutional solutions to improve water access, livelihoods, and resilience to climate change.

MOOCs

With half a billion people worldwide having poor water supplies and two billion with poor sanitation facilities, our two free MOOCs open up access for citizens and leaders around the world to explore what can be done to solve this complex global issue.

Graphene water filtration

Our National Graphene Institute Membranes Lab has pioneered a graphene-oxide membrane that can filter salts out of water, making it safe to drink.

This game-changing technology is more efficient and affordable than other desalination technologies and could provide affordable and sustainable clean water solutions to millions of people.

Girl Guides Rwanda remote volunteering

We work in collaboration with Association des Guides du Rwanda (AGR) to provide volunteer opportunities for students to help girls and young women in Rwanda acquire skills for their development and become agents of positive change.

Gender equality in global value chains

Our research into agriculture and apparel sectors in Africa, Asia and Latin America, and collaboration with three large UK retailers, has led to more than 390,000 workers in value chains in low- and middle-income countries directly benefiting from the implementation of gender-equitable strategies.

More than a million workers have been indirectly advantaged through opportunities for women to advance to leadership positions and new strategies from companies that have the potential to reach 33 million workers in 180 countries.

Massive Online Open Courses (MOOCs) and professional programmes

We offer expert-led, free MOOCs and paid continued professional development courses in a wide range of subject areas, including civil engineering, business and management, healthcare ethics and law.

This includes a free Prometheus programme to support executive-level learning and development for UK third-sector professionals.

Educating diverse communities about parasitic infections

Our researchers studying parasites have engaged diverse communities in the UK and Madagascar to share research findings and develop resources and toolkits to raise awareness, understanding and dialogue about parasitic worm infection.

Major limb loss

Our academics are working to mitigate the cultural, organisational and technical challenges faced by patients suffering from major limb loss in post conflict settings in East Africa.