Recent Publication Additions to the EDC

This report presents findings from a survey of over 2,000 respondents regarding their views on the future of low-carbon heating, with a focus on heat pumps, district heating and hydrogen. Participants were asked about their awareness of, and support for different technologies, trust in institutional actors, and views on different policy options.

In this report we provide a brief overview of the UKERC Whole Systems Networking Fund, before providing summaries from each of the projects awarded during the programme

The transition to sustainable travel within large organisations presents a unique set of challenges and opportunities. Within this, the management of staff travel, particularly parking policies, emerges as a focal area for sustainability intervention. Based on a placement with Englands National Health Service (NHS) Net Zero Travel and Transport team, this Energy SHINES policy brief explores the implications of adopting fair and sustainable travel policies, focusing on the management of staff parking, in line with the requirement to reduce private car use to meet emission goals.

The brief discusses the contextual nuances of staff travel choices and the potential of policy interventions to encourage sustainable travel modes. Through a detailed review of NHS parking policies and broader academic literature on transport practices. It underscores the need to develop comprehensive travel plans that prioritise sustainable transportation using the avoid-shift-improve hierarchy, along with the implementation of pull and push measures for alternative commuting methods. It further recommends adopting a whole-systems, justice-based approach that promotes efficient urban planning and sustainable mobility practices, and advocates for meaningful engagement of staff in the policy-making process.

The shift towards a circular economy is vital for reducing household waste and achieving net zero goals. Based on a placement with a county council in England, this policy brief examines the role of local governance in promoting waste minimisation using a practice theory approach. By drawing on waste data from the county council, external and internal stakeholder interviews and academic literature, it explores the transition towards a circular economy by providing insights on the challenges faced by local governance in promoting waste minimisation.

The brief highlights innovative practices in prevention, repair, and recycling that can transform waste management systems, while acknowledging their interconnected complexities across practices. It underscores the need for local authorities to take a whole-system and cross-sectoral approach, empowering them with resources and policy frameworks that incentivise circular practices among households, fostering community engagement in waste reduction initiatives, and integrating circular economy principles into local governance strategies. It also highlights the need for further research into innovate food waste prevention strategies, recycling diversities and peer-to-peer sharing that have the potential to reduce food waste significantly.

Modern Methods of construction (MMC) offer a promising avenue towards sustainable housing development that have the potential for positive environmental and social impact. Addressing the current challenges faced by the UK construction industry, this policy brief assesses the potential of MMC in enhancing construction efficiency and sustainability. Based on an extensive literature review as part of a placement at the RIBA, it demonstrates that by emphasising prefabrication and off-site construction, MMC has the potential to significantly reduce waste, lower greenhouse gas emissions, lower costs and improve the quality and energy efficiency of buildings.

Despite these benefits, barriers such as regulatory gaps, cultural inertia within the construction sector, and lack of consumer awareness hinder MMCs widespread adoption. In light of current challenges, the study underscores the importance of developing standardised emission measurement methodologies, promoting industry-wide knowledge sharing, and policy support to foster the adoption of MMC, aligning construction practices with net zero objectives. It also emphasises the importance of holistic methodologies and integrated interdisciplinary research and development practices for green building and sustainable net-zero targets.

Digital healthcare technologies (DHTs) have the potential to both reduce and increase the carbon footprint of healthcare systems. As healthcare rapidly digitises, leveraging technologies from electronic records to AI, it faces the challenge of balancing the environmental costs of digitalisation against the benefits of reduced emissions from traditional healthcare activities.

This policy brief explores the dual nature of DHTs in contributing to and mitigating healthcares carbon footprint. Focusing on Englands National Health Service (NHS), the study delves into how the adoption of digital technologies could either reduce or exacerbate the healthcare sectors carbon footprint, raising critical questions for the NHSs digital transformation efforts.

The analysis reveals that while DHTs offer avenues for reducing emissionssuch as telehealth reducing the need for patient and clinician travelthey also entail significant environmental costs through the manufacturing and operation of digital infrastructure. The study underscores the necessity of developing an open and shared database of carbon factors for healthcare systems, standardising methodologies for calculating carbon impact, and undertaking both pre-implementation estimations and post-implementation realisations to better manage DHTs carbon footprint.

The transition to a net-zero society requires novel regulatory and policy approaches acknowledging the socio-cultural shifts accompanying climate change adaptations. Whether its building a new home or the evolving relationships and interactions between people and products, effective policymaking needs to systematically and intrinsically account for such transitions and ensure that they are aligned with net-zero targets. This policy brief delves into the employment of social science theories such as Reflexive Governance, Actor Network Theory, and Ecologies of Participation to understand these transitions.

Emerging from a placement at the Office for Product Safety and Standards, UK, the study underscores the importance of reflexive, flexible, inclusive and interactive policymaking that integrates public engagement and considers the intricate relationships between social, technological, and natural actors. It underscores the need for an adaptive governance framework that is receptive to the dynamic interplay of societal needs, technological advancements, and environmental imperatives, together with the significant role of public participation in facilitating a cohesive approach to achieving net zero goals.

The escalating demand for water places additional strains on energy required for its provision and treatment, encompassing abstraction, purification, pumping, distribution, and wastewater management. This policy brief explores the critical role of water services in the UKs energy consumption and carbon emissions, highlighting the importance of integrated water-energy conservation strategies. It underscores the need for innovative strategies to enhance water efficiency and reduce energy demand across water supply and treatment processes.

Through a case-study of Yorkshire water, staff interviews, examination of its current practices and insights from academic literature, the brief identifies opportunities for reducing energy use in water management. It underscores the need to enhance public awareness of water-energy interdependencies, emphasising shared responsibility for environmental stewardship, and fostering cross-sector collaboration and integrated strategies to achieve water conservation and energy savings. It demonstrates that by addressing these areas, the UK can make significant strides toward its net zero targets while ensuring sustainable water management.

This briefing summarises findings on how different UK policy instruments to promote the growth of renewable generation have influenced financiers and changed the nature of finance in the UK offshore wind market.

This report sets out seven principles of place-based net-zero policy for SMEs. Setting place-based action within context of national, international, and sector action on climate change, the report provides assessment of where place-based action can provide most added value, and address limitations in existing provision.

This report addresses the question where next for SMEs and net zero?, It provides insights from a comprehensive review of policies and business support initiatives across England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales, as well as interviews with 83 governance stakeholders acting at the national, regional and local levels and 30 interviews with SMEs.

This publication outlines a number of impact case studies that show how UKERC has made a difference to UK energy research and policy. It explains why each one is important, what the UKERC impacts are, and provides underpinning evidence.