Environment and human behaviour news

ESRC Research Programme on Environment and Human Behaviour Goes Live

Date: 04/03/2003

Investigating how people treat the environment and respond to environmental change and environmental policy

Today sees the launch of the website for the Environment and Human Behaviour New Opportunities Programme of the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC). The URL of the website is www.psi.org.uk/ehb.

The main generic questions the Programme will be focusing on are:

  • Why do people behave the way they do towards the environment?
  • How will they respond and adapt to rapid environmental change?
  • Will they react positively to environmental policies that seek to reduce environmental damage?

The website gives full details of the 15 projects that have been commissioned under the programme – covering a very broad range of topics from rapid climate change, to taxation for sustainable transport, to the evolution of middle class values in relation to the environment in India. Project summaries are available there, together with contact details of the researcher, and an Introductory Paper to the Programme by its Academic Co-ordinator, Professor Paul Ekins of the Policy Studies Institute (PSI).

Speaking about the programme, Paul Ekins said: “It is an enormous privilege and challenge to be leading a research programme that has relevance to every person and practically every policy area in the UK. Though not a big programme by ESRC standards, Environment and Human Behaviour (one of the ESRC’s 7 thematic priorities) is of great strategic importance as it will play an important part in helping the ESRC formulate its research programmes in this area in the future. Individual projects in the Programme spotlight a number of issues of great immediate topicality, including rapid climate change, transport taxation, wind farms and energy efficiency.

Journalists are invited to contact Paul Ekins through PSI Communications to discuss the Programme.

NOTES TO EDITORS

  1. The Call for Proposals for this Programme went out from the ESRC in May 2002. The projects, all of which have a value of less than £40,000, were commissioned in November 2002. Projects are all due to have started by April 2003, and will last about a year. The Programme has an overall value of £650, 000.
  2. The New Opportunities Programme is the ESRC Research Priorities Board’s mechanism for synthesising existing research and/or engaging in preliminary research to set the agenda for future research investment.
  3. The ESRC is the UK's largest funding agency for research and postgraduate training relating to social and economic issues. It provides independent, high-quality, relevant research to business, the public sector and Government. The ESRC invests more than £76 million every year in social science and at any time is supporting some 2,000 researchers in academic institutions and research policy institutes. It also funds postgraduate training within the social sciences to nurture the researchers of tomorrow. More at http://www.esrc.ac.uk
  4. Paul Ekins was appointed Academic Co-ordinator of the Programme in June 2002, with a 20% time commitment. He is Head of PSI’s Environment Group and Professor of Sustainable Development at the University of Westminster. He is also a Member of the Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution. PSI is a registered charity and has no association with any political party, pressure group or commercial interest.
  5. Contacts:
    Paul Ekins, Academic Programme Coordinator      020 7468 0468
    Nelleke van Helfteren, PSI Head of Communications 020 7468 0468