Research Festival: Sustainability

Join Brunel researchers and service users from the Social Justice Research Group for a reflective discussion on the inequalities that have been highlighted by the Covid-19 pandemic.

• Dr Wendy Martin (Health Sciences) will be exploring the ways in which older people have been affected by the pandemic and what this tells us about how we understand ageing.
• Dr Mike Thomas (Social Work) will be considering the impact of the pandemic on LGBTQ+ people, including the risks of isolation and loneliness.
• Pauline Cooper, a member of the Brunel Experts by Experience Committee, will be reflecting on her lived experience during the pandemic, and the impact of Covid-19 on people with disabilities.
• Dr Pauldy Otermans (Psychology) will be discussing her work with Dev Aditya on the Together book project, an anthology bringing together perspectives on the Covid pandemic from four continents. The e-book is available on Amazon, and proceeds from sales are being donated to frontline services and health charities.

The session will consider how we can make sense of the inequalities that have been highlighted by the pandemic to inform a social justice research agenda at Brunel. 

Professor Geoff Rodgers, Vice Provost (Research), invites Drs Manoj Dora, Stanley Gaines, Mary Richards, Ximena Schmidt and Olwenn Martin to discuss their research tackling some of the key Global Challenges facing our planet. Topics include, climate change, the true cost of food resources, the question of food security across borders in conflict, and the emerging promotion of women’s empowerment in developing nations.   

Join us for the launch of a new research seminar series – hosted by Dr Devanshi Chanchani, Global Challenges Research Fellow – unveiling some of the fascinating research being undertaken across Brunel by colleagues on pressing issues in the region of South Asia.

Institute Director, Professor Savvas Tassou, discusses the challenges and opportunities in Energy and Sustainability research, opening the floor to a diverse showcase of the fascinating research projects underway across the Institute dealing with a variety of energy solutions.  
 

• Professor Savvas Tassou – Challenges and Opportunities for Energy and Sustainability Research
• Professor Gareth Taylor – Future Electrical Power Systems
• Professor Tassos Karayiannis – Overview of research in Energy Efficient and Sustainable technologies 
• Professor Maria Kolokotroni – Urban Microclimates: Impact on Energy Use 
• Professor Hua Zhao – Zero Emission Engines and Fuels 
• Dr Evina Katsou – Circular Economy and Sustainability in the Water Sector   

• Professor Xiangming Zhou – Green Integrated Modular Construction for Sustainable Buildings  
• Dr Seyed Ghaffar – Construction materials with Innovative low carbon technologies  
• Professor Habin Lee – GREENDC: IoT based Energy Saving in Data Centres 
• Dr Colin Axon –  How risky is the low-carbon transition?  
• Dr Zahir Dehouche –  Hydrogen energy Storage Research  
• Dr Xinyan Wang –  Novel hydrogen nanobubble fuels for low-carbon future transport

• Dr Harjit Singh – Concentrated Solar Power for sustainable heating and cooling 
• Dr Valentina Stojceska – Application of Solar Thermal Energy to Processes - The ASTEP Project
• Dr Abhishek Lahiri – Development of biocompatible and sustainable electrodes for Zn ion batteries
  
• Dr Mohamed Darwish – Power Electronics & Energy sustainability
• Dr Salman Masoudi Soltani – Valorisation of Biomass Combustion Residue in Post-combustion Carbon Capture 
• Dr Fang Wang – Artificial intelligence and its applications to energy and sustainability research 
• Dr Jan Wissink – Effect of Marangoni forces on interfacial heat transfer

Professor Maria Kolokotroni, Research Centre Director, Resource Efficient Future Cities, Institute of Energy Futures 

The existing building stock is responsible for almost 40% of the total energy use and 36% of CO2 emissions. Since the existing buildings will remain the bulk of the building stock for the next 30 years at least, increasing their energy efficiency is crucial to effectively reduce the consumption of energy and resources. Residential building retrofit is also crucial to improve the quality of indoor environments, reducing health risk connected to energy poverty and unhealthy buildings as well as addressing post-COVID issues on the indoor environment. The lecture will present results from the Horizon 2020 research project ReCO2ST on the development of a residential retrofit assessment platform and demonstrations for near zero energy and CO2 emissions with optimum cost, health, comfort and environmental quality. The project includes demonstrations within a building at the Brunel campus. The tools and technologies developed can help to increase the renovation rate of existing residential buildings which will provide multiple beneficial effects to the wider community by fostering a more socially, economic and environmentally sustainable society.

Celebrating our diverse and stimulating research community, this showcase is an opportunity to hear from some of our Doctoral Researchers about their exciting "Sustainability" related research projects. 

For our third event of the SPlaSH Series on Plastics in Society, we are thrilled to welcome two international keynote speakers who will address the global challenge of plastics in different contexts.  

Roland Geyer is Professor at University of California’s Bren School of Environmental Science and Management, where he studies the environmental impacts of products and technologies and looks for ways to reduce them.  

Rose Boswell is DSI-NRF South African Research Chair in Ocean Cultures and Heritage, Nelson Mandela University, where she addresses the plastics crisis in South and Eastern Africa.  

Around the world, rising sea level threatens coastal communities. Sea level rise is now unstoppable, requiring bold planning to avoid catastrophe. Though often seen as an environmental issue, it’s more about our national security, the economy and the impacts on our homes and communities.  

Professor Trevor Hoey, Director of the Centre for Flood Risk and Resilience, welcomes John Englander, Sea Level and Climate Change Expert, and author of ‘Moving to Higher Ground: Rising Sea Level and the Path Forward’ (2021), who will lay out the latest scientific projections and present a visionary outlook for what we need to do now to curb the rising tide. Englander will explain how we – and future generations – can survive and even thrive!   

Join Brunel's Provost, Professor Rebecca Lingwood, for the grand finale of the Brunel Research Festival and the announcement of the Doctoral Researcher Poster Competition award winner. 

We'll look back at highlights from the month of festivities, discuss the Brunel Research Strategy, and hear from our Doctoral Researchers about their award winning projects in each challenge area.