CAST researchers will be working with a range of partner organisations from the private, public and third-sector. Our existing partnerships are listed below.
If your organisation is interested in working with CAST, please get in touch: info@cast.ac.uk
CAST partners
CAST has paired up with the third-sector organisation Possible who have pioneered community-level interventions to address climate change, for example inspiring communities to engage with climate action by crowdfunding solar. Building on this work, CAST and Possible will trial approaches to reduce carbon emissions at the neighbourhood level working with multiple communities in London.
Anglian Water is a water service company operating in East Anglia, England. They have partnered with CAST to encourage transformations in water use and climate-relevant behaviours (e.g. food choices, energy consumption) at household and organisation levels.
Cardiff City Council and the Cardiff and Vale local public health team have been working to develop low-carbon and healthy transport solutions for Cardiff. This includes encouraging active travel and use of public transport modes to improve air quality, reduce emissions and promote active and healthy lifestyles across Cardiff, including amongst young people and in deprived areas. They will be working with CAST researchers to co-design and evaluate interventions in line with these ambitions.
Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA)
CAST researchers will work with GMCA and city leaders as they deliver a programme of immediate actions and develop a five-year city-region plan to achieve emission reduction from material consumption, diet, mobility, and comfort. This builds on existing work that has quantified the implications of the Paris Climate Change Agreement and evaluated low-carbon interventions across infrastructure, processes and behaviours.
Intergovernment Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
The IPCC is the United Nations body for assessing the science related to climate change. CAST will be closely working with the IPCC to ensure the most up-to-date social science insights are available for inclusion in the next Assessment Reports. CAST will also help the IPCC develop its communication approaches.
Kerry McCarthy is MP for Bristol East and Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Agroecology for Sustainable Food and Farming. Her interests include finding ways in which food policy and choices can be shaped to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions. She sits on the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Select Committee and the Environmental Audit Committee. Working with Kerry will help us to link CAST’s research to a broad range of policy-making and civil society activities of relevance to climate change.
Surple Energy is a software company that develops energy and sustainability management software systems and visualisation tools to support decision-making and employee behaviour change initiatives. CAST and Surple will work together to design workplace interventions to embed sustainability behaviours within and beyond the workplace and encourage reduced demand for heating and cooling, low-carbon travel habits, and sustainable food and consumption choices.
The Scottish Government’s Climate Change Bill will set a net-zero emissions target for 2045. CAST researchers will work with the Behaviours and Engagement Team to support policy development in line with this ambitious goal.
The Wates Group is one of the largest privately-owned construction, development and property services companies in the UK. It will work with CAST researchers to develop and implement its strategic vision to become a leading voice in the construction industry on sustainability in the built environment.
CAST researchers will be working with the Welsh Government to co-design policies to help deliver stringent emission reduction targets, ensuring that social science insights inform climate change strategies for Wales. This work will particularly focus on the co-benefits of carbon reduction in relation to the requirements of WG’s Wellbeing of Future Generations Act.
Place-based Climate Action Network (P-CAN)
CAST will work closely with P-CAN, which aims to produce a replicable model that delivers climate policies on a global to local scale, facilitating and inspiring places across the UK. CAST researchers will engage with P-CAN to inform transformations especially at the city-scale.
CAST is working with the world-leading IMAGE modelling group at Utrecht University (led by Prof. Detlef van Vuuren) to develop new 1.5C climate scenario assessments. As part of CAST research theme 1, this research will focus specifically on meeting UN sustainable development goals and understanding lifestyle impacts.
Peking University – China Center for Climate Change Communication
Binbin Wang, who co-founded the China Center for Climate Change Communication in 2010, will work closely with CAST researchers to explore low-carbon transformations in the Chinese context.
Federal University of Paraiba, Brazil
Dr Valdiney Gouveia is an environmental psychologist who will be working with CAST researchers to explore low-carbon lifestyles in Brazil.
Dr Cecilia Bergstad is an environmental psychologist who will be working with CAST researchers in Theme 1 to explore low-carbon transformations in Sweden.
Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research
The CAST Centre will work closely with the Tyndall Centre to explore ways to rapidly transform society in line with the urgent need to reduce carbon emissions.
CAST Affiliate Members
We also have affiliate members; researchers, practitioners and members of other groups with a track record of research and engagement in climate change and social transformations and whose focus lies within the broader aims and objectives of CAST. The aim of our affiliate membership is to bring together individuals who work alongside each other to develop innovative research and discover new applications in an inspiring and collaborative environment.
Charles Ogunbode
Charles Ogunbode is an Assistant Professor in Applied Psychology at the University of Nottingham. His research broadly examines the roles of personal experiences, media exposure, and social norms in people’s responses to environmental problems. In his current projects, he is investigating how negative emotional responses to climate change are linked to wellbeing and pro-environmental action around the world, how young adults are psychologically adapting to climate risks in the Pacific region, and how we can draw on people’s mental models of climate change risk to promote climate action in Africa. Prior to joining the University of Nottingham, he held positions at De Montfort University and the University of Bergen.
David Powell
David Powell is Senior Engagement Advisor at Climate Outreach, where he leads the Climate Engagement Lab. He has 20 years of experience in climate engagement, communications and policy, and in the translation of research and evidence into accessible, public-facing campaigns and programmes. He helps climate communicators to understand, empathise with and engage non-activist audiences in meaningful action.
He has worked as a senior campaigner at Friends of the Earth, where he led work on greening the financial and banking system and the UK Treasury. From 2016-2020 he was Head of Environment at the think tank, the New Economics Foundation. At NEF, David developed and led its work on the just transition, in particular focusing on community worker engagement in the oil and gas sector.
David produces and hosts the psychology podcast Your Brain on Climate.
Dr Lucas Geese
Lucas Geese is a research fellow at the University of East Anglia. His research focusses on climate change and decarbonisation-related political representation, particularly the relationship between citizens and politicians. He is currently a researcher on the ERC-funded project Deep Decarbonisation: The Democratic Challenge of Navigating Governance Traps, in which he seeks to understand what motivates politicians to credibly commit themselves to lead in deep and rapid decarbonisation. Previously he worked as a lecturer and researcher in Comparative Politics at the University of Bamberg in Germany.
Prof. Charlie Wilson
Charlie Wilson is Professor of Energy and Climate Change at the Environmental Change Institute (ECI) in the School of Geography and the Environment at the University of Oxford. He is also a visiting research scholar at the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA) in Austria. Prior to joining ECI, Charlie spent 11 years with the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research at the University of East Anglia (UK).
Charlie’s research lie at the intersection between innovation, people, and policy in the field of energy and climate change mitigation. He works at a systems level on scenarios and modelling of net-zero transformations, looking particularly at the role of lifestyle change and digitalisation as a transformative force. He also works at the micro level on innovation processes, technology adoption, and pro-environmental behaviour.
Prof. Rebecca Willis
Rebecca Willis is a Professor in Energy & Climate Governance at Lancaster Environment Centre, where she leads the Climate Citizens project. In 2020 she was an Expert Lead for Climate Assembly UK, the Citizens’ Assembly established by the UK Parliament. Rebecca is a Trustee of the New Economics Foundation and an adviser to the National Lottery’s Climate Action Fund. She features on the Woman’s Hour Our Planet Power List which highlights 30 women making an impact by helping to protect our planet; and on the ENDs Report Environmental Professionals Power List. Her book, Too Hot To Handle? The democratic challenge of climate change was published by Bristol University Press in March 2020.
Previously, she was a research fellow for the IGov project at the University of Exeter, investigating energy governance. From 2015-2019 she was a member of the Scientific Advisory Committee of UKRI’s Energy Programme, and from 2011-15 she was a Council Member of the Natural Environment Research Council. She was Vice-Chair of the UK Sustainable Development Commission, advising the Prime Minister and First Ministers of the devolved administrations, from 2004-2011. In 2009 Rebecca founded Green Alliance’s Climate Leadership Programme, an initiative to support Members of the UK Parliament, and earlier served as Green Alliance’s Director.
Dr John Kenny
Dr Kenny is a Senior Research Associate at the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research/School of Environmental Sciences, University of East Anglia (UEA). He specialises in the area of public opinion research, with a particular focus on environmental and climate change attitudes. In his current work on the ERC-funded project Deep Decarbonisation: The Democratic Challenge of Navigating Governance Traps, he examines the extent to which publics are willing to commit to policies and actions that would result in substantial and rapid societal decarbonisation. Prior to joining UEA, he held positions at the University of Southampton and the University of Oxford.
Dr Adam Corner
Dr Adam Corner is a researcher and writer specialising in climate change communication and culture/climate collaborations. During roles at Cardiff University, as Programmes & Research Director at Climate Outreach and as one of the founding Directors of the Centre for Climate Change & Social Transformations (CAST), Adam has played a central role in building and communicating the research base on public engagement with climate change, alongside publishing comment and analysis in international media such as the Guardian, New Scientist, and the New York Times. Adam now works independently, operating as Climate//Communication//Culture www.adamcorner.uk
Dr Brendan Moore
Dr Brendan Moore is a postdoctoral researcher on transformative EU climate governance at the Institute for European Studies, Brussels School of Governance, Vrije Universiteit Brussel. His research focuses on the role of government-led transformations in rapid decarbonisation, European Union climate change policy, and the impact of Brexit on UK and EU environmental governance. He is also a climate policy associate of the Brexit & Environment network, a group of scholars providing independent research on how Brexit is affecting policy, governance and the environment.
Dr Sam Hampton
Sam Hampton is a Research Fellow at the University of Bath, work interdisciplinary work focuses on energy and climate change.
His research examines the ways in which environmental impact relates to everyday life. It begins with the idea that energy and resource consumption are bound up in everyday practices such as travelling to work, cooking and eating, and achieving comfort. This perspective tells us that policies designed to reduce environmental impact require an understanding of how and why social norms and behaviours become established. For instance, the steady increase in ‘normal’ indoor temperatures over the last 50 years, the transition from bathing to showering, or the proliferation of plastics in food production and consumption.
Sam has worked on several research projects focusing on energy and transport decarbonisation, including electric vehicle charging infrastructure and smart heat pumps. He led a project called ‘Pathways to a Zero Carbon Oxfordshire’, and is working with Local Authorities to implement the changes needed to eradicate fossil fuels from the economy. Sam specialises in energy and climate governance for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and has works as a low carbon advisor to business alongside his research roles.
Sam joined the University of Bath in 2021 to work on a project called ‘Accelerating Carbon Capability for an Equitable, Sustainable Society (ACCESS). Drawing on different theoretical and disciplinary traditions, this project seeks to understand what it will take for the diverse UK population to become more ‘carbon capable’. How can low carbon lifestyles be made fulfilling, desirable, affordable, and accessible to all?
Dr Nicole Koenig-Lewis
Dr Koenig-Lewis is a Reader (Associate Professor) in Marketing at Cardiff Business School, Cardiff University. She is currently the ESRC Wales DTP Pathway Leader (Business Management). She has published in internationally recognised journals, such as Journal of Business Research, Journal of Environmental Psychology, Tourism Management, Journal of Services Marketing, Journal of Marketing Management and Annals of Tourism Research.
Bridging the gap between academia and the business community, Nicole is working closely with a number of external business partners contributing to raise the profile of the University. Her research and external academic engagement consistently informs her teaching at undergraduate and postgraduate level.
Nicole has been awarded the status of Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy in February 2015 and is also a professional certified member of the Market Research Society.
Dr Harriet Ingle
Dr Ingle is a postdoctoral researcher in climate psychology at The Centre for Climate Justice, Glasgow Caledonian University. She is recognised by the British Psychological Society as one of the UK’s pioneering researchers investigating the effects of climate change on mental health. She has worked in clinical research for over 10 years (particularly working with individuals with life-limiting or terminal illnesses), and is applying her experience in experimental clinical neuropsychology to this emerging area of enquiry within psychology.
Her research interests include how climate change is impacting mental health from an individual and planetary health perspective; how these mental health impacts may impact physical health in the short and long term (taking a neuropsychological perspective); and spatial social science, mapping geophysical and meteorological features of landscapes against metrics of health.
Harriet is a registered chartered psychologist with the British Psychological Society, as well as a member of the Climate Psychology Alliance, the Royal Geographical Society Climate Change Research Group, and the Scottish Communities Climate Action Network.
Dr Paul Bain
Dr Bain is a Reader (Associate Professor) in Psychology at the University of Bath, with expertise in social and cross-cultural psychology. Paul is currently the University of Bath Pathway Lead for Sustainable Futures in the South West Doctoral Training Program (UK), and a Committee Member of the interdisciplinary GW4 Climate Alliance Programme (UK).
Paul’s research includes how people understand climate change and sustainability within and across cultures, and how people believe the actions taken to address these issues will change society. His research has been published in interdisciplinary journals including Nature Climate Change and Nature Sustainability.
Dr Susan Lee
Dr Susan Lee is a Research Fellow within the Consumer Data Research Centre (CDRC) employed by Leeds University Business School. Her current research assesses consumer food purchase behaviours in response to external shocks, the usefulness of eco-labelling and the impact of diet on environmental sustainability (greenhouse gas emissions, land and water use, as well as biodiversity). She is a Fellow of the Royal Meteorological Society.
Previously, Susan worked on several research programmes at the Universities of Birmingham, Leeds, Sheffield, and Manchester. She has a background in Environmental Science with research interests encompassing dietary change, sustainable food systems, urban metabolism, and the natural environment. She works across the physical and natural sciences with data scientists, nutritionists, engineers, environmental and social scientists, and the business community, to address current world issues relating to food and diet.
Dr James Graham
Dr James Graham is a Senior Research Associate with the Science, Society and Sustainability (3S) research group and CAST, based at the Norwich Business School, University of East Anglia. His research has moved from a background in green technology and policy to a thesis on mapping systems of social practice to looking at a local model for an inclusive economy, to organisational change towards zero-carbon.
His work with CAST included a review of literature on the subject of organisational change and transformation towards zero carbon in addition to case study work with a range of partner organisations to gather qualitative data on how different organisations are tackling the realities of climate destabilisation and ecological collapse. James is also a keen activist and currently working as a community organiser, participating in both local, national and global groups engaged in a struggle for a liveable future.
Dr Jo Swaffield
Dr Jo Swaffield’s current research at Newcastle University focuses on the acceptance, adoption and effectiveness of sustainable technologies. She is working on three projects that explore these areas with a focus on water and energy use in the home. This work is being conducted alongside a research team at Newcastle University Business School and with project partners, including Northumbrian Water, Northern Gas Networks, National Energy Action and Procter and Gamble.
Jo has previous research experience on household water use behaviours with a specific focus on sustainable technologies (e.g., smart shower sensors, smart water meters), alongside a broad range of other issues related to drought and water management in the UK. These include individual perceptions of water use, levels of concern and perceptions of future management options (e.g., pricing, restrictions).
Alongside her work on climate change mitigation (sustainable technology and behaviour change), Jo is interested in individual and societal adaptation to a changing climate. Specifically, the impact that extreme heat will have on everyday behaviours such as water and energy use.
Lina Khattab
Lina Khattab is a doctoral researcher at the University of York. She is interested in understanding and promoting pro-environmental behaviours to mitigate the impact of climate change. Her current research is exploring households’ water conservation across two different cultures, the UK and Egypt. As a social scientist and marketer, she acknowledges the role of context on human behaviour and advocates a holistic systems approach to behaviour change, in which structural and social aspects are accounted for. Her research was presented at international conferences of environmental psychology, social marketing, and international
water association (IWA).
Dr Steve Westlake
Dr Steve Westlake is a research fellow at Cardiff University. He was formerly a Knowledge Exchange Associate for CAST, and has worked in the Climate Change Committee secretariat.
Steve’s research explores how leading by example with high-impact pro-environmental behaviour influences the attitudes and behaviour of others, and how such leadership contributes to climate change mitigation. Steve’s PhD revealed that visible leading by example from politicians, CEOs and celebrities significantly increases the willingness of members of the public to adopt the same low-carbon behaviours (flying less, eating less meat, driving electric cars, improving home energy efficiency, increased use of public transport and active travel). Furthermore, the public’s perceptions of the leaders’ credibility, trustworthiness, competence and popularity are greatly increased when the leaders are observed leading by example. A corresponding negative effect is observed when leaders’ behaviour appears to contradict their climate message.
Underpinning Steve’s ongoing research is the idea that “action is communication”. His investigations aim to provide insights into how social influence and leadership can feed into the rapid transition to more sustainable lifestyles, by shifting social norms and contributing to social tipping points. His research also contributes to the ongoing debates about “individual action versus systems change”, highlighting how leaders’ individual actions have an effect on collectives and systems – i.e. they are not purely “individual”. He draws on theories of social influence, cultural evolution, leadership, and practice.