Today, we are launching a short campaign to highlight some of the current projects which are devoted to making the planet a greener place – with the first campaign content published next week.
Over the next six weeks, in the run up to this year’s COP30 summit in Belem, Brazil, the PR team will share new and existing research such as a project to cool overheating homes in hot weather; a short film about using ponds to boost biodiversity and an electrochemical process that transforms biodiesel into a high-value solvent.
Professor Dan Parsons, Pro Vice-Chancellor for Research and Innovation, said: "My colleagues are tackling the world’s most pressing environmental challenges head-on, from the highest peaks to the deepest oceans and everywhere in between.
“This campaign celebrates the creativity, courage and collaboration that define our approach to sustainability.
“As we look ahead to COP30, it’s vital that universities like ours continue to turn cutting-edge research into real-world solutions that protect people, support better lives and livelihoods and sustain the planet for generations to come. I am immensely proud of the impact we have as an institution in addressing these challenges."
Professor John Harrison, Associate Dean (Research and Innovation) for the School of Social Sciences and Humanities, which includes the Department of Geography and Environment, added: “Environmental research is not only central to our Department and School mission, but to Loughborough University’s broader commitment to shaping a more sustainable and just future.
“By empowering students and researchers to think critically and act boldly, we are helping to ensure that Loughborough continues to make a real, lasting difference to the future of our planet.”
The campaign will also include projects from a variety of other schools and departments, including Business, ABCE and Chemistry.
Attending COP30 in person will be Professor Ed Brown and Professor Mark Howells showcasing the MECS and CCG projects.
Professor Qiuhua Liang, who has been invited to represent the Prince Sultan Bin Abdulaziz International Prize for Water (PSIPW) and present at the session, Innovating for Climate Action: Unlocking Technological Solutions for a Sustainable Future.
And the Digital Decarbonisation team (Professors Tom Jackson and Ian Hodgkinson, co-leads) will be participating as panelists for the Virtual Pavilion session, Advancing an environmentally sustainable digital transformation: implementing the OECD Recommendation on Digital Technologies and the Environment.
They will be joined by people from nearly 200 nations.
As the first Amazonian COP, it will highlight forests, biodiversity, and rainforest protection, positioning Brazil as a leader in balancing climate action with development.