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Research at Oxford in the Transport Studies Unit (TSU) has enabled cities and governments (regional and local) in the UK and internationally to adjust their transport policies over the longer term (to 2050) towards low carbon alternatives. Its impact has been to reconfigure decision makers' thinking on transport policies from trend-based projective studies for transport policy options, towards trend breaking `backcasting' studies for sustainable transport policy futures. Several national and international agencies have used both the backcasting approach, and also two simulation models developed as part of the research.
Research on sustainable transport conducted by Hickman et al at UCL has contributed significantly to a major shift in UK and international transport policy during the last decade. Whereas such policy previously included little, if any, consideration of climate change, the desire to reduce transport CO2 emissions is now often its primary objective. Findings from and methods developed through the research have been used at city, regional, national and international to support and implement revised strategies and investment programmes promoting sustainable transport. As such, they contributed to increased use of public transport, walking and cycling, and reduced dependence on car usage. The methods have also been widely used by international consultancies and other researchers.
Payment card fraud is a significant cost to business, as well as being a route to funding of organised crime, drug smuggling and terrorism. Detection of fraud requires a technique that is both transparent and adaptive. We have used the Department of Computing's expertise in machine learning and rule induction to develop a scalable method of automated fraud detection that meets the industry's needs. This technique is now being commercialised by AI Corporation, with a contract for its use having been placed by the world's largest retailer. Contracts with major banks are currently under negotiation.
Building on the University of Surrey's long history of involvement in the post-war British poetry scene, Surrey's School of English and Languages conducts research into some of the key questions surrounding contemporary poetic practice.
This research underpins the School's commitment to championing and investigating the most recent and innovative wave of contemporary British poetry: the renewed focus on a Modernist aesthetic that characterizes much of twenty-first-century verse.
The School has established a series of public events to bring this challenging and rewarding body of work to a wider audience. These events have made a significant economic contribution through their promotion of the British poetry industry, and have had a marked cultural impact on public access to and understanding of avant-garde poetry in the county of Surrey and across southeast England.
Receptive Ecumenism (RE) is a fresh method for conducting ecumenical dialogue, originating in the research of Paul Murray. Traditional Christian ecumenism has aimed at formally resolving differences and producing substantive agreements, but this effort has made little progress in recent decades. RE has provided ecumenical discussions with a new purpose and method: that is, fostering within each tradition a sustained process of engagement with and learning from other traditions. RE has shifted the focus from outcomes to process, and from doctrinal flashpoints to denominational cultures of knowledge, decision-making and dissemination. Since 2008, RE has explicitly been adopted by an international range of Christian groups, and most significantly has provided the underpinning methodology of the Anglican-Roman Catholic International Commission since its relaunch in 2011.
This body of research comprises two distinct and complementary projects that raised public awareness of attitudes towards, and representations of, gender in 21stcentury Britain. Aune and Hogan, respectively, challenged popular assumptions and stereotypes about the value of feminism for a) younger women through transformative action and text (Aune) and b) older women through film and photography (Hogan). This research is part of the unit's well-established strand of expertise addressing how gender inequalities and gendered social differences are constructed. The research highlighted gender inequalities and suggested ways they may be alleviated. Aune showcased examples of British feminist activism and Hogan used the creative arts to interrogate images of older women, challenge stereotypes and provide positive alternatives, leading to increased well-being and quality of life.
Research carried out by the SESRC has resulted in a new category of health and wellness footwear which has been commercialised by FitFlop Ltd.
Since 2008, the Company has:
The Transforming Learning Cultures in Further Education (TLC) project, which UWE researchers led the design of and played a key role in undertaking, informed policy debates on a range of issues including the quality of teaching and learning in Further Education (FE) settings. Several FE sector teacher training programmes (e.g. Cardiff University) have changed aspects of their content as a consequence of this research, for example to help trainees better understand and develop a positive learning culture in their classrooms. This benefits the trainee teachers and, as a consequence, the learning outcomes for the students they work with. Processes to enhance the practice of established teachers in FE have been implemented as a consequence of this research, for example, City of Bristol College's peer mentoring scheme improves the skills of lecturing staff and outcomes for learners. The project also produced a book that has been widely adopted by FE managers and tutors to help them better understand and enhance the learning context in contemporary college and adult education environments, resulting in more effective teaching and learning. On a wider level the research findings have influenced national policy debates on issues around the funding, practice, and management of teaching and learning activities across the post-compulsory education sector, particularly in further education.