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The use and treatment of animals in the provision of our food, clothing and other raw materials, as well as in the areas of medical research, sport and entertainment, polarises public opinion and provokes extreme views. Research by Professor Robert Garner on the ethics and politics of animal protection has provided a springboard for political debate and decision making both in the UK and internationally. In particular, Garner's work has impacted upon the debate within the animal protection movement, and has helped to shape aspects of government policy on animal welfare issues in general, most notably on the UK Government's approach to the issue of whaling, and DEFRA's approach to the ethics of using wild animals in circuses.
Dr Lister's pioneering research into people's perceptions of safety in relation to anti-terrorism measures has significantly shaped and informed public and political debate in this complex and controversial area. Lister has co-authored submissions to the Home Office, provided a policy briefing to the National Assembly for Wales, hosted a workshop with representatives from `think tanks' and government departments. Additionally, he has engaged with a variety of civil society/advocacy groups and published commentary (including by invitation) on this area of public policy. Lister has highlighted the negative experiences of a range of ethnic minority citizens, as well as demonstrating the merits of using evidence based research in a highly political and sensitive arena.
Den Boer's research into the relationship between extreme gender population imbalances and state security has shaped public and political debate within national and international media, influenced public policy and political campaigns, and affected the provision of data services within the Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD). The researchers' argument regarding Asia's missing women continues to inform journalists', NGOs', institutions', policy makers' and the wider public's understanding of the role played by gender imbalances when assessing state stability and security in situations as diverse as gendercide in Asia, youth uprisings and revolts, and gang rape in India.
Trafficked persons have benefitted directly from van den Anker's research at UWE through improved support and legislation. Her policy model on human trafficking prevention assisted changes in the UK, Ireland, Portugal, Czech Republic, Belgium and Sweden and informed local policy development through her training of politicians, civil servants and NGOs in Bristol, Birmingham and Wales. Increased multi-agency working promoted by van den Anker has led to the establishment of new support services like a safe house and the Migrant Rights Centre in Bristol, directly benefiting migrants. International dissemination contributed to agenda changes in international organisations such as the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe.
During the conflict, community relations work had low strategic importance. Morrow et al (1997) demonstrated that the absence of an overarching conceptual framework stifled government policy and so subsequently developed a ground breaking model of community relations engagement to be mainstreamed into government policy (around equity, diversity and interdependence). Following two major government reviews of community relations in 2002 and 2003-5, these research findings were adopted as central to public policy and resource allocation, and reconfigured as `A Shared Future'.
Since 2008, the core concepts of Morrow et al's work have been explicitly integrated into the vision and values of many policies and practices around reconciliation, community relations and a shared future demonstrating a continuing, cascading impact at local, regional, national, European and international levels.
This project, which commenced in 2000 and continues to this day, has addressed the settlement of conflicts within states. The project has yielded important findings in the areas of complex power-sharing, autonomy and self-governance, political participation mechanisms for non-dominant groups, peace-making and transitional arrangements in peace agreements. These findings have flowed into the policies and practices of major international actors (United Nations, Council of Europe, Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe), and have been implemented in a number of sensitive contexts. The project findings were also applied directly in a significant number of international negotiations and settlements. This includes the independence of Kosovo and South Sudan, the peace negotiations on Darfur, UN planning for the transition in Libya, the United Nations-led negotiations on a settlement for the conflict in Syria, and the peace agreement and transitional arrangements addressing the deep crisis in Yemen.
The global financial crisis led the European Union (EU) to diversify its sources for the EU Budget, including co-financing instruments with multilateral development banks. Dr Robinson's research addressed key concerns about financial risk and the lack of transparency created through such partnerships. His research has been recognised as improving the understanding of these complex instruments within EU institutions and its impact may be measured through the implementation of several of its key recommendations. These include the creation of the `EBRD Representative for EU affairs' within a participating bank, the acceleration of EU co-financing strategy, and the unprecedented action of the EU Court of Auditors including the banks in their auditing process.
The global pledge of achieving Education For All by 2015 is compromised by providers' reliance on education services that are designed for sedentary users and exclude nomadic pastoralists. Dr Caroline Dyer (University of Leeds; Senior Lecturer in Development Practice, 2004-2011; Reader in Education in Development, 2011- present) has re-visioned approaches to education for nomadic groups through her analysis of how public policy perpetuates pastoralists' educational marginalisation and design of research-based models of service provision that can deliver pastoralists' right to education inclusion without compromising their mobile livelihoods. Her research led to changes in national policy strategy and re-designed service delivery in Kenya in 2010, shaped policy debate in Afghanistan from 2012, and has supported community and NGO advocacy in India since 2008.
Research by Duncan McCargo at the University of Leeds has changed the way in which domestic and international policymakers, NGOs, the media and the Thai public have understood and engaged with the ongoing insurgency in southern Thailand. Since 2008, this award-winning, ESRC-funded work has played a key part in building consensus around the need for a political solution such as autonomy or decentralisation in the region. The research has supported peace initiatives,changed the implementation of security policy, and provided a road map for international donors seeking to help end the conflict.
This case study focuses on the Israeli-Palestinian water conflict within the context of the Oslo peace process. It documents four areas of impact, the underpinning research and associated engagement and dissemination activity having: (1) [text removed for publication] (2) significantly enhanced public and policy understanding of, and debate on, the Israeli-Palestinian water conflict, within Israel, the Palestinian territories and internationally; (3) [text removed for publication] and (4) contributed to the emergence of influential critiques of international policy on water `cooperation'.