This blog draws on a discussion held on 21 September 2020, jointly hosted by the Royal Society’s Living Landscapes programme and the British Academy, as part of a new programme of work on environmental sustainability, Where We Live Next. The discussion covered some of the key challenges around changing rural land use in the UK and considered which stakeholders and decision-making structures, both locally and nationally, are necessary for a just transition.

The local is not confined to immediate surroundings. It is the arena of belonging, of feeling alive and in touch, and of caring and sharing with neighbours. The…

A new sustainability blog series from the British Academy

“Places matter to people. They shape the way we live our lives, feel about ourselves and the relationships we have with others. Moreover places — not least because of their history, character and physical form — contribute significantly to personal and societal wellbeing.”

– from the British Academy Where we live now report

The UK has the potential to be a global leader on environmental sustainability, having set ambitious targets for net zero carbon emissions. …

Professor Susan Golombok FBA

Introduction

“What I’d like other people to know about my family is that we’re a happy family — we’re all really happy and joyful.” Mike, 9, child of a transgender parent.

New family forms, made possible by advances in assisted reproduction and changing social attitudes, have challenged popular myths and assumptions about the superiority of the traditional family in fostering children’s psychological adjustment. …

This blog post draws on a discussion held on 21 September 2020, jointly hosted by the Royal Society’s Living Landscapes programme and the British Academy, as part of a new programme of work on environmental sustainability, Where We Live Next. The discussion covered some of the key challenges around changing rural land use in the UK and considered which stakeholders and decision-making structures, both locally and nationally, are necessary for a just transition.

Someone as unconventional as the flamenco and Morris-dancing Wilfred Emmanuel-Jones, a self-made Black farming millionaire, is not so much a role model as a flamboyant exception in…

Dr Aude Le Guennec, Assistant Professor in Design studies / Fashion Anthropology, Heriot-Watt University, School of Textiles and Design

Introduction

In one corner of the classroom stands a rail where fancy dresses are hanging. Their shiny, glittery materials appeal to the sparkly eyes of the dreamy pupils. Suddenly, all the stories to be imagined jump to their constantly stimulated minds. Learning through play invites itself into the classrooms. The creative child, as modelled by Maria Montessori[i] is constantly interacting with everyday material culture. Children manipulate, create, dream and, through their activities and games, reveal their spontaneous approach to the world. …

Professor Jonathan Bradshaw FBA, Emeritus Professor of Social Policy, University of York

Child poverty in the UK is increasing and on present policies will increase further, sweeping away all the reduction achieved up to 2010. This is happening, despite unemployment being at a record low and real wages at the bottom of the distribution improving. Since 2010, £40 billion has been taken out of the working age social security budget, and the main driver of child poverty are these cuts to benefits and services.

Poverty affects child outcomes. Infant mortality increased in the last two years for the first time…

Professor Peter Mandler FBA, Professor of Modern Cultural History, Gonville and Caius College, University of Cambridge

‘Even a decade ago, young people were told that maths and the sciences were simply the subjects you took if you wanted to go into a mathematical or scientific career, if you wanted to be a doctor, or a pharmacist, or an engineer. But if you wanted to do something different, or even if you didn’t know what you wanted to do, and let’s be honest — it takes a pretty confident 16-year-old to have their whole life mapped out ahead of them —…

Dr Nadia von Benzon, Lecturer in Human Geography, University of Lancaster

Introduction

Access for all

Richard Louv’s notion of the Last Child In the Woods[i] emphasises that children’s opportunities to spend time engaged in free play in the outdoors are reducing. This trend has implications for their mental and physical health, social and cognitive development and their independence and problem solving skills. …