In the latest issue of Thinking Business (April 2023) we announced our launch of the Positive Environmental Futures signature research theme to building an innovative, creative and inclusive community that is actively focused on addressing real-world challenges and finding solutions to the urgent environmental issues facing the world today. Read on to learn more about what we’re doing to improve environmental sustainability locally, nationally and globally.
Harnessing funding for sustainability projects
With a 100% application success rate for Knowledge Transfer Partnerships funded by Innovate UK, the University of Kent has played a vital role in driving a series of sustainability-related KTP projects with industry. Examples include working with the Port of Dover to de-carbonize their fleet and reduce congestion at the port, helping Priority Freight to reduce their CO2 emissions and enabling Zero Trace Procurement to help energy buyers better manage their consumption and costs.
Explore Knowledge Transfer Partnerships at Kent.
Improving access to our expertise
Our new, searchable database can be used to find cutting-edge research on the transition to net-zero, climate change and environmental sustainability more broadly. The database provides contact details for over 70 individual researchers at Kent with the experience to help businesses regionally and globally.
Use our database to find environmental sustainability experts at Kent.
Standing up for the Right to Food
We are committed to becoming a Right to Food University, an initiative through which we plan to address food inequality in our region. We want to engage with local authorities, charities, schools, farmers and communities across Kent to develop a plan to tackle food inequality across the county, as well as build a Community Kitchen for local food entrepreneurs, supporting best practice and training on good food for the county.
Get involved in Right to Food.
Developing skilled, sustainability-fluent graduates
As well as offering a range of sustainability-related courses, we are working together with Kent Students’ Union to facilitate institution change in embedding sustainability throughout all parts of the student learning experience. We are working to ensure that every student – from architecture to business, and chemistry to digital arts – is prepared with the knowledge and understanding of sustainability, and possess the sustainability skills and attributes, and the desire and willingness to deal with these issues.
Learn more about how we’re embedding sustainability in our learning and teaching.
Growing Kent and Medway food and drink businesses through innovation
Through the Growing Kent and Medway programme, we have launched a Biotechnology Hub which is harnessing funding to help businesses develop disease resistance, sustainable packaging, biofuels, yield and quality, new protein sources, healthy soils and optimised plant growth conditions. In the most recent funding round, the University of Kent secured over £30,000 in Innovation vouchers to work with industry on three innovative projects.
Visit the Growing Kent and Medway website.
Connecting innovative businesses on the road to net zero
We are working with a wide range of organisations to identify and address opportunities to decarbonize their processes through lifecycle assessment. Often this involves bringing multiple partners together to reuse, reduce and recycle resources across several industries to minimise waste. If you’re looking to decarbonise your business, we may have the knowledge and contacts you need to get started.
Share your ideas with us at businessrelationships@kent.ac.uk.