The feasibility of using marginal hay meadow biomass for anaerobic digestion

Marginal (‘upland’) areas in the UK are enjoyed by many tourists, and provide ecosystem services of clean water, soil carbon storage and agricultural produce (breeding livestock, meat and wool). However, poor financial return from the agricultural land puts it at risk of abandonment. Hay meadows in marginal areas are prized for their biodiversity, which is maintained by their traditional, low-input management including sheep production. If their management was abandoned, their biodiversity would fall. This thesis examined if bioenergy production (by anaerobic digestion (AD)) could provide a sufficiently high income compared to sheep farming, to prevent total abandonment. In addition to encouraging biodiversity, this could mitigate climate change by reducing fertiliser input and producing renewable energy. In marginal areas in northern England, fresh vegetation from five hay fields (not receiving inorganic fertiliser) was compared to five silage fields (receiving inorganic fertiliser), because grass silage is commonly used in AD. Biodiversity; biomass yield; biomethane production by laboratory AD; greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions; and financial returns from sheep farming or using the silage/hay crop in AD were measured. Compared to silage fields, the hay fields had greater biodiversity, lower GHG emissions but similar biomethane production. And hay was more financially viable in AD than silage, partly due to lower cost. However, in order to make a similar profit per ha to that achieved by sheep production, a farmer would have to sell their hay to a nearby AD plant (such as a dairy farm AD), rather than form a co-operative AD. Bioenergy is commonly perceived as an ‘enemy’ of biodiversity, but my work shows that bioenergy and biodiversity could co-exist, through AD of hay

From compliance to collaboration: critically reflecting on the process of embedding an Indigenous Graduate Attribute in an undergraduate business program.

Calls for Australian universities to embed Indigenous content into curriculum are more than a decade old yet this work remains largely incomplete. Institutional commitments made at senior level to achieve these outcomes can lack direction, guidance, and support at the coalface. Using a critical reflection methodology this paper outlines the approach undertaken by a group of Indigenous and non-Indigenous academics to embed a contextualised Indigenous graduate attribute into a traditional undergraduate business degree with multiple majors. The results indicate that collaborative approaches based on relationships and trust and supported with clear guidelines and processes can achieve positive outcomes. A focus on professional capabilities can enhance non-Indigenous staff confidence to teach this content and allay concerns about misappropriation of Indigenous Knowledges

The impact generated by public and charity-funded research in the UK: A systematic literature review

Objective: To identify, synthesize and critically assess the empirical evidence of the impact generated by public and charity funded health research in the United Kingdom. Methods: We conducted a systematic literature review of the empirical evidence published in English in peer-reviewed journals between 2006 and 2017. Studies meeting the inclusion criteria were selected and their findings were analysed using the Payback Framework into five main categories: knowledge, benefits to future research and research use, benefits from informing policy and product development, health and health sector benefits and broader economic benefits. We assessed the studies for risk of selection, reporting and funding bias. Results: Thirteen studies met the inclusion criteria. The majority of the studies (10 out of 13) assessed impact at multiple domains including the main 5 key themes of the Payback Framework. All of them showed a positive impact of funded research on outcomes. Of those studies, one presented low risk of bias (8%), 6 studies were classified as presenting moderate risk of bias (46%) and 6 studies presented high risk of bias (46%). Conclusions: Empirical evidence on the impact of public and charity funded research is still limited and subject to funding and selection bias. More work is needed to establish the causal effects of funded research on academic outcomes, policy, practice and the broader economy

The Role of Practice Research Networks (PRN) in the Development and Implementation of Evidence: The Northern Improving Access to Psychological Therapies PRN Case Study

Practice research networks (PRNs) can support the implementation of evidence based practice in routine services and generate practice based evidence. This paper describes the structure, processes and learning from a new PRN in the Improving Access to Psychological Therapies programme in England, in relation to an implementation framework and using one study as a case example. Challenges related to: ethics and governance processes; communications with multiple stakeholders; competing time pressures and linking outcome data. Enablers included: early tangible outputs and impact; a collaborative approach; engaging with local research leads; clarity of processes; effective dissemination; and committed leadership

Engaging boards of directors at the interface of corporate sustainability and corporate governance

Globalisation, privatisation and deregulation have meant that corporations have moved far beyond their traditional sphere of influence, thus presenting significant governance challenges

Federally funded national project — corporate responsibility and SMEs

The article discusses the findings of a national research project exploring responsible business practice in small to medium enterprises (SMEs). It highlights the potential contribution of SMEs and their role in to responsible business practice and corporate social responsibility (CSR

Boards in Transition: Re-establishing Corporate Legitimacy

This article reports on research exploring how directors describe the tensions as they navigate emerging social and environmental issues, and broadening stakeholder responsibilities. Underpinning these tensions is the importance of maintaining corporate legitimacy. Corporations need both pragmatic and moral legitimacy strategies to navigate an increasingly contested operating environment