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Resources

WHAT IS ENVIRONMENTAL SOCIAL SCIENCE?

Environmental social science is the scientific study
of three interrelated dynamic components:

people
the social environment
the natural (non-human) environment

Infographic showing the relationship between People, Social Environment and Non-human (nature) Environment.

EVENT REPORTS

Since our first ACCESS Annual Assembly in 2022, we have been evaluating our events.

Early in the planning for the Assembly, we decided we wanted to welcome in-person and online visitors. It was important for us to:

Invite people from various disciplines and champion the benefits of collaboration and co-production.
Be inclusive and offer equally enriching experiences and networking opportunities to those in the room and those sitting at their desktop.
Experiment and move away from the conference norm of short presentation slots and parallel sessions over lunch to something more relaxed that would allow people to think, ask questions and connect with others.
Incorporate our Guiding Principles (EDI, Environmental Sustainability and Knowledge Coproduction)

From planning to evaluation, the report focuses on venue hire, accommodation, event programme, audio & visual technology, networking opportunities and how to incorporate our Guiding Principles.

In the lecture hall at the ACCESS Assembly in 2023

FLEX FUND REPORTS

Discover what lessons we learned from administering Rounds 1 and 2 of the Flex Fund. We hope these insights will be useful to other organisations administering flexible funds.

ACCESS PROGRESS REPORT

Read ACCESS’s 2024-2025 Progress Report for the highlights we have enjoyed and the challenges we have faced in the project’s third year, and to discover the opportunities and plans we have for the future.

ACCESS Year 3 Progress Report 2024-2025

Front cover of the 2024-2025 progress report

TASK FORCE REPORT

Making a Net Zero Society: Follow the Social Science Report

Summary Report

Summary
Infographic
Key Recommendations
Key steps

Full report

Key Steps & Infographic
Key Recommendations
References
Annex 1 – Perspectives on Societal Change
Annex 2 – Policy Document Analysis
Annex 3 – Case Studies of Societal Change
Glossary

We are excited to share a new report which identifies key steps and recommendations to support the delivery of the Net Zero 2030 policy target. The report Making a Net Zero Society: Follow the social science highlights the need to take a fresh approach to understand, plan and deliver the social and cultural change that will be needed to reach net zero targets.

In the report by the ESRC-funded ACCESS network, 10 leading academics offer their analysis of the recent UK Net Zero Research and Innovation Framework, Delivery Plan and Net Zero Society: Scenarios and Pathways Report. They go on to present selected case studies of past and ongoing societal change and transition, that offer lessons for net zero policy.

UK Public Opinion on Net Zero and Climate Policy

Full report

Report Highlights
Key Findings
Methods and Sample
Results
Recommendations
Annex 1 – Respondent Characteristics
Annex 2 – Qualitative Theme Descriptions
Annex 3 – Survey Questions

In the Summer of 2024, in the weeks leading up to the UK General Election, leading academics from the ESRC-funded ACCESS network surveyed nearly 3,000 UK adults to understand more about their perspectives on climate change, net zero targets and climate action, as well as views about how policy should be made, and support for different types of policy.

The Citizens’ Survey Report presents findings for the UK as a whole and compares public opinion across England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales.

KNOWLEDGE EXCHANGE MAPS

These read-only systems maps show groups, organisations and individuals that could be engaged for research, development and innovation. They are designed for Environmental Social Scientists and people working in similar fields.

They can be used for a range of purposes:

Increase research impact, exploring the full range of organisations and actors that you could engage with to enable change
Facilitate collaboration, identifying opportunities for policy- and civil-society relevant research collaborations
Improve networking, brokering academic, third sector and commercial connections across sectors and disciplines
Enhance awareness of the opportunities that exist inside and outside your organisation, and those within your own knowledge exchange ecosystem
Broaden understanding of the complexity of the knowledge exchange ecosystem, and the diversity of actors who could engage in your work
Provide inspiration, supporting the design of this type of map in different contexts

Find out more

Environmental Social Science Knowledge Exchange Map of Opportunities

DATA EXCHANGE

The ACCESS Data Exchange is a signposting application that provides a search tool for a collection of UK environmental social science-related datasets which have been produced by a range of different organisations.

This includes datasets from official government statistics to climate-focused opinion surveys.

The aim of this tool is to aid environmental social scientists in accessing and using datasets to support research and decision-making in solving climate and environmental problems.

The data exchange was created by the Data Working Group, data providers and users in government, universities and other public organisations.

Data Exchange

MEDIA MONITOR

We are developing a media monitoring tool which tracks a wide range of social media and traditional news media.

The team are currently

Looking at different ways people could interrogate the data
Finalising the initial list of news sources, social media platforms and account lists
Developing a user friendly front-end dashboard.

If you have any thoughts or suggestions for the media monitor please contact us

RAPID RESPONSE REQUESTS

This is a bespoke request service for Environmental and Climate Research and Analysis.

We can

Offer advice and feedback on policy questions, proposals or ideas.
Help scope and frame research requirements.
Provide a bridging point between professionals and social scientists working across the environment and climate domain.

We have worked with a range of groups including Defra, BEIS/DESNZ, the Welsh Government, the Northern Ireland Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) and Forest Research.

Rapid Response Requests

ENVIRONMENT FOCUSED UKRI INVESTMENTS

ACCESS is funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC). ESRC are part of UK Research and Innovation a non departmental public body of the government that directs research and innovation funding, funded through the science budget of Department for Science, Innovation and Technology.

Below are some of their investment projects past and present which include useful data, insightful reports and papers and lots more.

Data based ESRC programmes

Other UKRI projects that focus on Climate and the Environment:

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