Research – Welcome to the SPAIS blog

The University’s applied research project programme connects innovative businesses with talented future researchers. Here’s how postgraduate student Ewan Shipley partnered with Map Impact to produce an insightful report on Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG).

In the School of Sociology, Politics and International Studies, skills development is woven throughout all our programmes to ensure students graduate with useful transferable skills.

Some courses take this a step further by embedding an applied research project with one of our partner organisations directly into the course.

Ewan’s course, MSc Society Politics and Climate Change, examines the sociological and political approaches to urgent environmental issues, investigating the root causes and consequences of climate crisis.

As providers of pioneeering environmental data services and reporting tools, Ewan felt that Map Impact‘s work aligned well with his interests and course requirements and chose them for his placement.

The outcome is an insightful study exploring local authorities’ response to England’s mandatory Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG).

The paper examines the extent to which the BNG is being implemented and outlines the response of local authorities across England to the new legislation, assessing whether they consider it an effective method of environmental protection through stakeholder interviews.

Organisations need reliable data to address nature-related targets, and studies such as this establish a baseline and help identify opportunities for improvement.

For businesses and organisations, student placements bring fresh thinking on the challenges they are facing, while connecting them to future talent and cutting-edge academic research on relevant subjects.

For Map Impact, the benefits are clear:

‘[We are] motivated by the chance to collaborate. As a startup based in Bristol, it seemed like a natural fit to work with a University of Bristol student to enhance our understanding of how recent biodiversity legislation is being perceived.

Ewan was equally motivated by the requirements of his MSc Applied Research Project and his personal interest in preserving our natural environment.

We believe this could be the beginning of an ongoing relationship with University of Bristol to support conservation and sustainability in the face of climate change.’

– Richard Flemmings, CEO

For students, placements provide real-world experiences so you can apply your discipline outside the classroom. You get the opportunity to apply and test your learning in a practical setting and see first-hand the impact you can make with your degree.

‘I chose Map Impact because I felt that their interest in responses to Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) was highly relevant, and given how new the legislation was, would allow me to explore an under researched issue.

[They] were thoroughly engaged throughout the project, especially during the participant recruitment phase, creating a friendly and supportive work environment.

I hope that our research provides stakeholders with the chance to reflect on their approaches to BNG whilst highlighting the importance of biodiversity enhancement under our current environmental crises.’

– Ewan Shipley, MSc student

Applied research projects represent a practical alternative to writing a traditional dissertation, helping our students build the skills, insight and contacts you need to thrive after graduation.

Find out more about what makes our MSc in Society, Politics and Climate Change so innovative:

Interested in hosting a student on a research placement in your organisation? Please get in contact with our Professional Liaison Team at fssl-pln@bristol.ac.uk

Dr Jennifer Whillans, Lecturer in Sociology at SPAIS, has been investigating what our ‘sad desk sandwich’ says about British working culture. Could it be there’s more than low standards at play?

Research shows that 28% of British workers eat at their desks and 44% eat alone, the highest rates in Europe.

This habit both disgusts and amuses other Europeans. As a French scholar put it, ‘a sandwich or salad gulped down in front of a computer screen does not pass as a proper meal’.

So why do we do this?

Up until now, studies have almost exclusively used large-scale surveys. These reveal patterns of behaviour and trends, but to understand why people eat the way that they do, we need in-depth interview data.

‘Most people greatly anticipate their lunch, seeing it as a reward for work and a time to eat what they wanted.’

In her latest research, Whillans interviewed 21 people about what, where, and with whom they ate their lunch. She found much more variety in workday lunches than the solitary ‘al desko’ sandwich.

Some participants admitted that the workday lunch was not exactly a premium gastronomic experience. One man described lunch as ‘my functional eating thing’.

But most people greatly anticipate their lunch, seeing it as a reward for work and a time to eat what they wanted. Their lunch was seen as a chance for personal indulgence, while avoiding others’ distaste.

Whillans’ participants considered walking and waiting for their food a waste of time, with many bringing their food from home. People used their break for a leg stretch then – to minimise time away from work – ate back at their desks.

‘[…] Putting minimal effort into lunch is another response to a working culture that’s getting more demanding.’

To avoid the emotional effort of eating with others, some participants would signal that they wanted to be left alone by scrolling on their phone or hiding in their car. One woman said ‘eating with other people interferes with [the] pleasure of looking after yourself’.

Whillans suggests that British lunch habits aren’t simply a matter of low standards.

They’re about balancing the pressures of work and the need for efficiency with looking after yourself and navigating social interactions. Like ‘quiet quitting’ and the ‘great resignation’, putting minimal effort into lunch is another response to a working culture that’s getting more demanding.

Your employer (through setting workload) or even the government (through labour laws) may be having more of an influence on what’s for lunch than we thought.

Category: Research

‘It seemed like a natural fit’: How work placements benefit both students and businesses

The University’s applied research project programme connects innovative businesses with talented future researchers. Here’s how postgraduate student Ewan Shipley partnered with Map Impact to produce an insightful report on Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG).

‘[We are] motivated by the chance to collaborate. As a startup based in Bristol, it seemed like a natural fit to work with a University of Bristol student to enhance our understanding of how recent biodiversity legislation is being perceived.

Ewan was equally motivated by the requirements of his MSc Applied Research Project and his personal interest in preserving our natural environment.

We believe this could be the beginning of an ongoing relationship with University of Bristol to support conservation and sustainability in the face of climate change.’

‘I chose Map Impact because I felt that their interest in responses to Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) was highly relevant, and given how new the legislation was, would allow me to explore an under researched issue.

[They] were thoroughly engaged throughout the project, especially during the participant recruitment phase, creating a friendly and supportive work environment.

I hope that our research provides stakeholders with the chance to reflect on their approaches to BNG whilst highlighting the importance of biodiversity enhancement under our current environmental crises.’

Research spotlight: Why do we eat lunch at our desks in the UK?

Dr Jennifer Whillans, Lecturer in Sociology at SPAIS, has been investigating what our ‘sad desk sandwich’ says about British working culture. Could it be there’s more than low standards at play?

‘Most people greatly anticipate their lunch, seeing it as a reward for work and a time to eat what they wanted.’

‘[…] Putting minimal effort into lunch is another response to a working culture that’s getting more demanding.’