The Henry Royce Institute (often referred to as ‘ Royce ’) is the UK’s national institute for advanced materials research and innovation.
96-521: Royce's vision is to identify challenges and stimulate innovation in advanced materials research to support sustainable growth and development. Royce aims to be a "single front door" to the UK’s materials research community. Its stated mission is to “support world-recognised excellence in UK materials research, accelerating commercial exploitation of innovations, and delivering positive economic and societal impact for
192-417: A limits discourse is an economically reformist, yet politically conservative approach to sustainability. Fourth, radical sustainability is a transformative approach seeking to break with existing global economic and political structures. Sustainable development, like sustainability , is regarded to have three dimensions : the environment, economy and society . The idea is that a good balance between
288-411: A sustainable yield (the rate of harvest should not exceed the rate of regeneration); for non-renewable resources there should be equivalent development of renewable substitutes; waste generation should not exceed the assimilative capacity of the environment. In 2019, a summary for policymakers of the largest, most comprehensive study to date of biodiversity and ecosystem services was published by
384-541: A "lack of concrete understanding of what "sustainability policies" might entail in practice". A study concluded in 2007 that knowledge, manufactured and human capital (health and education) has not compensated for the degradation of natural capital in many parts of the world. It has been suggested that intergenerational equity can be incorporated into a sustainable development and decision making, as has become common in economic valuations of climate economics . The World Business Council for Sustainable Development published
480-524: A Northern Powerhouse. Royce was then established through a grant from the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), which has been used to fund construction and refurbishment of buildings, equipment, and research and technical staff. Royce now coordinates over 900 academics and over £300 million in facilities, "providing a joined-up framework that can deliver beyond the current capabilities of individual partners or research teams.” Royce
576-543: A Vision 2050 document in 2021 to show "How business can lead the transformations the world needs". The vision states that "we envision a world in which 9+billion people can live well, within planetary boundaries , by 2050." This report was highlighted by The Guardian as "the largest concerted corporate sustainability action plan to date – include reversing the damage done to ecosystems, addressing rising greenhouse gas emissions and ensuring societies move to sustainable agriculture." There are many reasons why sustainability
672-533: A balance between economic development , environmental protection , and social well-being . However, scholars have pointed out that there are manifold understandings of sustainable development. Also there are incoherencies in the dominant market-based socio-economic-political organisation. Attempts towards universal sustainable development need to account for the extremely varied challenges, circumstances, and choices that shape prospects and prosperity for all, everywhere. The discourse of sustainable development
768-584: A commercially viable, environmentally responsible energy source for the future. A record 59 megajoules of sustained fusion energy was demonstrated by scientists and engineers working on JET in December 2021. In JET’s final deuterium-tritium experiments ( DTE3 ), high fusion power was consistently produced for 5 seconds, resulting in a ground-breaking record of 69 megajoules using a mere 0.2 milligrams of fuel. JET has now ceased operating and decommissioning has commenced. United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority owns
864-495: A formal opening in 2022. Housing equipment worth over £20m, the building features specialist laboratories, workshops and office spaces focussed on early-stage materials discovery and processing. Royce invested £10.9m in Liverpool’s new Materials Innovation Factory – an £81m facility dedicated to the research and development of advanced materials. Officially opened in 2018, the site includes a Royce Open Access Area which houses one of
960-405: A growth in the gross domestic product. This model of unlimited personal and GDP growth may be over. Sustainable development may involve improvements in the quality of life for many but may necessitate a decrease in resource consumption . "Growth" generally ignores the direct effect that the environment may have on social welfare, whereas "development" takes it into account. As early as the 1970s,
1056-434: A healthy environment. No new ethic is required. This so-called weak version of sustainability is popular among governments, and businesses, but profoundly wrong and not even weak , as there is no alternative to preserving the earth's ecological integrity." Scholars have stated that sustainable development is open-ended, much critiqued as ambiguous, incoherent, and therefore easily appropriated. Sustainable development
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#17327801593531152-617: A hub-and-spoke model, with the hub at the University of Manchester and spokes at the other founding Partners, comprising the universities of Sheffield , Leeds , Liverpool , Cambridge , Oxford and Imperial College London , as well as UKAEA and NNL . The hub and spokes collaborate on research in the following areas: The Henry Royce Institute’s hub in Manchester is in line with the Northern Powerhouse policy, and
1248-516: A prototype powerplant capable of demonstrating fusion as a viable technology for electricity generation. It uses the compact 'spherical tokamak' concept developed by UKAEA at Culham Centre for Fusion Energy. STEP is currently in a five-year conceptual design phase and is expected to be constructed and operational by 2040. In December 2017, UKAEA announced plans for two further fusion research centres: Hydrogen-3 Advanced Technology (H3AT) and Fusion Technology Facilities. H3AT, located at Culham, will study
1344-679: A site licence company under contract to the NDA, following close review and scrutiny by the Health and Safety Executive and environmental and security regulators. The majority of authority employees at the site transferred to Sellafield Ltd. On 2 February 2009, the authority announced the next stage in restructuring. Research Sites Restoration Limited (RSRL), was formed from the existing teams at Harwell in Oxfordshire and Winfrith in Dorset and licensed by
1440-653: Is a UK government research organisation responsible for the development of fusion energy . It is an executive non-departmental public body of the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ). The authority focuses on United Kingdom and European fusion energy research programmes at Culham in Oxfordshire , including the world's most powerful operating fusion device, the Joint European Torus (JET). The research aims to develop fusion power as
1536-487: Is a conservative approach on both economic and political terms. Second, progressive sustainability is an economically conservative, yet politically reformist approach. Under this framing, sustainable development is still centered on economic growth, which is deemed compatible with environmental sustainability. However, human well-being and development can only be achieved through a redistribution of power to even out inequalities between developed and developing countries. Third,
1632-463: Is a member of the co-ordinated R&D programme led by the EUROfusion consortium. UKAEA's Materials Research Facility carries out micro-characterisation of radioactive materials for researchers in both fusion energy and nuclear fission. It is open to users from academic and commercial organisations, aiming to bridge the gap between university laboratories and those at nuclear licensed sites. It
1728-527: Is a structural imperative for growth in competitive market economies. This inhibits necessary societal change. Furthermore, there are several barriers related to the difficulties of implementing sustainability policies. There are trade-offs between the goals of environmental policies and economic development. Environmental goals include nature conservation. Development may focus on poverty reduction. There are also trade-offs between short-term profit and long-term viability. Political pressures generally favor
1824-457: Is an approach to growth and human development that aims to meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. The aim is to have a society where living conditions and resources meet human needs without undermining planetary integrity . Sustainable development aims to balance the needs of the economy , environment , and social well-being . The Brundtland Report in 1987 helped to make
1920-489: Is an area of national strength as one of the "Eight Great" technologies, and is a major contributor to most of the other seven, with over 150,000 published patent applications between 2004–2013. Of the UK’s sector strategies, advanced materials is the critical component to ensure the full economic benefit for the energy sector, transportation, construction, a growing digital economy, life sciences, and agriculture technology. Sustainable growth Sustainable development
2016-814: Is based within Cambridge’s contemporary Maxwell Centre with labs at various sites on the University's West Cambridge site. Royce’s £10m investment in open access facilities at the University of Cambridge address energy generation, energy storage, and efficient energy use, with equipment for fabrication of new battery structures, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, X-ray tomography, and electrochemical characterisation. Alongside funding research and facilities, Royce has funded outreach and skills programmes aimed at encouraging children and young people to consider careers in Materials Science and Engineering. Working with
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#17327801593532112-718: Is highly influential in global and national governance frameworks , though its meaning and operationalization are context-dependent and have evolved over time. The evolution of this discourse can for example be seen in the transition from the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs, years 2000 to 2015) to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs, years 2015 to 2030). Sustainable development has its roots in ideas regarding sustainable forest management , which were developed in Europe during
2208-443: Is named after Sir Frederick Henry Royce OBE , a British engineer famous for his designs of car and airplane engines. Henry Royce manufactured his first car in Manchester in 1904, and in 1906 co-founded Rolls-Royce . Royce strategy currently focuses on research in five areas: In September 2020, Royce published five technology roadmaps to "set out how materials science can be harnessed to deliver net-zero targets". These roadmaps were
2304-550: Is one of the EPSRC's four major research institutes, the other three being: The Alan Turing Institute in data science; The Faraday Institution in battery science and technology; and the Rosalind Franklin Institute , which focuses on transforming life science through interdisciplinary research and technology development. These institutes represent a total financial investment of around £478 million and reflect
2400-764: Is part of the National Nuclear Users' Facility and has received funding from the Henry Royce Institute . On the 14th of October 2022 the Materials Research Facility opened its extension. A partnership between United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority and the Science & Technology Facilities Council , Oxfordshire Advanced Skills is an apprentice training centre located at Culham Science Centre. It offers training for technicians in engineering and hi-tech disciplines, with
2496-537: Is possible that we can find ways to replace some natural resources, it is much less likely that they will ever be able to replace ecosystem services , such as the protection provided by the ozone layer, or the climate stabilizing function of the Amazonian forest. The concept of sustainable development has been criticized from different angles. While some see it as paradoxical (or an oxymoron ) and regard development as inherently unsustainable, others are disappointed in
2592-458: Is so difficult to achieve. These reasons have the name sustainability barriers . Before addressing these barriers it is important to analyze and understand them. Some barriers arise from nature and its complexity ("everything is related"). Others arise from the human condition. One example is the value-action gap . This reflects the fact that people often do not act according to their convictions. Experts describe these barriers as intrinsic to
2688-544: Is the foundational concept of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Policies to achieve the SDGs are meant to cohere around this concept. The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development , adopted by all United Nations (UN) members in 2015, created 17 world Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The aim of these global goals is " peace and prosperity for people and the planet" – while tackling climate change and working to preserve oceans and forests. The SDGs highlight
2784-631: Is to be guided and judged. Since the Brundtland Report , the concept of sustainable development has developed beyond the initial intergenerational framework to focus more on the goal of "socially inclusive and environmentally sustainable economic growth ". In 1992, the UN Conference on Environment and Development published the Earth Charter , which outlines the building of a just, sustainable, and peaceful global society in
2880-515: Is used up faster than it can be replenished. Sustainability requires that human activity only uses nature's resources at a rate at which they can be replenished naturally. The concept of sustainable development is intertwined with the concept of carrying capacity . Theoretically, the long-term result of environmental degradation is the inability to sustain human life. Important operational principles of sustainable development were published by Herman Daly in 1990: renewable resources should provide
2976-626: The Alan Turing Institute on some data-centric engineering challenges, and the Franklin Institute on procuring characterisation capabilities. The Royce leadership team comprises: Advanced materials innovation is a key focus area for the UK for several reasons. UK businesses that depend on the production/processing of materials represent 15% of UK GDP, have a turnover of approximately £200bn, exports of £50bn and employ over 2.6 million people. Research in advanced materials
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3072-560: The Atomic Energy Authority Act 1995 , with the more commercial parts transferred into a public company AEA Technology , which was then floated on the London Stock Exchange in 1996. The nuclear facilities used for the UK's research and development programme, which held large decommissioning liabilities, were retained. The role of the authority became to decommission these nuclear assets and to restore
3168-619: The Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services . It recommended that human civilization will need a transformative change, including sustainable agriculture , reductions in consumption and waste, fishing quotas and collaborative water management. Environmental problems associated with industrial agriculture and agribusiness are now being addressed through approaches such as sustainable agriculture , organic farming and more sustainable business practices . At
3264-677: The Manchester Engineering Campus Development . The building was due to open in autumn 2020, but the ceremony was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Planning permission was granted in February 2017 and construction started in December 2017. It was originally going to be constructed on the site of the BBC's New Broadcasting House , but the site was changed to the main campus of the university. Royce funding
3360-523: The Ministry of Defence . In 1982 the authority was involved in the creation of Nirex , to develop and operate radioactive waste disposal facilities in the United Kingdom. The Atomic Energy Authority Act 1986 put the authority into trading fund mode, requiring it to act and account as though it were a commercial enterprise and become self-financing. The authority was then split again by
3456-480: The University of Sheffield . Royce also has two Associate Partners, Cranfield University and the University of Strathclyde . Royce aims to fulfil its mission by: In 2014, Chancellor George Osborne announced the launch of the Henry Royce Institute for advanced materials science in his Autumn Statement in 2014. He pledged "a quarter of a billion" to support his proposals from June 2014 on creating
3552-462: The 17th and 18th centuries. In response to a growing awareness of the depletion of timber resources in England, John Evelyn argued, in his 1662 essay Sylva , that "sowing and planting of trees had to be regarded as a national duty of every landowner, in order to stop the destructive over- exploitation of natural resources ." In 1713, Hans Carl von Carlowitz , a senior mining administrator in
3648-616: The 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro has placed the concept of sustainable development on the international agenda. Sustainable development is the foundational concept of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). These global goals for the year 2030 were adopted in 2015 by the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA). They address the global challenges, including for example poverty , climate change , biodiversity loss , and peace. There are some problems with
3744-410: The 21st century. The action plan Agenda 21 for sustainable development identified information, integration, and participation as key building blocks to help countries achieve development that recognizes these interdependent pillars. Furthermore, Agenda 21 emphasizes that broad public participation in decision-making is a fundamental prerequisite for achieving sustainable development. The Rio Protocol
3840-618: The Agenda 21 document was declared, the 'Future we want' document was proclaimed in the Rio+20 UN Conference on Sustainable Development, stating that "We resolve to promote education for sustainable development and to integrate sustainable development more actively into education beyond the Decade of Education for Sustainable Development." United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority The United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority
3936-549: The Bragg Centre for Materials Research will become operational in 2021, with a formal opening following in 2022. Royce equipment at the Bragg Centre focusses on enabling the discovery, creation, characterisation, and exploitation of materials engineered at the atomic level. Located in the new Harry Brearley Building in the centre of Sheffield, construction on the Royce Discovery Centre finished in 2020 with
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4032-553: The Culham Science Centre and has a stake in the Harwell Campus , and is involved in the development of both sites as locations for science and innovation-based business. On its formation in 1954, the authority was responsible for the United Kingdom's entire nuclear programme, both civil and defence, as well as the policing of nuclear sites. It made pioneering developments in nuclear (fission) power, overseeing
4128-669: The Discover Materials group, they facilitated a virtual open week in July/August 2020 aimed at 16-18 year olds considering university degrees. Royce also has a regular stand at the annual Bluedot festival, engaging children and their families in interactive materials science challenges. Royce partners have collaborated with other institutions to win grants from the Faraday Institution to develop new energy storage technologies. Royce has also collaborated with
4224-557: The EPSRC’s vision and objectives ("to deliver economic impact and social prosperity; to realise the potential of engineering and physical sciences research; and to enable the UK engineering and physical sciences landscape to deliver"). In 2022, the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, Grant Schapps announced a further £95 Million investment into Royce to deliver Phase 2 of its operations. The Henry Royce Institute
4320-749: The Future" for the US Congress , the first hearings ever held on sustainable development. In 1980, the International Union for Conservation of Nature published a world conservation strategy that included one of the first references to sustainable development as a global priority and introduced the term "sustainable development". Two years later, the United Nations World Charter for Nature raised five principles of conservation by which human conduct affecting nature
4416-493: The Health and Safety Executive to operate those sites. RSRL continued the decommissioning programmes for Harwell and Winfrith on behalf of the NDA. RSRL also became a subsidiary of UKAEA Limited. In October 2009, Babcock International Group plc acquired UKAEA Limited , the nuclear clean-up subsidiary of the authority, including its subsidiary companies DSRL and RSRL. In 2009 the Culham Centre for Fusion Energy (CCFE)
4512-515: The JET facilities at Culham. On 1 April 2008, the Authority announced a major re-structuring to meet its decommissioning obligations with the NDA. A new wholly owned subsidiary, UKAEA Limited , was formed with established expertise from the existing company, to focus on nuclear decommissioning and environmental restoration management and consultancy in the United Kingdom and international markets. At
4608-657: The Millennium Declaration from the year 2000 with its eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), the first comprehensive global governance framework for the achievement of sustainable development. The SDGs have concrete targets (unlike the results from the Rio Process) but no methods for sanctions. They contain goals, targets and indicators for example in the areas of poverty reduction, environmental protection , human prosperity and peace . Sustainability means different things to different people, and
4704-463: The Pacific. Following the Atomic Energy Authority Act 1971 , the authority was split into three, with only research activities remaining with the authority. The Radiochemical Centre Ltd took over production of medical and industrial radioisotopes and was later privatised in 1982 as Amersham plc . British Nuclear Fuels Ltd (BNFL) took over nuclear fuel and weapons material producing activities:
4800-628: The UK government’s aim to support centres of excellence outside of the " Golden Triangle " of research institutions in London, Cambridge and Oxford. New buildings funded or part-funded by the Royce grant include: The newly-constructed £105m Royce Hub Building draws together research facilities and meeting spaces to drive collaboration and industry engagement. Research undertaken here encompasses biomedical, metals processing, digital fabrication, and sustainable materials themes. The nine-storey Hub building in
4896-458: The UK.” Operating from its Hub at the University of Manchester , Royce is a partnership of eleven leading UK institutions. Royce operates as a hub and spoke collaboration between the University of Manchester (the hub), and the spokes of the founding Partners National Nuclear Laboratory , UK Atomic Energy Authority , Imperial College London , University of Cambridge , University of Leeds , University of Liverpool , University of Oxford and
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#17327801593534992-467: The capacities to measure progress towards sustainable development; promote equity within and between generations; adapt to shocks and surprises; transform the system onto more sustainable development pathways; link knowledge with action for sustainability; and to devise governance arrangements that allow people to work together. During the MDG era (year 2000 to 2015), the key objective of sustainable development
5088-407: The concept of sustainability was used to describe an economy "in equilibrium with basic ecological support systems". Scientists in many fields have highlighted The Limits to Growth , and economists have presented alternatives, for example a ' steady-state economy ', to address concerns over the impacts of expanding human development on the planet. In 1987, the economist Edward Barbier published
5184-450: The concept of sustainability. Other barriers are extrinsic to the concept of sustainability. This means it is possible to overcome them. One way would be to put a price tag on the consumption of public goods. Some extrinsic barriers relate to the nature of dominant institutional frameworks. Examples would be where market mechanisms fail for public goods . Existing societies, economies, and cultures encourage increased consumption. There
5280-443: The concept of sustainable development better known. Sustainable development overlaps with the idea of sustainability which is a normative concept . UNESCO formulated a distinction between the two concepts as follows: " Sustainability is often thought of as a long-term goal (i.e. a more sustainable world), while sustainable development refers to the many processes and pathways to achieve it." The Rio Process that began at
5376-428: The concept of sustainable development has led to a diversity of discourses that legitimize competing sociopolitical projects. Global environmental governance scholars have identified a comprehensive set of discourses within the public space that mostly convey four sustainability frames: mainstream sustainability, progressive sustainability, a limits discourse, and radical sustainability. First, mainstream sustainability
5472-563: The concept of sustainable development. Some scholars say it is an oxymoron because according to them, development is inherently unsustainable. Other commentators are disappointed in the lack of progress that has been achieved so far. Scholars have stated that sustainable development is open-ended, much critiqued as ambiguous, incoherent, and therefore easily appropriated. In 1987, the United Nations World Commission on Environment and Development released
5568-828: The connections between the environmental, social and economic aspects of sustainable development. Sustainability is at the center of the SDGs, as the term sustainable development implies. The short titles of the 17 SDGs are: No poverty ( SDG 1 ), Zero hunger ( SDG 2 ), Good health and well-being ( SDG 3 ), Quality education ( SDG 4 ), Gender equality ( SDG 5 ), Clean water and sanitation ( SDG 6 ), Affordable and clean energy ( SDG 7 ), Decent work and economic growth ( SDG 8 ), Industry, innovation and infrastructure ( SDG 9 ), Reduced inequalities ( SDG 10 ), Sustainable cities and communities ( SDG 11 ), Responsible consumption and production ( SDG 12 ), Climate action ( SDG 13 ), Life below water ( SDG 14 ), Life on land ( SDG 15 ), Peace, justice, and strong institutions ( SDG 16 ), and Partnerships for
5664-470: The desirable "state of global equilibrium", the authors wrote: "We are searching for a model output that represents a world system that is sustainable without sudden and uncontrolled collapse and capable of satisfying the basic material requirements of all of its people." The year 1972 also saw the publication of the influential book, A Blueprint for Survival . In 1975, an MIT research group prepared ten days of hearings on "Growth and Its Implication for
5760-503: The developing environmental movement drew attention to the relationship between economic growth and environmental degradation . Kenneth E. Boulding , in his influential 1966 essay The Economics of the Coming Spaceship Earth , identified the need for the economic system to fit itself to the ecological system with its limited pools of resources. Another milestone was the 1968 article by Garrett Hardin that popularized
5856-407: The development of nuclear technology and performing much scientific research. However, since the early 1970s its areas of work have been gradually reduced, with functions transferred to other government organisations as well as to the private sector. UKAEA has also been involved in undertaking safety and reliability assessments for outside bodies, due to its long running experience in such work within
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#17327801593535952-660: The environment around the sites. From the early 1990s the authority completed more decommissioning work than anyone in Europe, and had considerable success in regenerating former nuclear sites for commercial use. Following the Energy Act 2004 , on 1 April 2005 the UK's specialist nuclear police force, the UK Atomic Energy Authority Constabulary , was reconstituted as the Civil Nuclear Constabulary . Responsibility for
6048-509: The exhaustion of earth's finite stock; this perspective renders the Industrial Revolution as a whole unsustainable. The sustainable development debate is based on the assumption that societies need to manage three types of capital (economic, social, and natural), which may be non-substitutable and whose consumption might be irreversible. Natural capital can not necessarily be substituted by economic capital. While it
6144-597: The force was also removed from the authority and transferred to the Civil Nuclear Police Authority . The 2004 Act also established the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA), which on 1 April 2005 took ownership and responsibility for the liabilities relating to the cleanup of UK nuclear sites. The authority became a contractor for the NDA for the decommissioning work at Dounreay , Harwell , Windscale, Winfrith and
6240-559: The goals ( SDG 17 ). Education for sustainable development (ESD) is a term officially used by the United Nations . It is defined as education practices that encourage changes in knowledge, skills, values, and attitudes to enable a more sustainable and just society for humanity. ESD aims to empower and equip current and future generations to meet their needs using a balanced and integrated approach to sustainable development's economic, social, and environmental dimensions. Agenda 21
6336-680: The heart of the University of Manchester campus is 46 metres (151 ft) high, making it the second-tallest current building on the campus after the Maths and Social Sciences Building . It has 16,000 square metres (170,000 sq ft) of space. It is located next to the Alan Turing Building , and is close to the National Graphene Institute , the School of Physics and Astronomy , the School of Chemistry , and
6432-566: The highest concentrations of materials science robotics in the world, and also a suite of advanced analytical equipment. Part of the University of Sheffield’s Advanced Manufacturing Park , the Royce Translational Centre officially opened in October 2018 Its purpose is to evolve novel materials and processing techniques developed by research teams, making them accessible for trial by industry collaborators. Royce@Cambridge
6528-548: The intention of providing employers with highly skilled recruits ready to enter the workplace. Training is provided by the Manufacturing Technology Centre . RACE is a test facility for robotics and autonomous systems. It grew out of UKAEA's remote handling operations at the JET nuclear fusion device, which date back to the 1990s. The UK Government funded the construction of the RACE centre at Culham with
6624-413: The intention of taking the knowledge gained at JET into other industries with 'challenging environments' where it is difficult for humans to perform work. RACE currently works with organisations in nuclear fusion and fission, with large physics facilities and with autonomous vehicle developers. The £220 million STEP programme aims to accelerate the delivery of fusion power to the energy market. STEP will be
6720-503: The lack of progress that has been achieved so far. Part of the problem is that "development" itself is not consistently defined. The vagueness of the Brundtland definition of sustainable development has been criticized as follows: The definition has "opened up the possibility of downplaying sustainability. Hence, governments spread the message that we can have it all at the same time, i.e. economic growth, prospering societies and
6816-400: The linear path of materials (extraction, use, disposal in landfill) to a circular material flow that reuses materials as much as possible, much like the cycling and reuse of waste in nature. This way of thinking is expressed in the concept of circular economy , which employs reuse , sharing , repair, refurbishment, remanufacturing and recycling to create a closed-loop system, minimizing
6912-452: The local level there are various movements working towards sustainable food systems which may include less meat consumption, local food production, slow food , sustainable gardening , and organic gardening . The environmental effects of different dietary patterns depend on many factors, including the proportion of animal and plant foods consumed and the method of food production. As global population and affluence have increased, so has
7008-525: The manufacturing plant at Springfields , the enrichment plant at Capenhurst , the spent-fuel facility at Windscale , and the dual-purpose Calder Hall and Chapelcross military plutonium producing reactors. The Atomic Energy Authority (Weapons Group) Act 1973 transferred responsibility for management of the UK's nuclear deterrent , including the Atomic Weapons Research Establishment at Aldermaston , directly to
7104-529: The nuclear field. The authority was established on 19 July 1954 when the Atomic Energy Authority Act 1954 received royal assent and gave the authority the power "to produce, use and dispose of atomic energy and carry out research into any matters therewith". The United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority was formed from the Ministry of Supply, Department of Atomic Energy and inherited its facilities and most of its personnel on its formation. The first chairman
7200-645: The opening of a Materials Research Facility in 2016 and creation of the Oxfordshire Advanced Skills apprentice training centre. United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority states its mission as "To lead the delivery of sustainable fusion energy and maximise the scientific and economic benefit." Its research programmes include a number of laboratories and other facilities at the Culham site. The UK's national laboratory for fusion research, CCFE undertakes plasma theory and modelling studies to establish
7296-601: The physics basis for future fusion powerplants. It also studies the materials and engineering technology of tokamak fusion reactors. The centrepiece of CCFE's programme is the MAST Upgrade spherical tokamak experiment - the successor to the MAST device - which is expected to begin operation in 2019. CCFE also operates and maintains the Joint European Torus (JET) for its research partners around Europe, and
7392-470: The product of a collaboration with the Institute of Physics and the Institute for Manufacturing, convening the UK's academic and industrial materials research communities to explore how novel materials and processes can contribute to more sustainable, affordable, and reliable energy production. The roadmaps cover photovoltaics, hydrogen, thermoelectrics, calorics, and low-loss electronics. Royce operates as
7488-407: The report Our Common Future , commonly called the Brundtland Report . The report included a definition of "sustainable development" which is now widely used: Sustainable development is a development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. It contains two key concepts within it: Sustainable development thus tries to find
7584-437: The same thing in this context. The three dimensions paradigm has few theoretical foundations. Countries could develop systems for monitoring and evaluation of progress towards achieving sustainable development by adopting indicators that measure changes across economic, social and environmental dimensions. Six interdependent capacities are deemed to be necessary for the successful pursuit of sustainable development. These are
7680-542: The same time, Dounreay Site Restoration Limited (DSRL) was formed out of the existing Authority team at Dounreay and was licensed by the Health and Safety Executive to operate the site and carry out its decommissioning under the Authority's management. DSRL became a subsidiary of United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority Limited. In parallel with these changes, the site at Windscale in Cumbria was transferred to Sellafield Ltd ,
7776-473: The science of forestry. This, in turn, influenced people like Gifford Pinchot , the first head of the US Forest Service , whose approach to forest management was driven by the idea of wise use of resources, and Aldo Leopold whose land ethic was influential in the development of the environmental movement in the 1960s. Following the publication of Rachel Carson 's Silent Spring in 1962,
7872-410: The service of Elector Frederick Augustus I of Saxony published Sylvicultura economics , a 400-page work on forestry. Building upon the ideas of Evelyn and French minister Jean-Baptiste Colbert , von Carlowitz developed the concept of managing forests for sustained yield . His work influenced others, including Alexander von Humboldt and Georg Ludwig Hartig , eventually leading to the development of
7968-437: The short term over the long term. So they form a barrier to actions oriented toward improving sustainability. The concept of sustainable development has been and still is, subject to criticism, including the question of what is to be sustained in sustainable development. It has been argued that there is no such thing as sustainable use of a non-renewable resource , since any positive rate of exploitation will eventually lead to
8064-400: The study The Concept of Sustainable Economic Development , where he recognized that goals of environmental conservation and economic development are not conflicting and can be reinforcing each other. A World Bank study from 1999 concluded that based on the theory of genuine savings (defined as "traditional net savings less the value of resource depletion and environmental degradation plus
8160-483: The term " tragedy of the commons ". The direct linking of sustainability and development in a contemporary sense can be traced to the early 1970s. "Strategy of Progress", a 1972 book (in German) by Ernst Basler, explained how the long-acknowledged sustainability concept of preserving forests for future wood production can be directly transferred to the broader importance of preserving environmental resources to sustain
8256-438: The three dimensions should be achieved. Instead of calling them dimensions , other terms commonly used are pillars , domains , aspects , spheres . Scholars usually distinguish three different areas of sustainability. These are the environmental, the social, and the economic. Several terms are in use for this concept. Authors may speak of three pillars, dimensions, components, aspects, perspectives, factors, or goals. All mean
8352-524: The use of resource inputs and the creation of waste , pollution and carbon emissions. The European Commission has adopted an ambitious Circular Economy Action Plan in 2020, which aims at making sustainable products the norm in the EU. It has been suggested that because of the rural poverty and overexploitation , environmental resources should be treated as important economic assets, called natural capital . Economic development has traditionally required
8448-417: The use of various materials increased in volume, diversity, and distance transported. By 2050, humanity could consume an estimated 140 billion tons of minerals, ores, fossil fuels and biomass per year (three times its current amount) unless the economic growth rate is decoupled from the rate of natural resource consumption . Sustainable use of materials has targeted the idea of dematerialization , converting
8544-432: The value of investment in human capital "), policymakers have many possible interventions to increase sustainability, in macroeconomics or purely environmental. Several studies have noted that efficient policies for renewable energy and pollution are compatible with increasing human welfare, eventually reaching a golden-rule steady state. A meta review in 2002 looked at environmental and economic valuations and found
8640-525: The world for future generations. That same year, the interrelationship of environment and development was formally demonstrated in a systems dynamic simulation model reported in the classic report on Limits to Growth . This was commissioned by the Club of Rome and written by a group of scientists led by Dennis and Donella Meadows of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology . Describing
8736-623: Was Sir Edwin Plowden , with board members running the three major divisions: The authority inherited nearly 20,000 employees, which doubled to 41,000 by 1961. Most of the authority's early activities were related to the United Kingdom's nuclear weapons programme , and the need for plutonium , highly enriched uranium , and materials for hydrogen bombs . Between 1952 and 1958 UKAEA carried out 21 nuclear weapon tests in Australia and
8832-406: Was a huge leap forward: for the first time, the world agreed on a sustainability agenda. In fact, a global consensus was facilitated by neglecting concrete goals and operational details. The most comprehensive global governance framework for sustainable development is the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development with its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This agenda was a follow-up to
8928-454: Was invested in Imperial’s new Sir Michael Uren Hub building, on which Royce occupies the eighth floor. Final works are still ongoing on some floors of the building, which has not yet been officially opened. Royce facilities here focus on the production and characterisation of thin films and devices composed of a broad spectrum of materials. Housed within the new Sir William Henry Bragg Building,
9024-480: Was launched as the new name for the home of United Kingdom fusion research. In 2014 UKAEA announced the creation of a new branch of research, using expertise gained from the remote handling system created for JET to form a new centre for robotics known as RACE (Remote Applications in Challenging Environments) . The Authority has continued to expand its facilities at Culham in recent years, with
9120-588: Was poverty reduction to be reached through economic growth and participation in the global trade system. The SDGs take a much more comprehensive approach to sustainable development than the MDGs did. They offer a more people-centred development agenda. Out of the 17 SDGs , for example, 11 goals contain targets related to equity, equality or inclusion, and SDG 10 is solely devoted to addressing inequality within and among countries. An unsustainable situation occurs when natural capital (the total of nature's resources)
9216-520: Was the first international document that identified education as an essential tool for achieving sustainable development and highlighted areas of action for education. ESD is a component of measurement in an indicator for Sustainable Development Goal 12 (SDG) for "responsible consumption and production". SDG 12 has 11 targets, and target 12.8 is "By 2030, ensure that people everywhere have the relevant information and awareness for sustainable development and lifestyles in harmony with nature." 20 years after
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