International Climate Justice Collaboration

The University of Leeds is partnering with institutions in the United States, Singapore, Mexico, New Zealand on a new research collaboration to explore the role of design approaches to climate justice.

Supported by a Research Development Award from the World Universities Network the project - Climate Justice by Design - will bring together researchers from the Universities of Auckland, Leeds and Rochester, Nanyang Technological University in Singapore, and the Tecnológico de Monterrey to develop a programme of activity, rooted in arts and humanities approaches, across all four institutions. Professor James Stark, LAHRI Director, is representing the community of researchers from Leeds, with expertise from graphic design and communitication to area studies, whose work interfaces with this crucial area.

The group shares the belief that climate change is the single greatest existential threat of our day. It is clear that while science helps us to understand the dramatic changes that are underway to our climate, it is the humanities that will help us understand the issues of justice, equity and restitution that come with the damage and change to our environment.

Through the specific lens of design – including urban and building design, visual communication, infrastructure, histories and philosophies of design, and refugees and resettlement plans – the project will lay the groundwork for practical collaborations across the contributing universities and project partners in 2023 and beyond.