The time has come to make new year resolutions! You could aim to learn a new skill, technique or perhaps embrace a new discipline? How about starting a new collaboration with a researcher in a different field? Or expanding research beyond the lab into industry applications and policy recommendations?
If these ideas have crossed your mind, then your new resolution could be to embrace a multi, inter and/or transdisciplinary research approach so solve grand challenges.
When you think about plastic pollution, you probably think of water bottles, single-use plates and cutlery, or food packaging. “Oh well, I don’t litter, so I’m not responsible” you might think. But in fact, you probably do contribute to plastic pollution: every time you wash your clothes. The escape of microplastics from laundry is a substantial problem. This is another guest blog post from an IMSE work experience student, Rolando Charles!
Part of my job as Translation and Research Manager is to support the production of new IMSE briefing papers. Topics vary as widely as IMSE’s research themes, which cover sustainability, innovation and health and wellbeing. One of the current papers in preparation is on chemical additives in plastics. This really combines all three themes! So I’ve been exploring how the UK currently does chemicals regulation. It’s complicated… To find out more, I attended a meeting of the UK Chemicals Stakeholder Forum last month.