Things always seem to be evolving at Northumbria University, and one of the latest interesting developments has been the Urban Futures Interdisciplinary Research Theme (Urban Futures IDRT). The endeavour promises to leverage the wide range of methodological and subject expertise across the University in order to “improve quality of life and sustainability in urban areas, taking a human-centred approach“. They summarise the approach as “People, Place, and Planet”. 

The Urban Futures IDRT aims to tackle the key challenges of as safety and security, democracy and governance, resilience and sustainability, health and wellbeing, and mobility and transport, using a variety of methodological tools and approaches. These approaches will include, though presumably not be limited to, data and digital technologies, policy-making, co-production, and design. As a behavioural scientist, and a member of the new IDRT, I sincerely hope that we can add some experimental psychology approaches to the mix. Indeed, I’m hoping to encourage IDRT members to apply some of the interdisciplinary style that Daniel Nettle displayed in his the Tyneside Neighbourhoods Study.

Given the scale of the challenges identified, and the great potential for impact, I look forward to seeing what the IDRT can deliver… Watch this space!

Urban Futures, in Newcastle and beyond.