New themes to address the threat to the environment

From 2022, Fellowships will be available to research global ideas in these crucial areas and to make a contribution to climate efforts in the UK. Over succeeding years, Fellows in these themes will form a dedicated community tackling these issues, whether locally, nationally or globally.

Our Fellowship theme on Caring for our Natural Environment will support projects that aim to protect, restore and enhance our natural environment. These include practical solutions to address nature degradation, its causes and effects, and how our natural environment can be improved. We are also interested in projects that address the impact of changes in how we use and value our natural environment and that seek fair and equitable access to nature’s benefits for all UK communities.

Our Fellowship theme on Climate Change will support Fellowships that help the UK to minimise climate change and adapt to its effects. These include practical and policy solutions for decarbonising UK economies and society at every level and projects that seek a fair and equitable transition to a carbon-neutral future.

These new themes have been guided by our Environment Working Group of Fellows and other experts in this field. Working Group member Professor Peter Liss of the University of East Anglia said: “These new themes will enable Fellows to identify tractable aspects of the issues, learn how they are addressed in other countries and then to bring that understanding back to the UK.”

The new Fellowships will be available to apply for in September 2022, but information on them can already be found here. Fellowships enable any UK citizen to meet leading practitioners and policymakers from anywhere in the world, either in person or online, summarise their findings and recommendations in a widely shared report, and go on to influence their sectors and communities with our help.

To mark the start of COP26 we will also be publishing a series of blogs from Environment Working Group members and Fellows working within these themes. These include:

• New Fellowships to protect the environment by Professor Peter Liss CBE FRS
• Mapping every tree on earth by Jonathon Jones (CF 1997)
• Working together to tackle climate change by Jill Matthews (CF 2010)
• COP26, climate action and cultural institutions by Henry McGhie (CF 2020)

See our natural environment and climate change for related content.