The Sustainable Practices Research Group (SPRG) comprises seven research projects and four Fellowships conducted across eight UK universities.The SPRG is funded by the Economic & Social Research Council, the Scottish Government and the Department for Environment, Food  & Rural Affairs.

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Upcoming Events

COMPARING FOODWAYS: a European seminar on approaches to the cross-national and dynamic comparison of eating practices > The Changing Eating Habits project will be hosting an international seminar on comparative approaches to the study of food practices and cultures. The event will see invited participants from six European countries gather at the University of Manchester (June 13-14) for in-depth paper presentations and discussion sessions. Papers prepared for the seminar will be proposed as a special issue to a journal.

Outputs, Engagements and Updates

SPRG SYMPOSIUM > The SPRG Symposium brought together researchers from across all of the projects to present papers on themes cross cutting the SPRG programme. The Symposium, held in Lancaster, 23-25 April,  was the last meeting of the full SPRG programme before the Final Event in London on 11 September.

ECONOMIC SOCIOLOGY OF WATER CONFERENCE, TAIWAN >Mark Harvey, principal investigator of the Bottled Water project gave the opening speech at a two day international conference on the Economic Sociology of Water at National Dong Hwa Univeristy, Hualien, Taiwan (March 27-28). The Bottled Water project takes a comparative approach to drinking water practices in Delhi, Taiwan and the UK. The conference was convened by Mark's collaborator Dr. William Li  and follows Mark's presentation in December at National Taiwan University, Taipei: "An historical and comparative economic sociology of drinking water: the UK, Taiwan and Delhi".

THE USES AND ABUSES OF COMMUNITY FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT WORKSHOP > The SPRG Margins of Consumerism fellowship and  Engagement, Interaction and Influence project  ran a two-day workshop at the University of Leeds, 21-22 March, bringing together 30 academics from the SPRG and its sister programme the Sustainable Lifestyles Research Group.

PATTERNS OF WATER PROJECT FINAL REPORT > The Patterns of Water project have released their final report. The report includes research results of a 1800 person survey, as well as interviews with survey participants, into domestic water related practices. The research demonstrates how taking practices as the unit of analysis allows for a deeper understanding of the routines and habits of everyday life that lead to domestic water consumption. Find out more and download the report and resource pack.

GETTING TO ZERO: INTERNATIONAL PERSPECTIVES ON LOW CARBON HOUSING > The Zero Carbon Habitation project hosted an international workshop on 28 February at the University of Manchester. Researchers presented findings on low and zero carbon housing in Denmark, Norway, Austria, Germany, and the United Kingdom.

PUBLICATION > Full text of The Habits of Consumption edited by Alan Warde and Dale Southerton is available online.  This collection of essays addresses theoretical approaches to understanding behaviour change, with contributions from SPRG researchers Warde and Southerton, Elizabeth Shove and Andy McMeekin.

VIDEO RELEASE > The Bottled Water project has been featured as an ESRC research case study video in its Planet and People series. Watch the video.