^{Image credit: Dr. Cécile Girardin, University of Oxford}

The Climate Exp0 conference, hosted in May this year, aimed to showcase the latest thinking and international research relevant to climate change and raise ambition for tangible outcomes at the 2021 UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) in November. Online and free, the conference was designed to support the climate change research agenda and stimulate virtual collaboration among different stakeholders. Current GSD student, Scarlett Scott-Nadal, took part in Climate Exp0 as a student volunteer; and recent GSD graduate, Mia Sannapureddy, was selected to present her research on the premise for a fossil-free bond index. Hear from Scarlett and Mia below about their experiences of the conference.

The latest issue of Reinvention: an International Journal of Undergraduate Research presents a diverse range of content and themes that all comment on ideas of interconnectedness, interdisciplinarity, and sustainability. Moreover, it includes several contributions from students and staff in the GSD Department!

Current and former students from the School for Cross-faculty Studies presented their research on 12-13 April at the British Conference of Undergraduate Research (BCUR) 2021.

Established in 2011, BCUR is the largest conference in the UK dedicated exclusively to undergraduate research, promoting and sharing research in all disciplines. The conference usually takes place each year at a different University. This year, the University of Leeds delivered the conference virtually.

The 5th Interdisciplinary Learning and Teaching Conference, hosted by the University of Warwick, took place virtually on 15 April 2021 and brought together a diverse range of speakers and audiences including those involved in Liberal Arts, joint honours degrees, and single interdisciplinary modules.

Staff and students from the School for Cross-faculty Studies presented during the conference, sharing their experiences with collaboration, co-construction of knowledge, and practice underpinning interdisciplinary teaching and learning.

Congratulations to our students for securing funding for research projects over the summer!

The Undergraduate Research Support Scheme (URSS) enables undergraduate students to carry out an interdisciplinary summer research public engagement project. The scheme is open to any undergraduate student at Warwick and research can be completed in the UK or abroad.

This year, seven GSD students have successfully secured a bursary: Sara Azeem, Szebasztian Csernik-Tihn, Annabelle Early, Ari Hassan, Isaac McGirr, Virginia Thomas-Pickles and Melissa Yip. Their research projects will be presented in the form of a poster showcase at the annual URSS Celebration Research Showcase, which will take place next academic year.

Many congratulations to Ellie Hayter, final-year Economic Studies and GSD student and founder of the sustainable skincare brand ‘Gaia&Vie’, who was recently awarded a grant from the Warwick SU Environment and Sustainability Fund.

On Wednesday 9 December 2020, the School for Cross-faculty Studies hosted a 'Work Placement Talk and Live Q&A event', organised by the School's Employability and Placement Manager, Bodrun Nahar. The event aimed to give current students in the School the opportunity to hear directly from students who undertook a work placement. The speakers were encouraged to share their experiences of their work placements, including the challenges, the benefits, and their advice for any students considering doing a work placement.

Registration for the World Innovation Challenge is currently open until Monday 5 October 2020.

This is a great opportunity for Warwick students to work in international teams with Monash University students. The aim is to create a business idea that tackles a key sustainability challenge. The Challenge starts on Friday 9 October 2020 at 9:30 am (BST). Participants will work online for 48 hours (including sleep/resting and other work) to make a business plan.

The International Conference of Undergraduate Research (ICUR) is an annual academic conference, led and sponsored by the University of Warwick and Monash University, connecting student researchers globally using video conferencing technology.

This year, the forum will take place on the 29-30 September and will be modified to accommodate current pandemic restrictions. Both audience and presenters will join the conference virtually through the new ICUR App. A number of students from the School for Cross-faculty Studies will be presenting their research at ICUR next week.