Tag: UWE Bristol Research

Working with ambitious companies to accelerate innovation and bring real change

Author bethjohnson | Posted on

“Research is a passion. Look at the work we’ve done in developing magnetic detection technology – for home use, doctors’ surgeries and point of care. I love working with ambitious companies to accelerate their innovation to bring real change to people.”

Professor Richard Luxton, Director of the Institute of Biosensing Technology (IBST)   

 I’m Professor Richard Luxton. Back in 2008, with my colleague Professor Janice Kiely, we set up the Institute of Biosensing Technology, IBST for short.   

The IBST is the first of its kind in the UK. Here, industry and academia are working together to develop novel biosensing technologies – for the healthcare, agriculture and food technology sectors. We’re also applying biological principles to develop novel sensors for environmental, security and engineering applications. 

From prototype to point-of-care  

In our labs, we design complex biological tests and incorporate those tests into prototype devices using microfluidics and bespoke electronics. We’re a high-tech one-stop-shop if you like; supporting start-up and scale-up companies to develop innovation and tech by working collaboratively, simultaneously with them on all aspects of a product.   

Personally speaking, I’ve moved from clinical research in the NHS to developing technology here in the university. I have two passions. One’s research. For example, the work we’ve done in developing magnetic detection technology – for home use, doctors’ surgeries and point of care. I also love the interdisciplinary nature of what we do. Working with ambitious companies to accelerate their innovation.   

A community charged   

We’ve a really dynamic environment here. A fantastically dynamic community. We have electronic engineers, software engineers, microbiologists and biochemists here. We’re able to pair the right people with the right companies to develop a particular technology that will positively change lives for the better.   
  
That’s what it’s all about. Creating real world applications that will positively impact real lives. Getting to the right solution. Getting the product to market. We’re developing technology to support medics or patients in their homes.   

This one project we’re working on is to develop a propofol sensor to look at non-gaseous anaesthesia, and how well people are sedated in intensive care. We have another project where we’re working with a company whose vision is to 3D print a heart. So that we can better understand and measure the triggering of heart transplant rejection systems.  

Far-reaching impact   

For me, the most exciting thing is the fact that our work, the work we do with companies, has a direct impact in the real world. It can help people to stay out of hospital and in their own homes. That has a huge impact – not just on individuals but on our NHS, our economy. And as well as helping our students to learn and grow, we’re helping companies to accelerate, evolve and expand too. We have the best of all worlds here at IBST.  

Contribution to the UN 2030 sustainable development goals

UWE Bristol is proud to align our research to the UN sustainable development goals. The above research aligns with the following goals:

Let’s Talk Health and Care Podcast: Spotlighting People, Research and Real Impact

Author Anna Jones | Posted on

At UWE Bristol, our Let’s Talk Health and Care podcast series is growing into a powerful platform for conversation, connection and collaboration across the health and care sectors.

Led by Professor Marc Griffiths and Peter Brindle from the College of Health, Science and Society, each episode opens up a different topic with honesty, insight, and lived experience – showcasing brilliant people, breakthrough research and thoughtful reflection on real-world challenges.

We’re shining a spotlight on two episodes that deserve to be heard far and wide.

Episode 7: Preventing Child Sexual Abuse – A Public Health Approach

Featuring: Professor Kieran McCartan, Professor of Criminology at UWE Bristol

In what Marc and Peter describe as their most impactful episode to date, they sit down with Professor Kieran McCartan to discuss the urgent and often uncomfortable topic of child sexual abuse – and how we can apply public health strategies to prevent it.

The conversation covers prevalence, community-level action, and why talking about this issue openly is essential to creating safer environments for all children.

Listen now on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or SoundCloud

Trigger warning: This episode includes sensitive discussions around child sexual abuse. For support or further information, visit NSPCC.org.uk.

Professor Marc Griffiths, Peter Brindle and Professor Kieran McCartan standing next to one another

Coming Soon: Episode 8 – People, Prosthetics and Possibility

The next episode, out later this week, explores what happens when patient experience, engineering innovation, and collaborative problem-solving come together.

Featuring voices from across healthcare, prosthetics and mechatronics, the conversation highlights the power of a user-centred approach in solving real challenges in rehabilitation. This is a conversation that speaks directly to ICA, UWE’s values, and the future of integrated care.

Available soon on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and SoundCloud

A freight future that delivers for everyone

Author bethjohnson | Posted on

“I want a freight future that delivers for everyone, and is economically, environmentally and socially sustainable.”

Dr Daniela Paddeu, Associate Professor of Sustainable Freight Futures  

Working closely with academic, government and industry partners and stakeholders, my research explores how we can co-design a more innovative, sustainable freight future. A freight future that’s responsive to the needs and expectations of all partners and stakeholders.   

As the freight specialist for the Centre for Transport and Society (CTS) at UWE Bristol, I provide a strong link between research and practice. For example, I work on projects with strong policy impact, especially related to strategic thinking on decarbonisation and innovation plans for the future of transport. I’m looking at the environmental impacts of freight, as well as its social and economic impacts. I see things from both an industry and stakeholder perspective, as well as a public one. That’s important to me. It’s important to all our futures too.   

Balancing efficiency and sustainability

I work to better understand how we move freight, especially in busy urban areas. Because the way we buy things has changed a lot. We buy things and want them to be delivered to our doorstep the same day or the next day. That’s very convenient for us but what does it mean in terms of environmental and social impact? What is the bigger cost of this? Through my work, I want to better understand how to design appropriate policies and plans that address freight issues from both an efficiency and sustainability perspective.   

Another big question for me is how we build freight systems that are resilient to uncertainty. In the last few years, we have had very disruptive events. I want to try to help the industry and its many stakeholders to make better decisions today but also take into consideration the uncertainties we might be facing in the next 10 or 15 years.  

The freight future we want – and need   

What does the future of freight look like? It’s a good question but, in many ways, the wrong question. For me, it’s more about what is the future we want? Where do we want to get to? We all want a future that is more sustainable, more inclusive, more economically prosperous for everyone. That’s where I’m heading. That’s where I want my research work to take this very important industry.   

Contribution to the UN 2030 sustainable development goals

UWE Bristol is proud to align our research to the UN sustainable development goals. The above research aligns with the following goals:

  

Putting robots in real life

Author bethjohnson | Posted on

“I’m excited by putting robots into real life. Already we have seen some amazing results. With children, for example. Social care is also an area where we believe robotics can play an important role.”

Dr Marcela Munera, Associate Professor in Assistive Robotics 

I am a bioengineer by background. My PhD is in biomechanics – how the human body moves and performs. Then, seven or so years ago, I became interested in robotics and humanoids, and how they can help real people in their daily lives.   

Now my work is centred on developing robots and robotics that can help people with disabilities or any other kind of condition or frailty. We are looking at how we can use robotics for assistance and rehabilitation. To help people get back to doing what they used to be able to do.   

Simple beats complex every time   

I am passionate about making things simple. Not over-complicated or over-engineered. Because the simpler we can make these robotic applications, the faster we can get them into real world clinical use.   

That means we can start helping people sooner rather than later. That’s important to me. It’s not about doing things for us, as researchers or academics. It’s about helping individuals to do things for themselves. Say you are getting older, you’ve had a stroke, or you’ve lost a limb, how can robotics help you to regain and restore your independence and confidence?   

Your friendly robot reminder

We’re exploring many kinds of robotics too. For example, how we can use robotics in therapy, for a physical or mental condition. Yes, social robots. Humanoid robots that can give feedback. Say you’re doing rehab exercises, your robot can tell you if you’re doing them well or “Hey, you didn’t exercise today”. Things like that.    

That means AI and robotics that can take information from the environment around them and make decisions based on that information.   

Helping humans, not replacing them

I’m excited by putting robots into real life. Already we have seen some amazing results. With children, for example. Social care is also an area where we believe robotics can play an important role. We don’t have enough carers right now. And many of them are experiencing fatigue and burnout. Or they are moving to other, better paid sectors.   

We will never replace our carers with robots, but they could help them to do their job better and help people who need care to stay in their own homes for longer, and live more independent lives.   

This is why I have a user centred approach. We start with what the user needs, not what we want to do. We begin every project we do with something called contextual inquiry. That’s basically go and see. Find out. Discover. Only then can we develop the robotics to aid people. And that’s always our goal.  

Contribution to the UN 2030 sustainable development goals

UWE Bristol is proud to align our research to the UN sustainable development goals. The above research aligns with the following goals:

Bringing patients, partners and families together, so no one has to go through dementia alone

Author bethjohnson | Posted on

“No one has to go through dementia alone. Through Living Well with Dementia, we’re bringing patients, partners and families together, so that they can all live fuller, happier lives.”

Dr Emily Dodd, Senior Research Fellow   

Dr Natasha Woodstoke, Research Fellow     

Professor Richard Cheston, Professor of Dementia Research   

While we each have our own specialisms and our different areas of research, we came together through LivDem, which stands for Living Well with Dementia.   

Through LivDem, we want to make sure that people can access and take up the services and support that they – and their partners and families – need.   

Caring and sharing

Rightly, there’s a lot of focus on people getting an early dementia diagnosis. It’s important, so a lot of services are set up around that. But actually, that time after you’re diagnosed can be really scary, upsetting and lonely.

We believe it’s important for people living with dementia to come together and talk. Sharing what it’s like to live with dementia helps people to adjust. By helping people to feel more comfortable having open conversations about this dreadful illness we can challenge the stigma that surrounds it.  Our LivDem group intervention offers this. 

We have also been developing a new LivDem Families intervention. The aim is to help couples and families to be able to talk together about how the illness is affecting them. This helps them to have the best life that they can, together after a diagnosis. 

Reaching everyone affected 

As well as the group sessions themselves, we’re interested in how LivDem is delivered. Historically, it’s been delivered within the NHS by NHS professionals. But we’re looking at how it can be adapted so that, for example, it could be run by voluntary or community organisations. We believe that this would improve access. Because we know that there are certain groups of people that are more likely to engage and take up services that are provided by these types of organisations.   
  
We’re also taking LivDem global. We’ve had a lot of interest from overseas, including Italy, Ireland and Japan. It’s quite exciting to be doing something that people seem to get a lot out of. A lot of the feedback is really encouraging.   

Opening up the conversation   

We’re all very proud that we’re changing real lives through LivDem. We had an email from one of the course facilitators the other day. He was so pleased with how LivDem had facilitated some really good conversation with the people in the room. They were really opening up. He said there was laughter, there were tears. And he finished the email by saying how we’ve created something really special. For the three of us, it really doesn’t get better than that. Knowing that LivDem is making a genuine difference to real lives.   

Contribution to the UN 2030 sustainable development goals

UWE Bristol is proud to align our research to the UN sustainable development goals. The above research aligns with the following goals:

Health research for the benefit of as many people as possible

Author bethjohnson | Posted on

“We want to make a positive difference that matters. We’re all about health research that can be actively put into practice for the benefit of as many people as possible.”

Fiona Cramp, Director of the Centre for Health and Clinical Research, and Professor of Long Term Conditions  

Here in the Centre for Health and Clinical Research, we carry out world-class research in neurology and musculoskeletal management, emergency care, supportive and palliative care, and end-of-life care. As a centre, we have cross-cutting themes of Children, Young People and Families, as well as Knowledge Mobilisation  and Evaluation.   

In everything we do, in all our health research activities, we embed patient and public involvement. Simply because the work we do is to help them. We’re here to improve real lives, to improve people’s quality of life.   

Quality of living   

My personal research is in physical activity and the role it can play in helping people with long term conditions. For example, we know that if people can keep physically active, it can help with management of a range of symptoms such as pain and fatigue. And the better that individuals can manage their symptoms, the better their quality of life, particularly for those who are living with long-term conditions.   

Our research is about actually making a difference; doing research that can be actively put into practice.   

Addressing health inequalities   

Right from the word go, when we design any research, we’re thinking about how it will make a difference. Does it have the potential to improve the care of people? Can it help people to better help themselves in relation to their specific health condition?   

As a centre, we’re looking closely at health inequalities too. There’s lots of things we know that work when it comes to helping people manage their own conditions. But we need to do more to make sure that this knowledge, this awareness, is accessible to everybody. Because right now, it isn’t.   

Maybe because you can’t access a physical activity programme because you’re from an ethnic minority background where women wouldn’t traditionally participate in physical activity alongside men. Or maybe it’s because you’re from a socioeconomically deprived background where you maybe don’t have the technology that you need to help you.  Whatever the reason it’s important that we design interventions that meet people’s needs. 

Access for all   

For me, it’s vital that we focus our research efforts on making sure that whatever we’re developing is accessible to everybody – or, at the very least, that it can be adapted to benefit as many people as possible.   

Contribution to the UN 2030 sustainable development goals

UWE Bristol is proud to align our research to the UN sustainable development goals. The above research aligns with the following goals:

We’re on a mission to shatter appearance ideals and stereotypes so young people are not held back by low body confidence

Author bethjohnson | Posted on

“As leaders in the psychology of appearance and body image research, we’re on a mission to shatter appearance ideals and stereotypes so young people are not held back by low body confidence.”

Dr Heidi Williamson, Associate Professor  

Dr Phillippa Diedrichs, Professor of Psychology   

We’ve both been at the Centre for Appearance Research (CAR) for over a decade. Together, we co-lead a team of researchers, focusing on the co-creation and testing of body image tools for young people. 

We work alongside the Dove Self-Esteem Project, which is the community impact and social purpose programme for Unilever’s largest brand, Dove.  

Since 2012, we’ve developed and tested tools, policies and strategies that have reached over 100 million young people around the world with partners at UNICEF, Nike, and the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts.

Low body confidence

The majority of young people do not have body confidence. It affects all genders and cultures, with girls, gender diverse people and LGBTIA+ communities being disproportionality affected. Appearance-based stereotypes in relation to skin colour, body size, aging, physical disabilities are also widely prevalent. This has wide-ranging impacts for people’s health and  well-being. For example, 8 in 10 girls opt out of important life activities, like putting their hand up in the classroom, going to the doctor, trying out for a team or club, due to low body confidence.  

See the impact, feel the impact    

For several decades, researchers have been developing programmes to improve body confidence among young people. However, we’ve really struggled to get effective evidence-based interventions out to lots of people in a sustainable way due to a lack of resource and expertise in marketing.  

When we started working with Dove, our goal was to harness the reach and popularity of their brand and work together to deliver evidence-based body confidence education on a global scale.  

Creativity you can measure

We’re now 10 years into our partnership. Over those 10 years we’ve developed more than 20 different body confidence tools. Including the Girls Room, a five-part film series crafted by Emmy Award-winning producer and writer Lena Waithe, Dove, the Centre for Appearance Research and Attn:. 

We’ve also worked with UNICEF, the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts, Cartoon Network and a range of creative and tech agencies to co-create animations, e-books, school lessons, digital games, social media marketing campaigns, and chatbots. Our most recent project included a world-first collaboration between Nike and Dove to deliver body confidence education to coaches in sporting settings.  

But it’s not just about the creative concepts and wide-reaching platforms we’re using to reach young girls. We rigorously evaluate everything we do through randomised control trials and qualitative research, so that we can be sure of the impact that the these tools are having on young people’s well-being.

Positively improving real lives, over 100 million and counting 

  We’re very proud of our work with Dove. Dove is now the world’s largest provider of evidence-based self-esteem education and the tools we’ve created together have reached over 100 million young people around the world.

We’re always exploring new ways to reach more young people and look forward to continuing our partnership together.

Contribution to the UN 2030 sustainable development goals

UWE Bristol is proud to align our research to the UN sustainable development goals. The above research aligns with the following goals:

Benefiting the collective, not just the individual

Author bethjohnson | Posted on

“For community psychologists, our work should benefit the collective, not just the individual. So we’re always looking to make broader changes at community and structural levels to have the greatest impact on society.”

Dr Miles Thompson, Associate Professor in Psychology, Lead of the Psychological Sciences Research Group  

By background, I’m a clinical psychologist, with expertise in chronic pain. I also lead the Psychological Sciences Research Group (PSRG) here at UWE Bristol.  

Through our applied research, PSRG has a positive influence on people and places – at home, in the workplace, and in the wider social environment. We do this through our three themes.

Three in one: PSRG

Firstly, there’s ACN, which is Applied Cognition and Neuroscience. Here, we’re interested in the workings of the mind and brain, but in a very applied way. Understanding what’s going on internally, and how we can use that knowledge to make people’s lives better. 

Next up, is OPE, Optimising Performance and Engagement. Here, we have our sport, exercise and work psychologists. They’re working with top tier businesses, elite athletes and sports teams, looking at everything from athlete wellbeing, to ageism in the workplace, to career development of expatriates and high-skilled immigrants. It is anything but traditional research here. It’s applied all the way.  

Finally, there’s PPH – Promoting Psychological Health. This is home for many of our health and counselling psychologists. There’s obviously key elements of traditional psychology here, where we’re helping individuals to make a difference to their own lives.  

But also, we think more broadly too. More critically. Exploring big themes like capitalism, inequality, poverty, social justice. How those forces impact individuals and communities. And this is the area that really interests me.  

Community psychology and social change 

So, I research within an area called community psychology. And community psychology kind of does what it says on the tin. Instead of just focusing on the individual, we’re also interested in the wider structures that impact an individual’s life. Like the big themes I mentioned above. Because if you’re not actually influencing things at a community or societal level, then you potentially just end up with more and more people coming to see you individually. And you don’t actually get to make those individuals better, you just try and help them cope with bad situations. 

Context is everything 

I think one of the great things about psychology at UWE Bristol is that we have a lot of people who love psychology, who also love working in more applied, more broad and more critical ways. For some, elsewhere, psychology can be purely about the individual. Working with individuals in isolation. But it is important to see individuals in context. Which is what lots of us do here. 

All our work is applied. We are working to make real differences in the real world. In health, in workplaces, in sports teams and in the community. For me, what we do has to benefit the collective. That means looking to make broader changes at community and structural levels. Because that’s how we’re going to make the biggest difference. 

Contribution to the UN 2030 sustainable development goals

UWE Bristol is proud to align our research to the UN sustainable development goals. The above research aligns with the following goals:

Giving nurses and midwives the practical genomics knowledge they need to positively impact patient care

Author bethjohnson | Posted on

Professor Aniko Varadi, Director for the Centre for Research in Biosciences

I lead the Generation Genome education team here at UWE Bristol. But my interest in genomics education goes back to 2012, to the launch of the 100,000 Genomes Project.   

The 100,000 Genomes Project was an English initiative to sequence and study the role our genes play in health and disease. Even now, even when you see how far the science has come, there is still untapped potential in genomics.

For example, if you know the changes in the DNA sequence in a cancer, say breast cancer, you can identify its subtype. You can then look at how that subtype responds to different drugs. And, providing the drugs exist, you can select the best possible drug for an individual patient.  

Mainstreaming genomics  

But genomics isn’t just about identifying treatment options; you can predict what’s going to happen in a family too. If one family member has, for example, colorectal cancer, and it turns out to be an inherited form, then we can do surveillance for the family members who have the same DNA variants.

But all this depends on our NHS professionals having the genomics knowledge in the first place. At the moment, we have a knowledge gap; our nurses and midwives don’t have genomics training. If they have training, when they gain genomics knowledge, they can use it to make a real difference to patients.  

This is what excites us. Upskilling our health professionals with the genomic know-how they need to positively impact patient health.

Workforce training  for our healthcare professionals 

So, in collaboration with NHS England, Macmillan Cancer Support, the British Heart Foundation (BHF), Genomics England and the South West Genomic Laboratory Hub, we have created a competency framework for healthcare practitioners.  

Based on this competency framework, we have developed a totally new education programme. It’s the only fully validated PgCert in Genomics for nurses, midwifes and allied health professionals in England – and UWE Bristol is currently the only HE provider of genomic CPD aimed specifically for nurses and fully funded by NHS England. 

Better access to genomics for more patients  

For all of us in the team, it’s about practically improving the knowledge of frontline NHS professionals. Helping them so they help more patients. As a result of training, many more patients are being tested. I’ll give you a specific example. Lynch Syndrome (LS) is a condition that can run in families and can increase the risk of developing some cancers. So, it’s an inherited type. In one region one of our course participants led an LS clinic. In the past in that region 35-40% patients with LS were missed but with this new clinic in place all those eligible for LS genomic testing were referred for testing. So, we know that what we are doing has a huge impact. For patients, for services, for our nurses. 

Changing lives in many ways  

We know we have changed lives. And, at a time when the NHS is so strapped for cash, if you can provide a better test quicker, then surely that’s only a good thing. For everyone.  

So far, we’ve educated over 200 nurses, midwives, allied healthcare professionals, physios, even some GPs. My ambition is to increase that number tenfold. That’s the ambition – and we always have very big ambitions here. 

Contribution to the UN 2030 sustainable development goals

UWE Bristol is proud to align our research to the UN sustainable development goals. The above research aligns with the following goals:

UWE researchers launch futuristic hydroponics installation at Triennale di Milano

Author Anna Jones | Posted on

SPIKA challenges inequality and urban food futures through microbial innovation.

UWE has been a key part of a development that has taken centre stage at one of the world’s biggest design exhibitions – the Triennale di Milano – with a striking new installation exploring nature, inequality and the future of food.

Launched on 13 May, SPIKA is part of the 24th International Exhibition at the Triennale di Milano. The installation features a hydroponic tower powered by microbial fuel cells – a sustainable system developed at UWE Bristol with Dr Mukesh Sharma and Prof Neil Willey. It invites audiences to consider our relationship with nature and how we might produce nutritious food in future urban settings.

Watch the SPIKA build come to life and hear from the researchers involved:
Video: Building SPIKA

SPIKA is an output of the Microbial Hydroponics (Mi-Hy) project – a €6.5 million EU/UKRI-funded effort to create sustainable urban hydroponic systems. The team at UWE is working in partnership with KU Leuven, University of Southampton, CSIC Madrid, University of Novi Sad, Biofaction Vienna and SONY Computer Science Labs Paris.

Innovation at UWE: The MI-Hy System

The Mi-Hy system – short for Microbial Hydroponics – is being developed in the Envirotron at UWE Bristol, a specialist facility for environmental and agricultural innovation. It reintroduces beneficial microbes into hydroponic systems and uses smart technology to manage these microbial communities.

Why? Because microbes are key to turning common urban waste streams into a nutrient source for food production. This makes Mi-Hy a bold response to urban sustainability, food security, and climate change – using waste to grow nutritious crops, closer to where people live.

Mi-Hy is part of the European Innovation Commission’s CO₂ and Nitrogen Valorisation Portfolio – a €30 million programme aimed at reducing emissions and creating circular solutions across Europe. The system will be demonstrated at key events and forums across the continent over the next two years.

See SPIKA in action

SPIKA is on display at the Triennale di Milano until November 2025

sage growing in the hydroponic tower powered by microbial fuel cells

SPIKA and Mi-Hy are just one part of a bigger picture – showing how UWE researchers are using science, design and collaboration to shape sustainable futures.

Visit the live exhibit website to explore the exhibit in real-time

You can see updates by following on Instagram: @spika.mi_hy, @triennale

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