Dear all,

As I draft this text the sun is out – finally. Semester one marking is mostly complete and our students are back in class. It is not yet spring but the days are getting brighter and I feel we are becoming a bit more inspired. I do hope that we feel this across our Faculty and that we all have a continued wonderful second semester.

In the hope that this may inspire us further, I want to highlight work we are doing in SEED focused on sustainability and social responsibility.

This year SEED is establishing a new entity called Sustainability@SEED. This is led by Heather Alberro, a Lecturer in sustainability in the Global Development Institute (GDI). Research, scholarship and teaching across the five departments in SEED includes work on the social, economic and environmental impacts of climate and eco-system changes. However, nowhere are these different impacts considered as a whole. Sustainability@SEED is our way to develop a more holistic view on the impact of climate and eco-system change. It is a unique interdisciplinary effort; something we can do better when working together as a School.

Sustainability@SEED will benefit all our departments in SEED, but we also expect that it may benefit the Faculty and the broader University. As a first visible contribution, Sustainability@SEED is organising a two-day Getting Serious about Sustainability symposium on Thursday, 22 and Friday, 23 May 2025.

The call for submissions has passed, but there is still an opportunity to participate in the sustainability showcase poster exhibition (please contact Heather by email on heather.alberro@manchester.ac.uk). The exhibition will run on both days during lunch and in between sessions. More importantly, everyone is welcome to attend – symposium registration will open soon.

We are proud, also, of our SEED Change-makers initiative, supporting our students to make a difference. The scheme launched in September 2024 and is accredited for both Step Up and Lead and Champions for Change with Stellify. As SEED Change-makers, students are responsible for planning and organising social responsibility activities for their peers throughout the academic year. This could involve volunteering opportunities, campaigning activities or themed seminars and events. Last week, some of our Change-makers hosted a screening of aid and development documentary ‘We Don’t Do Charity’ with One World Together and Republica Media which saw students and staff alike engaging in valuable discussions about the landscape of charity.

I want to recognise the work we are doing in SEED as part of the Faculty’s Teaching Sustainability project. In the first year of this project, 2023/24, our focus was on programmes and course units with no, or very few, students enrolled. We were able to reduce dramatically the number of programmes and course units that we offer. This has stream-lined the management of teaching and learning and it ensures that cohort sizes are sufficient to offer a great student experience across the School.

This year we are working on the second phase of the project. The focus now is on assessing the future viability of all our programmes. We want to invest in programmes that respond to student needs and demand. We want to be sure that the programmes and course units are up-to-date in a rapidly changing higher education environment. We expect that this work, initiated by the Teaching Sustainability project, will encourage a culture of continual and agile renewal of our programmes.

In SEED we are excited to see a range of investments in our buildings. A cheerful new space for students and staff is currently being developed in the C Block of the Ellen Wilkinson Building, home to the Manchester Institute of Education.

Looking ahead, significant maintenance is planned for the Humanities Bridgford Street building, used by the departments of Planning and Environmental Management, and Architecture, but shared also with the School of Social Sciences. Preparation for this project is ongoing, with many elements to carefully consider.

And we are refurbishing the Rutherford Building, which will become the new home for Geography. The work on our buildings will improve energy efficiency and marks a significant move towards more flexible working spaces. Yes, sustainability is central to all that we do.

In the midst of all these positive developments, SEED is undergoing some changes to its leadership. On behalf of everyone in the School, and from everyone in the Faculty of Humanities, a special thank-you to Kay Hodgson. Kay has been our Director of School Operations for several years and is now moving to the School of Engineering.

We are fortunate to have David Pattwell as our new Director of School Operations. David has joined us from his previous role as Director of School Operations at the School of Medical Sciences in FBMH. Please join me in welcoming David to the Faculty.

In addition, as many of you will know I am the interim Head of SEED. I am pleased with the announcement that Professor Khalid Nadvi, from the Global Development Institute, will be our new and permanent Head of School from 1 August, 2025. Congratulations, Khalid.

Finally, if you want to learn more about our School, please sign up to attend our upcoming inaugural lectures – on Wednesday, 5 March, 4.30-6.30pm – to hear from and celebrate with Gareth Clay, Professor of Geography, and Tanja Bastia, Professor of Migration and Development.

Best wishes,

Juup