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School of Environment, Education and Development

Message from Emma Shuttleworth, SEED Director of Social Responsibility

02 Nov 2026

Emma shares an update on the launch of the student SEED Changemakers activity, celebrates staff achievements and updates on ways to get involved in SEED social responsibility

SEED changemakers

I can’t believe I’ve been in post as Director of Social Responsibility for nearly three months already! Huge thanks to my predecessor, Niki Banks, for such a smooth handover and to Tom Gillespie, (SEED Associate Director for Social Responsibility, Heather Albero, SEED Lead for Environmental Sustainability, and the Social Responsibility Champions for welcoming me to the team. I’m looking forward to working with colleagues and students to build on the excellent work already taking place across the School and to explore how we can continue to strengthen our contribution to social responsibility (SR). 

SR is incredibly important to me as it means we are putting our knowledge, expertise and values to work to make a positive difference. As a School bringing together environment, education and development, SEED is uniquely placed to address some of the most pressing challenges facing society. Our research, teaching and partnerships ensure that the difference we make extends beyond the University and into the places, communities and organisations with which we work.  

I plan to build on SEED’s existing strengths, making our SR work more connected, visible and deeply embedded in the life of the School. This is not about starting from scratch or adding another layer to our existing activities, but rather recognising what colleagues and students are already achieving, creating opportunities to learn from one another, and making it easier for good ideas to develop and flourish. 

Reasons to celebrate 

On that note, our student SEED Changemakers are off to a roaring start for this academic year. For those of you new to SEED, the SEED Changemakers programme is a growing student-led initiative that’s empowering undergraduates and postgraduates to create meaningful change within the University, in the local community, and around the world.  

Tom Gillespie has been coordinating events for students to learn more about becoming a 'Changemaker' and start to develop ideas for projects centred around different aspect of SR. A wide variety of projects are emerging already, covering everything from engaging with local schools, reducing food and clothing waste to making cycling safer.  

The Changemakers programme is a fantastic opportunity for students to work on something that matters to them away from their studies and meet likeminded folks from across the School. We’ll be sharing updates on our Changemakers across the academic year but in the meantime please take some time to learn about the programme, encourage students to get involved, and get in touch if you’d like to support student activities.  

There’s reasons to celebrate our staff too this month - I’d like to echo Khalid’s congratulations to Niki Banks and the One World Together team for their success at the University’s recent inaugural Partnership Excellence Awards and to the MSc Nature Recovery, Restoration and Rewilding team for their success at the Humanities Outstanding Staff Awards. These are not only fantastic achievements for all involved, but also emblematic of the positive and transformative change we are making with the communities and students that we work with.   

Looking ahead 

This idea of transformative change should also be reflected in our everyday decisions, working practices and how relate to each other. There’s a number of ways we’re taking this forward for SEED staff, supported by what we’ve learnt from the Your Voice Matters survey.  

I’ll be picking up the SEED Women Supporting Women initiative from Pam Qualter and will be revisiting our provision of cross-department mentoring. Meanwhile, in the environmental sustainability space, Heather is doing great work producing a 2-page primer on how we can collectively reduce SEED’s ecological footprint and will soon be hosting our annual Sustainability@SEED Meet & Greet on Wednesday, 18 November (check your Outlook calendars for the invite) where staff and students can find out about our environmental sustainability priorities, network and explore collaborative opportunities.  

Get involved 

There are a number opportunities for you to get involved in how we shape SEED SR initiatives;

  • Help us shape our priorities through the SEED Social Responsibility Committee. We'll be putting a call out for SR theme leads later this semester.
  • Bring your own SR ideas to life through our Social Responsibility Funding for SEED staff and PGT students. Applications later in November.
  • Can't wait for SEED SR funding? Applications are open for the Faculty's Social Responsibility in the Curriculum fund. 

All the best for the year ahead. 

Emma