Academic Lead – Lenni Koh  (Sheffield)
The increase in concern about climate change amongst the general public and shifts in policy and regulations towards reducing resource consumption together result in an imperative for businesses to prepare for the consequences of climate change and move towards a lower carbon future. The existing economic challenges are magnified through the lens of the direct impacts of increasing storminess, sea level rise and resource shortages on the profitability of businesses which demand early adaptation if any organisation is to weather the changes and capitalise on the resulting opportunities. Many larger businesses are already addressing the issues but Small and Medium sizes Enterprises (SMEs) are generally slower to embrace change. There is therefore a need for research that looks holistically at the obstruction to adaptation throughout supply chains and to design effective strategies to overcome them. This is an interdisciplinary project with different aspects of business being tackled by teams for the four Universities. It will complement work being carried out within the Centre for Low Carbon Futures (CLCF) and pull together the Adaptation and Resilience theme (4 strands), Supply Chain Strand and Biorenewable Strand. Professor Lynne Frostick (adaptation and resilience) and Professor Lenny Koh (carbon management) are theme leaders within CLCF and we propose this network collaboratively and will work collaboratively to ensure that the network is a success.