Green Research in Education Group (GRiEG)

The Green Research in Education Group (GRiEG) is a research and scholarship group developing educational research and practice for a globally sustainable future.

The current agenda for the work of this group consists of the following:

  • The provision and implementation of an educational research agenda for every R&D project on sustainability from the Manchester Institute of Education, The University of Manchester and beyond in the UK, EU and internationally. The model for this last year was the University's proposal for a major 'Soils' project to Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), which was unfortunately unfunded. Research Question: 'How does/can the success/impact of this sustainability project depend on/contribute to educating the public, from school children/students and their communities to politicians and governments?'
  • The development of educationally focused research projects such as those funded by the Economic and Social Research Council North West (ESRC-NW) PGR scholars researching transformative activism (the case of Fridays for the future) and learning communities (refugee subaltern women’s groups in Manchester). These two scholars won competitive PGR 1+3 bids to ESRC-NW and we aim to build on this with projects large and small
  • In particular, we aim to develop global understanding of the planet-wide crises (climate emergency, pandemics/biodiversity, inequality and decolonisation) through research projects, including one that focuses on our own internationalisation of the MA (in education for sustainability) that will implement dual distance/in-person students studying their local contexts of transformations across North and South global contexts.
  • Working locally to inform the University's sustainability efforts, especially currently our policy and practice regarding travel/aviation in a world ‘returning to normal’ unsustainable behaviours and policies.
  • Equality and inequality are at the heart of all these works and proposals
  • Finally, we aim to develop capacity through all our scholarship and teaching, including the MA but also in all our educational programmes, including those we are engaged with across the School of Environment, Education and Development, Faculty of Humanities, and Faculty of Science and Engineering. Next year we plan a seminar series.

We currently meet fortnightly and plan activities including public seminars involving scholars and activists, academics and students in the movements to tackle the global challenges.

In conclusion, our understanding of sustainability involves a central role for education in almost all effective research and development projects. Humanity has the technical tools to survive, but educated decisions and behaviours are less certain – this is our raison d’etre as educators and education researchers. 

For more information please contact Julian Williams (currently convenor of GRiEG).