Almost all of the research in this UoA is officially classified as world-leading or internationally excellent in terms of originality, significance and rigour.
The following academic units form the submission to UoA 17b:
CURDS research to advance spatial-analysis methodology has re-defined Travel-to-Work Areas (TTWAs) – the only official boundaries defined by academics – producing three distinct strands of impact.
Direct use TTWAs are widely used by the UK government and others because they accurately map economic geography: they have been used to select areas for major funding support
As 'model' TTWA definitions are cited as 'bench-mark' functional economic area boundaries in the guidance for implementing UK policies such as that on Local Economic Partnerships (LEPs)
International use Several countries have adapted the TTWA methodology to define functional areas for their official statistics
Goddard's research in the Centre for Urban and Regional Development Studies (CURDS) has led European policy makers to re-design the regulations and conditionalities for European Structural funding to give greater prominence to the contribution that universities can make to their regions and the delivery of the Europe 2020 agenda of 'smart, sustainable and inclusive growth'
This change is evidenced by the commissioning of new European Commission guidance to regional and national authorities responsible for the new 'smart specialisation' focus within these funds, and the participation of 12 university/regional partnerships across Europe in OECD reviews of universities and city and regional development.
This work helps UK and Ireland fulfil their statutory duties to assess and improve the state of freshwater ecosystems. EU legislation requires all water bodies to be managed sustainably to achieve a state close to that of the water body in its natural state.
Work at Newcastle has pioneered the use of diatoms (microscopic algae) in lakes and rivers to describe the ecological characteristics of this natural state and developed models and software that allow deviation from this state to be assessed. The work is used by all water agencies in the UK and Republic of Ireland to fulfil their statutory requirements and has led to new environmental standards that indicate that over 40% of the total length of UK rivers is at risk from elevated phosphorus concentrations.
Research on the livelihoods of post-trafficked women in Nepal, co-produced with the women themselves, has produced three significant impacts by:
informing and influencing policy debate and formation within Nepali government organisations and NGOs, and with international donors and agencies working in the region, on post-trafficking development challenges
building capacity amongst post-trafficked women to enhance their self-advocacy and influence as they secure their livelihoods and claim citizenship rights in Nepal
raising public awareness and changing conventional wisdom about post-trafficking livelihoods, locally and internationally, enabling women and their advocates to challenge their exclusion