We are pleased to share below the details of the two projects that were successful in securing seedcorn funding for the spring/summer 2024 period.

Project Title: From Pen to Print: Tracing the Evolution of Poverty Narratives in The Times Over Centuries 

Principle Investigator: Dr. Ran Tao, Lecturer in Finance, Faculty of Social Sciences and Law, University of Bristol

Co-Investigator: Dr. Jin Zheng, Lecturer in Data Science, Faculty of Engineering, University of Bristol

Co-Investigator: Professor Adrian Bell, Chair in the History of Finance, Faculty of Prosperity and Resilience, University of Reading 

Abstract:  Poverty has long been reckoned as one of the most important social and public issues. We propose to trace the evolution of poverty narratives in a longstanding newspaper publication - The Times from 1785 to 2012, using the University Newspaper Archive (available at https://go-gale-com.bris.idm.oclc.org/ps/start.do?p=TTDA&u=univbri). Conducting such a long-run analysis on media data yields several advantages:  

1. The long sample period can cover many different major events over time, such as the Industrial Revolution, the Great Depression, post-war periods, and the recent global Financial Crisis, each of which may have influenced the narrative in different ways. 
2. The political climate can greatly influence how poverty is discussed in the media. Different governments and political ideologies concerning poverty are likely to be reflected in the newspapers. 

 Ultimately, the study aims to provide a deeper understanding of the role of media in shaping and reflecting the public dialogue around poverty. We learn from history and yield any policy implication for future.  

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Project Title: Net Zero, Work, Economic Change, Resilience, Vulnerability, Economic Geography 

Principle Investigator:  Dr Ed Atkins, Senior Lecturer, Human Geography, Science and Engineering, University of Bristol

Co-Investigator:  Dr Sean Fox, Associate Professor in Global Development, Science and Engineering, University of Bristol

Co-Investigator: Dr Caitlin Robinson, Senior Research Fellow, Science and Engineering, University of Bristol

Co-Investigator: Professor Martin Parker, Professor of Organisation Studies, Social Sciences and Law, University of Bristol

Abstract: Achieving net-zero will have important consequences for social justice and poverty. It requires extensive economic changes in the world of work for many. Some sectors will pivot to new activities to meet the demands of the net zero transition. Others will decline entirely as technologies become redundant and others emerge. An estimated 7% of the UK workforce will witness these changes (approximately 2.2 million people), but the impacts will not be evenly distributed nationally. 

In many places in the UK, local economies revolve around industries that will be affected by climate policies. Some areas where industries face phase-down (i.e., oil and gas) are likely to lose jobs; others may be able pivot to new processes and products (i.e., car manufacturing). Individual and households will feel these impacts, particularly in local and regional labour markets. There will be winners and losers. 

Understanding the geography of economic vulnerability and resilience—where the winners and losers are likely to be—is essential to develop place-based policies to attenuate the potentially regressive effects of the UKs net zero transition.  

We will address this need by developing a net-zero vulnerability index (NZVI) to reveal the people and places that are most at risk of experiencing negative economic shocks in the transition to net-zero. Building on recent scholarship exploring these challenges at national scale, our research will reveal local and regional vulnerabilities linked to geographies of production, inequality, poverty, and social injustice.