The Climate Change Committee's third Risk Assessment (CCRA3) set out a comprehensive analysis of climate-related risks. In response, UK Government published the Third National Adaptation Programme (NAP3). However, there is a large gap between what we need to be doing to protect the wellbeing of the environment, people and the economy in the UK and what we are doing. Further, we should be looking to leverage the co-benefits of action to improve wellbeing outcomes through adaptation. The Maximising UK adaptation to climate change hub (the Hub) will help catalyse existing knowledge, especially that existing in the Devolved Administrations, to advance progress in the UK towards the Government's adaptation programme. The Hub links UK national and regional adaptation networks and knowledge exchange organisations with multidisciplinary researcher expertise across eight HEIs, to produce a UK-wide research network on adaptation, and to deliver rapid policy- and practitioner-responsive research. This powerful new science-policy mechanism will be a new national capability for an effective and transformational programme of adaptation. Key to the Hub is leveraging the activities, networks and knowledge of existing adaptation partnerships and knowledge exchange organisations who are already doing the work. These organisations identified five priorities, based on their current bottlenecks and frustrations: Assess and address barriers to awareness and engagement with adaptation; Explore the efficacy of Welsh and Scottish approaches to wellbeing and future generations for adaptation for UK wide justice-oriented approaches; Increase understanding of system complexity by establishing an inter-sectoral community of practice; Address aspects of policy, legislation and regulation that hold back the adaptation vision proposed in the NAP; Enhance the accessibility and understanding of climate model results for decision-makers. Working in teams of universities and knowledge exchange organisations throughout the UK will carry out activities that can help increase levels of capacity and knowledge to address these challenges. We will: Carry out training and capacity building on adaptation as the means to network and bring different communities of practice together; Generate more useful data by integrating different risk and exposure models together, and working with end users to provide the data they need; Funding collaborations of researchers and practitioners to trial transformational adaptation in order to collect data on what works; Address policy challenges in real-time, supporting UK governments to accelerate adaptation; Bring together adaptation researchers who will be funded under the same research programme to improve how we do, and communicate, adaptation research. Research related activities will involve: i) place-based research in each of the Hub's spokes (England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales); ii) the delivery of a programme of grants, across the sector, through a Flexible Fund, encouraging academic and practitioner collaboration on climate adaptation at local and national scale, and focusing on implementation projects to generate insight into what works, and projects that analyse, so as to overcome, institutional and policy barriers to action; and iii) coordination with UKRI's wider transformative adaptation programme, to synthesise findings from research and maximise their translation into actionable insights. At the end of the three years, we will have produced integrated sectoral pathways to a well-adapted UK, a better understanding of the policy landscape and new advisory mechanisms to support policymakers, accelerated action on adaptation by starting projects that were in the pipeline, and better ways of embedding vulnerability and justice-oriented approaches into adaptation priorities.

HealthMod is a large research programme that brings together scientists, policymakers, and charities interested in using economic policies to improve people's health. We particularly want to improve the health of people who experience disadvantage or discrimination in their lives, as they tend to spend much more of their lives in poor health and also die younger, and the situation has got worse over the past decade. Local and national governments make decisions on various economic policies, such as changes to taxes, welfare, job creation, and social housing. These policies have long-term effects on people's health, as they influence important aspects of healthy living, like having enough money, good work, decent housing, safe neighbourhoods, and supportive communities. In HealthMod, we want to help policymakers, charity organisations and communities themselves understand how these policies affect people differently, based on characteristics like gender, income, and where they live. Our research would show whether planned new policies are likely to support long and healthy lives for everyone, or whether they would make inequalities worse. Our programme has three work areas: Computer modelling for Health: We will develop computer models to show how different kinds of policies might affect the economic situation and long-term health of each person in Britain. These models help policymakers understand the impact of policies on people in their area, especially whether they narrow or widen unfair health inequalities, so they can make informed decisions. All models we develop will be freely available for researchers and policymakers to use. Policy and Advocacy Engagement: Government organisations and charities seeking to promote healthier policy decisions are partners in our programme. Together we will decide on the most urgent questions that our modelling can help answer. This will ensure that the models we build can inform real decisions. We will create websites, videos, and training courses to explain how our models work and how to use them effectively. Citizen's Engagement and Democratisation of Modelling: We believe it is vital to involve people who may be affected by economic policies. We will host workshops where individuals experiencing issues such as poverty or poor health can share their thoughts and experiences. These insights will shape our models, making them more relevant and inclusive. We will also work with a broader group of citizens to understand which policy outcomes are most important for society. Our goal is to create high-quality, trustworthy computer models that incorporate policymaker and community perspectives. This research will guide the best way to design, explain and use computer modelling for policy decisions that seek to improve health and reduce health inequalities.

This 5-month project will establish a West Midlands Local Policy Innovation Partnership (WM LPIP). This will involve connecting local policy and research partners across the region to deliver a programme of activity that supports inclusive and sustainable local growth. We will achieve this through the provision of research, evidence, data and expertise to take advantage of opportunities and to find place-based solutions to challenges that matter to local people and communities. Our emphasis in the Phase 1 period which is the subject of this application is on building, strengthening and diversifying partnerships between research organisations and local stakeholders in the West Midlands to identify local priorities and formulate a plan for addressing them in the coming years in the WM LPIP Phase 2 programme. Insights and solutions will be developed within and across policy domains relating to economy (inclusive and sustainable local economic performance, innovation, skills), community (communities in their places, felt experiences and pride in place, cultural recovery) and environment (living and working sustainably in a greener economy) themes. Our ambition is to make inroads towards tackling 'wicked problems' across geographical scales (hyper-local, local, regional, national) that are challenging to address because of their complex and interconnected nature, as well as more straightforward challenges where the prospects for people and places can be improved more quickly. To achieve this, we will map relevant local and national administrative data to outline data sources that are available for analysis and insights into thematic priorities. We will also undertake a rapid evidence review of the academic and grey literature on the challenges relating to achieving inclusive and sustainable economic growth, with a particular emphasis on place. We will also draw on academic and policy literature and strategies relating to circumstances and activities in the different sub-regions in the West Midlands. Alongside this we will design and deliver a series of place-based stakeholder and community workshops across the West Midlands. Each stakeholder workshop will bring together local stakeholders from across the public, private and third sectors to discuss key challenges and priorities for the local area and the region, with local universities drawing on their networks to enable this. A public engagement event will follow to help us to further understand the needs of local communities and to receive feedback on the priorities identified in the place-based workshops. In this way priority areas of focus will be established in consultation with local stakeholders and communities and we will develop a platform for sustained engagement with them. Together the place-based and policy prioritisation workshops will inform the design of our model and work programme for Phase 2 of the WM LPIP.

The Centre for Doctoral Training in Diversity in Data Visualization (DIVERSE CDT) offers an innovative and ambitious programme that will deliver cohort-based training to 60 PhD students who will become critical, multidisciplinary leaders at the forefront of data visualization research and practice. Complex quantitative and qualitative data lie at the heart of every organisation. Data visualization is increasingly central to the analysis and communication of these data and to decision making across organisations. It opens up new ways of understanding problems, reveals new questions, highlights new possibilities and allows data to be understood by new audiences. But it requires new knowledge, diverse perspectives and advanced expertise and visualization experts are in short supply and lack diversity. DIVERSE CDT will deliver high-quality doctoral training through four key innovations that are designed to increase the diversity of researchers involved in and approaches taken by data visualization: 1) Connected Components: students undertake and relate a series of applied studies with industrial and academic partners through a structured internship programme and an international exchange programme. 2) Interactive Documentation: students use an interactive digital notebook for recording, reflection and reporting that becomes a "thesis" for examination. 3) Cohort Reflection: students engage collaboratively in reflection and learning within and across cohorts, developing a knowledge base and a community of practice. 4) Supportive Inclusion: enriching and inclusive processes for admission, and progression that address barriers for students from under-represented backgrounds and open up new opportunities for study that speak to students' substantive interests. Outline doctoral training programme: Year 1: Bespoke training covering core topics in data visualization design and production, research methodologies, diversity and inclusion and an innovative Visualization Design Labs module where students collaborate to address real-world visualization problems provided by partner organisations. This is complemented by interdisciplinary masterclasses and a four month scaffolded replication study project. Year 1 concludes with co-creation in which students engage with potential supervisors and external partners to select and iteratively refine an initial PhD focus and plan. Years 2-4: Structured as two 1-year phases of research and reflection, followed by a final year of cross study synthesis as findings and claims are developed. The research and reflection phases will be grounded in 3-6 month internships where students address challenging research topics in collaboration with a range of academic and industrial partners (across public, private and not-for-profit fields). Complementary training across the 4 years will provide wider research and professional skills based on regular needs analysis, e.g. training in responsible innovation, EDI, entrepreneurship, research ethics and other topics from the comprehensive doctoral programmes at City and Warwick. We will develop communities of practice across and between cohorts through activities including an annual inter-cohort data hackathon, ongoing reflective groups, 1-day reflective retreats and an annual residential retreat. Partners will provide industry mentors and we will host a series of engagements with EDI role models. Students will actively contribute to a vibrant and inclusive research environment through co-creation and delivery of these activities as well as by identifying topics to address that speak to personal, community or social justice concerns. Finally, DIVERSE CDT establishes unique international collaborations through an exchange programme with the world's leading visualisation labs. All students will have the option of a funded research visit, and we will host students from participating labs, enhancing the doctoral experience.

"Poor air quality is the largest environmental risk to Public Health in the UK" [DEFRA, 2017]. Air pollution in the West Midlands affects some 2.8 million people, reducing average life expectancy by up to 6 months, and is responsible for economic costs estimated at £860m per year. Air quality is therefore a key priority for local and regional government, and increasingly the general public, with further emphasis arising from the "Diesel-gate" emissions scandal, and ongoing High Court challenges to the Government's Air Quality strategy. Historically, local air quality policy has been the responsibility of the individual Local Authorities. However, air pollution does not respect political boundaries, and the 2016 formation of the West Midlands Combined Authority will lead to an integrated approach to air pollution, under the Second Devolution Deal for the West Midlands (2017). In parallel, the NHS Sustainability Transformation Trust is bringing an integrated approach to health and social care provision - with air quality a core priority. This gives rise to a unique and timely opportunity to translate environmental science research expertise into regional policy and interventions to reduce air pollution. The University of Birmingham group has critical mass, international research expertise and NERC track record in air pollution, and its health and economic impacts. We have a history of links with regional partners, ranging from commissioned work and joint research projects to informal collaborations. Accordingly, we have developed the West Midlands Air Quality Improvement Programme (WMAQIP), through a co-design process alongside regional stakeholders including the WMCA / Mayor of the West Midlands, Local Authorities, private companies, industry sector bodies and third sector organisations, to deliver: -Situational awareness (understanding of air pollution levels and sources), e.g. applied to refinement of the Birmingham Clean Air Zone and design of future interventions in Coventry, avoiding over £5m annual costs plus benefits to visitors / commuters working in the cities. -Predictive Capability to evaluate AQ policy options, in comparison with business as usual predictions, for pollution levels, health and economic impacts - identifying interventions to achieve Birmingham City Council's goal of halving AQ-related mortality by 2030 (750 deaths/yr and £170m annual costs avoided); avoiding additional healthcare costs of £600m required under business-as-usual scenarios, and informing allocation of recurrent and one-off intra-city transport investment of £250m. -Application of the resulting capability to specific policy scenarios - including infrastructure design around the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games to deliver improved air quality, understanding the air quality consequences of future vehicle fleet evolution to electric vehicles, and optimising air quality co-benefits from green infrastructure for HS2 development. WMAQIP directly addresses the UK Industrial Strategy grand challenge of Clean Growth, which commits the Government to "create a future where our cities benefit from cleaner air", and the Infrastructure foundation of productivity, which identifies a determination to "tackle air pollution and support affected areas, given the significant negative impact it has on public health, the economy and the environment." WMAQIP combines NERC research expertise with direct inputs from a range of partner organisations. The programme will deliver policy impact from application of environmental science applied to specific policy priorities through a cohort of Impact Fellows, physically embedded within stakeholder organisations to provide knowledge transfer and training, and hence lasting impact. Programme legacy will be maximised by formalising capabilities as tools which may be applied elsewhere, and actions to promote their dissemination.