IHRR Contributes to Four-Day BWEF (Biodiversity–Water–Energy–Food) British Council Workshop in Edinburgh and Durham

The Institute of Hazard, Risk and Resilience (IHRR) hosted part of a four-day workshop as part of the British Council-funded BWEF (Biodiversity–Water–Energy–Food) Learnings project. The project is supported under the International Science Partnerships Fund (ISPF) Resilient Planet programme and brings together partners from the UK, Japan and India to explore how shocks cascade across interconnected environmental and human systems.

The four-day workshop brought together two colleagues from Tohoku University (Japan), six from UK institutions (Durham University, the University of Edinburgh, the University of Leeds, the University of Greenwich, and Robert Gordon University), and two colleagues from Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham (India), who joined virtually. The in-person programme began with a day in Edinburgh, including engagement with colleagues at the Edinburgh Earth Initiative before continuing with three intensive working days hosted at the IHRR, Durham University.

Across the week, the team focused on advancing several strands of the BWEF Learnings project:

• Reviewing progress on critical literature reviews examining shocks and cascading impacts across the BWEF Nexus in the three national contexts.
• Developing and mapping illustrative BWEF cascade scenarios, including flood and earthquake examples, to better understand system interdependencies, vulnerabilities and potential leverage points.
• Identifying knowledge gaps and potential themes for future externally funded research proposals.
• Strengthening capacity in interdisciplinary methods, including critical review techniques and research grant development.

A central theme of discussion was how shocks—such as floods, droughts or earthquakes—can trigger cascading effects across biodiversity, water, energy and food systems, and how governance structures and decision-making processes shape these dynamics differently in the UK, Japan and India. The workshop reinforced the importance of systems thinking in understanding human–environment interactions and reducing siloed approaches to resilience planning.

During the Durham sessions, participants also took part in a virtual reality (VR) experience hosted by Professor Bruce Malamud. Using immersive VR headsets, the group explored hazard-affected regions in Japan, India, Kenya and the UK. The session stimulated discussion about how immersive tools can support research, capacity building and stakeholder engagement in resilience and disaster risk contexts.

The workshop further strengthened institutional partnerships, particularly between IHRR at Durham University, the International Research Institute of Disaster Science (IRIDeS) at Tohoku University, and the School for Sustainable Futures at Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham in India . Preparations are now underway for subsequent workshops in India (May 2026) and Japan (November 2026), alongside continued virtual collaboration and stakeholder engagement.

IHRR is pleased to support this growing international partnership and looks forward to the next phase of work exploring cascading BWEF impacts and opportunities for building more resilient human–environment systems.