RESEARCH AND OUTPUTS

Apart from our community operations, we also undertake research around environmental and/or economic adaptation mostly in New Zealand.

We have current projects looking at a series of ‘wicked’ problems.
These are issues where the costs and benefits of an activity fall on different parties.

For example:
Rental housing where, because there is a shortage of housing, some landlords can charge
very high rents for very low quality housing that may be cold, damp or leaky.
These landlords are also unwilling to invest in thermally and financially efficient high density
heaters (for example heat pumps, or pellet burners), forcing tenants to use more less
efficient and lower density heaters which cost more to use.
Because of the low quality of the housing (often un-insulated, single glazed),
most of the heat generated is spent on warming the outside air.
This means the benefits go to the landlord (rent), and the costs (heating, poor health) fall on the tenants.

 Our current projects include:

• Economic study assessing the benefits offered by communities

• Closing the loop on plastics

•  Reuse of waste
  Much of this work is subject to non-disclosure agreements and is only public after the projects are completed.

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