Clean Carbon researcher learns policy at the coal face

Dr Sally Brown, a Senior Research Fellow specialising in coasts and sea-level rise within Engineering and the Environment at the University of Southampton has recently returned from a week in Parliament, shadowing Rory Stewart, Conservative MP for Penrith and The Border, and Minister of State for the Department for International Development (DFID).

Sally is theme leader for the Clean Carbon  'Consequences' research theme and was taking part in a unique pairing scheme run by the Royal Society, the UK’s national academy of science, which aims to build bridges between parliamentarians, civil servants and the best scientists in the UK. She was shadowing Mr Stewart both to learn about his ministerial role and to find out more about the wider work undertaken in DfID. During her week, Sally also met many other parliamentarians including local MP Sir Desmond Swayne Member of Parliament for the constituency of New Forest West in Hampshire, as she attended seminars and panel discussions about how evidence is used in policy-making. She also attended a mock Select Committee. Mr Stewart gained benefit from the pairing too, and took the opportunity to investigate the science behind his decisions, and improve his access to scientific evidence by availing himself of Sally’s research expertise.

Sally’s background is in coastal engineering, climate change and long-term development and environmental change on the coast. She has undertaken research around the African coastline, the Maldives and Bangladesh.