Strong focus on climate and sustainability for RTPI Research Awards 2021 finalists

Sustainability related projects have dominated the categories for this year’s Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) Awards for Research Excellence.

Finalists in the four award categories have been unveiled today, a number of which consider the relationship between sustainability, climate change and town planning.

The quality of submissions for the 2021 awards were exceptionally high with 49 submissions being received across four categories: the Sir Peter Hall Award for Excellence in Research and Engagement, Early Career Researcher Award, Student Award and the Planning Practitioner Award.

In particular, the Student Award category contains several sustainability-focused projects, reflecting the priorities for the next generation of town planners.

RTPI President Wei Yang FRTPI said: “Entries for the RTPI Awards for Research Excellence 2021 were incredibly strong with entrants putting forward fresh and innovative research topics which grabbed the attention of our judges. We would like to thank everyone who submitted an entry.

“The awards offer an opportunity to showcase some of the finest research in the sector, from students to practitioners with a wealth of experience.

“This year the judges were impressed by the standard of entries which came from a variety of organisations covering a multitude of vital topics.

“A number of the research projects which were shortlisted offered unique insights into the relationship between planning and sustainability. We believe this is an area of planning that will grow in future as planners become an integral part of the fight against climate change.

“I look forward to announcing the winners of the four categories on behalf of the RTPI on 8 September 2021.”

Of the 49 submissions 20 have been shortlisted to compete across the four categories.

Also announced at the Research Awards ceremony in September will be the recipients of the Practitioner Research Fund, which offers two grants of £5,000 to enable planning practitioners to carry out research. Submissions for the fund came from universities across the UK and overseas including Hong Kong, South Africa and New Zealand, as well as public and private sector.

This year the awards have been sponsored by Routledge (Taylor & Francis Group) and Idox Knowledge Exchange. The winning and commended entries will be announced during the online Planning Research Conference on Wednesday, 8 September 2021. You can sign up here.