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Highlights from the first session of the Knowledge Exchange training series , facilitated by Yvonne McLean, as part of the ESRC Collaboration Labs Programme, The University of Manchester. Our focus in this short series is to share the latest tools and best practice for academic research consultancy and effective knowledge exchange, delivered in our ongoing Collaboration Labs training series.

Research shows low-cost DNA biomarker technique can trace cocoa from a specific farm to the chocolate bar in your hand Last updated on Wednesday 14 July 2021 A new method of DNA testing on cocoa beans could revolutionise the chocolate industry, offering consumers greater reassurance about the origins and ethics of their beloved confectionery, and giving the global cocoa industry a precision tool to help end slavery and child labour.

Seafarers of different faiths and no faith rely on support from port chaplains in coping with what is often dangerous work in challenging institutionalised workplace settings, research from Cardiff University has found. On board ship, religious beliefs and attitudes are kept private but seafarers revealed to the team the ways in which many who do have a faith construct their own set of religious beliefs in order to cope better with living and working conditions.

Bank credit officers are more likely to approve loan applications earlier and later in the day, while 'decision fatigue' around midday is associated with defaulting to the safer option of saying no. This is clear evidence that regular breaks during working hours are important for maintaining high levels of performance Tobias Baer These are the findings of a study by researchers in Cambridge's Department of Psychology, published today in the journal Royal Society Open Science .

More than half of adults plan to fly less or much less, even after they have been vaccinated against COVID-19, citing worries about the virus and climate change, according to a survey carried out by the University of Bristol The snapshot survey , conducted by researchers at the university's Cabot Institute for the Environment, captured views of nearly 500 respondents about how they might fly in the wake of the global pandemic.

Financial leaders sounding positive when they answer journalists' questions can boost share prices and soothe investors' fears about market risk, a new study reveals. Using sophisticated computer algorithms, researchers analysed the tone of voice used by US Federal Reserve (Fed) Chairs during Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) press conferences and examined the impact on financial markets.

New research suggests sugar taxes only slightly changed consumer behaviour, arguing that a combination of different policies is fundamental to tackle obesity. Last updated on Friday 19 March 2021 The introduction of a sugar tax, increasing the price of fizzy drinks and other products high in sugar content, has had only a limited, moderate effect in shifting people's dietary habits and behaviours, according to a new study.

Global targets to improve the welfare of people across the planet will have mixed impacts on the world's forests, according to new research. The United Nations’ 17 key areas for global development – known as the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – range from tackling poverty, hunger and sanitation to promoting clean energy, economic growth and reducing inequality.

New energy tariffs designed for a low carbon future could leave people on bad deals even worse off, research has found. The Leeds-led study found new types of contracts could benefit all types of customer, with opportunities to sell excess energy from solar panels or incentives for using energy at off-peak times.

New research from Professor Roger Gill, helps us to understand the impact of ongoing Covid-19 restrictions on mental health and wellbeing. The study, delivered in partnership with Professor Matt Grawitch and colleagues at St Louis University in Missouri, surveyed people living and working across the UK, France, Germany, Canada and the US.

A review of ten types of policy used to reduce carbon suggests that some costs fall on those less able to bear them - but it also shows these policies can form the bedrock of a 'green recovery' if specifically designed and used in tandem. Unless low-carbon policies are fair, affordable and economically competitive, they will struggle to secure public support Cristina Peñasco Some of the low-carbon policy options currently used by governments may be detrimental to households and small businesses less able to manage added short-term costs from energy price hikes, according to a new study.

The UK Government's hesitancy to bring in tougher Covid restrictions exacerbated investor herding, market volatility and greater harm to its economy compared to countries with swifter and more decisive pandemic responses, new research indicates. Countries with more stringent government responses to the coronavirus crisis benefitted from lower levels of investor herding, newly published research from the University of Sussex Business School , Southampton Business School and University of Brescia (Italy) reveals.

California's 2018 wildfires cost the US economy $148.5bn (£110bn) (0.7% of the country's annual GDP), of which $45.9bn was lost outside the state, according to researchers from universities including UCL. More than 8,500 separate fires burned during 2018 in California, making them the deadliest and most destructive of any year in the state's history.

COVID-19 is having a massive impact on household finances, with personal debts increasing. But some people are seeing their savings rise as their incomes remain unaffected and their spending has been curtailed - says a new financial inclusion monitor from the University of Birmingham and the University of Lincoln.

The first large-scale study of the risks that countries face from dependence on water, energy and land resources has found that globalisation may be decreasing, rather than increasing, the security of global supply chains. By quantifying the pressures that our consumption places on water, energy and land resources in far-off corners of the world, we can also determine how much risk is built into our interconnected world Oliver Taherzadeh Countries meet their needs for goods and services through domestic production and international trade.

Foreign investment into the UK is now predicted to fall by 37% post-Brexit, a 50% increase over previous estimates, as a result of leaving the EU single market and customs union, finds a new study by UCL and LSE economists. The peer-reviewed study, which is forthcoming in the Journal of Common Market Studies, highlights that the single market, since its implementation in 1992, has been the 'cornerstone' for additional foreign direct investment (FDI).

Past research suggests growing international demand for cooling has the potential to drive one of the most substantial increases in greenhouse gas emissions in recent history. A new study sets out a framework for delivering sustainable cooling. It also examines cooling needs in the context of sustainable development, and finds that this is a global blind spot.

Researchers at Cardiff University, Queen Mary University of London, and University of Exeter have revealed the significant impact of austerity on rural areas. The findings, published in the Journal of Rural Studies , provide the most comprehensive account to date of how changes in spending power and service spending have affected rural communities in England and Wales.

A fifth of carbon dioxide emissions come from multinational companies' global supply chains, according to a new study led by UCL and Tianjin University that shows the scope of multinationals' influence on climate change. The study, published , maps the emissions generated by multinationals' assets and suppliers abroad, finding that the flow of investment is typically from developed countries to developing ones - meaning that emissions are in effect outsourced to poorer parts of the world.

The research, published today and led by the University of Bristol, highlighted although blockers could be effective, particularly when used in conjunction with other self-exclusion tools, they need to be improved to better protect people from gambling harm. The researchers, from the university's Personal Finance Research Centre (PFRC), are recommending all card blockers include a time-release lock of at least 48 hours.