Cardiff University’s Professor Marsden shortlisted for prestigious Newton Prize

Professor Terry Marsden has been shortlisted for the 2017 Newton Prize for his project on developing healthier cities in Malaysia. The Prize is an annual £1 million fund awarded for the best research or innovation that supports the economic development and social welfare of developing countries.

Professor Marsden, Director of the Sustainable Places Research Institute and Professor of Environmental Policy and Planning at the School of Geography and Planning, is in with the chance of winning up to £200,000 from the Prize to be used to advance or develop the work further.

The Newton Prize is part of the broader Newton Fund, which builds research and innovation partnerships with 18 partner countries to support their economic development and social welfare, and to develop their research and innovation capacity for long-term sustainable growth. It has a total UK Government investment of £735 million up until 2021, and each partner country provides matched funding and resources for every programme, making it an equitable partnership.

The project brings together expertise in systems and place-based methods, urban planning and public health, to examine the interlinked issues driving urban health in Malaysia. Workshops were held focusing on green infrastructure and urban food. Participants have generated initiatives focused on local issues such as river restoration, walkability, food systems, and indigenous knowledge. An example of a shift in knowledge, attitudes and practice as a result of the project was a request from the Penang Green Council for the researchers to help them design an initial scoping meeting for the Penang Green Agenda.

More than 150 Newton funded projects, fellowships or other awards applied for the Newton Prize from the eligible countries for this year – India, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam. There are 25 shortlisted applications in total and five Prizes of up to £200,000 will be awarded to each winner to be used to advance or develop existing Newton funded work. There will be two winners in India and one in Malaysia, Thailand and in Vietnam.

The Newton Prize winners will be announced at celebratory award ceremonies held in each of the partner countries:

• India – 1 November
• Thailand – 8 November
• Malaysia – 14November
• Vietnam – 16 November

The Minister for Universities, Science and Research Jo Johnson will also host a UK event in London in early December to celebrate the first year of the Prize and to announce the 2018 Newton Prize countries.

The Newton Prize aims to incentivise researchers to participate in the Newton Fund as partners with the UK, and to work on the most important challenges facing Newton countries. The concept for the Newton Prize has been developed to demonstrate how UK partnerships with Newton countries are solving global challenges.

Further information is available on the Newton Fund website. Follow their Twitter feed for regular updates about the Newton Prize: @NewtonFund and #NewtonPrize.