Systems thinking and transdisciplinarity

Our research addresses challenges holistically, combining the perspectives from multiple disciplines and practice through a systemic lens.

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The theme addresses important sustainability challenges through a holistic combination of systems thinking and transdisciplinarity. Systems thinking views problems as interconnected, recognising the interdependencies and feedback loops. Transdisciplinarity integrates knowledge across disciplines, stakeholders and communities, breaking down traditional academic boundaries to address complex issues. By combining and innovating these approaches, we foster comprehensive understanding and innovative solutions that consider diverse perspectives and intricate interrelations within systems.

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Research areas

System Dynamics

Much of our research uses system dynamics modelling, i.e. causal loop diagrams or simulation models. We use causal loop diagrams to visualise and analyse individuals’ and groups’ diverse perceptions of an issue and use interactive simulation environments to test possible solutions.

Participatory System Dynamics

We often build and use our models with external partners. Here we make sure we have broad stakeholder representation, as accounting for multiple views can help reduce the risk of encountering unintended consequences later.

Decision-making and Change

We do research to achieve positive change. Our work provides formal support to decision and policy makers for designing and evaluating things such as urban sustainability and net-zero policies. We also research how people make decisions, how their decisions are grounded in perception and attention, and how decision-making leads to change and transformation.

Participatory research and transdisciplinary collaboration

Most of our research is participatory and much is transdisciplinary. We work with a diverse set of stakeholders from central and local policy departments, not-for-profit organisations, industry and with residents. In our transdisciplinary work, we not only involve these groups but design our research projects with them and we research this process and how to improve it.

The UCL Centre for Transdisciplinary Research brings people together across disciplines, sectors and practice to tackle complex real-world challenges.

Projects

Our research has involved a wealth of strategic projects in the built environment addressing novel solutions, perceptions and decisions, health impacts and unintended consequences of policies. Projects linked with systems thinking and transdisciplinarity are listed below:

Designing regenerative regional living systems – enabling a circular bioeconomy of wellbeing in the Thames Estuary (REGENYSYS), 2024–present
The REGENYSYS project, funded by Economic and Social Research Council uses a systems thinking approach to bring together leading experts in circular bioeconomy, ecosystems and ecosystem service provision, to build the capacity for a circular bioeconomy of wellbeing in the Thames Estuary.

Advancing Environmental Neutrality through Strategic Policy Dialogue and Systems Thinking Interface, 2024
Funded by the Bartlett Policy Support Fund, the Advancing Environmental Neutrality through Strategic Policy Dialogues and Systems Thinking Interface project examines current perspectives on neutrality policies through a systems-thinking and modelling approach. Achieving environmental neutrality depends on the impacts of human activities on the system, and strategies for mitigation or offsetting these impacts. This project includes a review of how systems thinking is currently adopted and reported in UK policies, as well as the development of a system dynamics model-based interface to facilitate dialogues around environmental neutrality.

Policy and Implementation for Climate and Health Equity (PAICE) 2023–present
PAICE will inform and evaluate UK Net Zero policies using transdisciplinary approaches to generate and implement evidence. Climate change mitigation policy must consider population health and health equity alongside reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, and would benefit from an integrated, intersectoral approach.

Construction Products Systems Thinking (COPSYM), 2023–24
After the Grenfell tragedy, the Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS) were tasked with the regulation of construction products. Based on a rich amount of interviews with diverse stakeholders and an in-depth review of the literature, the COPSYM project develops systems maps (causal loop diagrams) of important perspectives on construction products to support OPSS in their task.

A just transition towards housing sustainability, 2022–24
The goal of A just transition towards housing sustainability is to identify the system structures that hinder or support the provision of healthy and sustainable housing for all, and codesign strategies accordingly. The project focuses specifically on the regeneration of social housing estates in England and London. Within this setting, it uses participatory system dynamics to elicit three kinds of knowledge (i.e. systems, target, and transformation knowledge), together with a plurality of stakeholders across the social housing sector (residents, local authorities, housing associations, architects, consultants, activists, GPs, academics).

Virtual decision rooms for water neutral urban planning (VENTURA), 2021–24
In VENTURA, the combination of participatory system dynamics with GIS-based modelling in a virtual decision room enhances practical decision-making by offering an easily accessible interface. This integration facilitates a holistic understanding of specific policy issues and broader governance challenges.

Climate Resilience of Care Setting (ClimaCare), 2019–24
The NERC-funded ClimaCare project, starting with a pilot in five London care homes, expanded nationally to assess climate-related heat risks in care settings. It incorporated environmental monitoring and modelling techniques and co-created a systems-thinking model with multidisciplinary stakeholders to inform organisational structures and best practices for equitable adaptation to rising heat stress. A new initiative is underway to extend this research to a wider range of UK care facilities, including extra-care housing.

Complex Urban Systems for Sustainability and Health (CUSSH), 2018–24
CUSSH is a Wellcome Trust funded project aimed at delivering key global research on the systems that connect urban development and population health, working with thirteen partner organisations across four continents to help cities develop in ways which improve population health and environmental sustainability.

Community Water Management for a Liveable London (CAMELLIA), 2018–24
CAMELLIA brings together innovative science with communities and stakeholders in London to promote sustainable water management and a better environment as the city grows.

The Evaluation Exchange, 2017–present
The Evaluation Exchange is a partnership between UCL and the voluntary and community sector that aims to improve evaluation practice. It brings together organisations and teams wanting to improve their capacity to evaluate their work, with postgraduate students and researchers who want to use their research skills in a real-life setting. The programme breaks down barriers to accessing different evidence and builds evaluation and research skills that work in the real world.

Co-creating Systems Thinking in Policy for Sustainability (CoSTiPoS), 2022–23
There is great interest in systems thinking in government departments at the moment. The CoSTiPoS project analyses the barriers to systems thinking, what works and what else is needed to help civil servants apply systems thinking.

Connection between community garden and residents’ mental health, 2022
Funded by UCL Grand Challenges, the Connection between community garden and residents' mental health research project seeks to deepen our understanding of the role urban greenspaces - particularly community gardens - play in enhancing residents' mental health and wellbeing. By collaborating with local stakeholders, the project aims to inform urban planning strategies that prioritise mental health and contribute to the creation of sustainable, resilient urban environments. This research aims to provide evidence-based recommendations for the strategic design and distribution of community gardens, fostering urban environments that promote both ecological health and long-term human wellbeing.

The Total Performance of Low Carbon Buildings in China and the UK (TOP), 2016–18
Successfully meeting carbon emission reduction targets will require a major shift in building performance. The TOP project aims to understand and improve the 'total performance' of buildings in the UK and China.

Integrated decision-making about Housing, Energy and Wellbeing (HEW), 2013–16
The HEW project came from the EPSRC grants, and investigates integrated decision making about housing, energy and well-being, and supports policy making decisions about housing.

Complex Built Environment Systems (CBES) Platform Grants, 2007–22
The Complex Built Environment Systems group (CBES) at UCL came from the EPSRC grants. The first grant (Complex Built Environment Systems) recognised the complexity and systemic nature of the built environment, the second one (Unintended Consequences of Decarbonising the Built Environment,) understood that unintended consequences emerge from this complexity, and the third one (Built Environment Systems Thinking) introduced systems thinking as a way forward to address the complexity and unintended consequences.

Systems Thinking and Transdisciplinarity in teaching

Researchers from our theme contribute to the teaching of our MSc programmes and supervise dissertations for students who wish to undertake their own research in Systems Thinking and Transdisciplinarity.

Sustainable Built Environments, Energy and Resources BSc/MEng

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Our undergraduate level BSc/MEng in Sustainable Built Environments, Energy and Resources programme helps to build a better tomorrow by making the world’s cities, towns and buildings more sustainable, healthier places to live. This sustainability undergraduate degree teaches the skills needed to kickstart a career in sustainability and take action on climate change.

Relevant modules:

Systems Thinking and Participatory Approaches for Sustainability

Environmental Design and Engineering MSc

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Our flagship MSc degree in Environmental Design and Engineering aims to equip students with the knowledge to tackle increasingly critical issues regarding the built environment and expertise in the design of more energy efficient, sustainable and healthier buildings.

Relevant modules:

Methods of Environmental Analysis

Health, Wellbeing and Sustainable Buildings MSc

The Health, Wellbeing and Sustainable Buildings Masters programme aims to drive the health and wellbeing agenda for human centred retrofit design. It helps to train a new generation of partitioners in this fast-growing field where they will understand the main impacts of retrofit on indoor environmental quality.

Relevant modules:

Doctoral Research (PhD)

We welcome MPhil/PhD candidates looking to undertake their own original research relating to the Climate Change, Sustainability and Cities MSc under the supervision of our research staff. Below are some examples of the current MPhil/PhD theses’ being pursued in the programme. If you are interested in starting a PhD with us please visit the Environmental Design and Engineering MPhil/PhD page to find out more about the application process.

Doctoral research relating to Systems Thinking and Transdisciplinarity

Yasmin Mahmoud: The Climate - Resources Nexus in Water Scarce Countries: Analysis of Complex Systems and Stakeholders Collaboration in Egypt
Arfenia Nita: The Role of Group Model Building in Facilitating Civil Servants’ Systems Thinking Competencies Development in Complex Built Environment Systems
Elena Prioreschi
Simon Vakeva-Baird: Developing a participatory design framework for net-zero buildings using building performance simulation and multi-criteria decision analysis
Alexander Walker: Participatory Systems Thinking in Support of Regulatory Knowledge Building