SDG 3 - Good Health and Wellbeing

Children and Young People’s Wellbeing@Exeter Research Network 

The Children and Young People’s Wellbeing@Exeter Research Network aims to advance research and understanding into the physical and mental wellbeing of Children and Young People (from prenatal to 25 years of age). The network is committed to promoting impactful, interdisciplinary research and engagement with key stakeholders in CYP research and policy. Our Engagement and Impact Awards help the co-development of interdisciplinary grant applications and Patient and Public Involvement and Engagement activities.  Awards in 2024/2025 include pilot studies around:

• Sustainable school food practices that are nutritional, environmentally friendly, and financially viable  
• The impact of transitioning to plant-based diets on the physical and mental health of children and young people  
• Increasing incidental physical activity in primary school children  

Centre for Net Positive Health and Climate Solutions 

A new Centre focused on delivering research on climate change and its impacts on health that will address climate-environment-health inequalities across each life stage is being created by the University of Exeter.  Together with the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), the National Trust, Forest Research, the Met Office and other partner organisations, the £10m Centre for Net Positive Health and Climate Solutions is funded by UK Research and Innovation (UKRI). The centre will focus on finding net positive solutions to the well-established negative impacts of the climate crisis and associated environmental changes in human health. 

Wellcome Centre for Cultures and Environments of Health

Wellcome Centre for Cultures and Environments of Health are committed to engaged research that enables health and well-being, our projects have brought researchers, public partners, and health organisations together to address key health challenges, including: the health impacts of loneliness and social isolation; the value of different forms of evidence in health policy; the impact of relationships on children’s health; and community access to – and involvement in – research and data governance.  

Flagship projects include Connecting3Worlds (C3W) a Wellcome Trust Collaborative Award led by Prof. Dora Vargha (University of Exeter, PI) Dr. Sarah Marks (Birkbeck, Co-I), and Prof. Edna Suarez-Diaz (UNAM, Mexico, Co-I).  Connecting3Worlds pioneers a new history of global health that, for the first time, incorporates the socialist world during the Cold War and after. It identifies the particular health cultures produced by socialism across Africa, the Americas, Asia, and Europe; and explores the impact and legacies of socialist internationalism. 

NIHR Exeter Biomedical Research Centre

The NIHR Exeter Biomedical Research Centre carries out high-quality scientific research into the health areas that are most important to our communities, putting people at the centre of our work.  Helping academics and patient-facing experts like doctors and other health professionals bring their research to labs, ensuring that scientific discoveries find their way, or translate, to the bedside or clinic.