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As customer demand for low carbon goods and services is rising, it is becoming increasingly important for suppliers to demonstrate their carbon footprint. More and more businesses are reviewing their supply chain emissions.
 
All of these factors will drive growth in the low carbon market sectors including bioenergy, energy-from-waste, energy systems and bioproducts.
 
The Energy & Bioproducts Research Institute (EBRI) at Aston University can help you explore these increasingly important, vibrant market. Our new two-day Value from Waste Master Class course provides exclusive content for entrepreneurs and business leaders, covering the technical and commercial fundamentals of these market sectors. Over previous years this course has been highly acclaimed by the West Midlands business community. (96% of attendees have rated it ‘Excellent’ or ‘Very Good’.)
 
Discover more from EBRI Director of Engagement, Tim Miller about how we can help you.
 
www.aston.ac.uk/ebri
www.bioenergy-for-business.org

EBRI – Helping your business on the path to Net Zero

Jonathan Hemus, Managing Director of Crisis Management consultancy Insignia explains what crisis management involves and why it is vital for businesses.

What is Crisis Management?

Aston University is the Official University Partner of Aston Villa Football Club. Watch Aston Villa footballers Marvelous Nakamba, Tom Heaton and Frederic Guilbert discuss moving to Birmingham, easy travel to London and Manchester, and the famous Library of Birmingham. Find out more about our location: https://www2.aston.ac.uk/birmingham

Aston Villa players on living in Birmingham

Birmingham Enterprise Community (BEC) supports the next generation of entrepreneurs in the UK’s second-largest city. Watch Aston graduate and BEC founder Daniel Evans introduce the network. Find out about the start-ups of Aston graduates and BEC entrepreneurs Mubasher Ahmed (Founder, HiERD) and Danielle Roberts (Founder, Unlimited You), as well as current student Mohammed Ali (Freelance Photographer). 



Find out more about BEC: http://www.birminghamenterprisecommunity.co.uk/


Find out more about study opportunities for future entrepreneurs at Aston University: https://www2.aston.ac.uk/study/enterprise

Birmingham Enterprise Community – meet the next generation of entrepreneurs

Watch how Aston graduate and entrepreneur Adil Delwar from Bangladesh founded biodegradable tableware manufacturer Palm Life, how his Aston master’s helped him to develop entrepreneurial skills and international business strategies, and how he started his business with the support of the BSEEN programme #wedobusiness #entrepreneur https://www2.aston.ac.uk/study/enterprise

How I became an entrepreneur – Adil Delwar’s story

Watch how Aston graduate and entrepreneur Shivang Mehra from India founded sportswear brand Kryjer, how the work placement year in his Aston degree helped him to decide to be an entrepreneur, and how he started his business with the support of the BSEEN programme #wedobusiness #entrepreneur https://www2.aston.ac.uk/business/aston-enterprise/start-a-business-bseen/index

How I became an entrepreneur – Shivang Mehra’s story

See how international student Raveena Shekhar from India gained global advantage at Aston Business School. Our professional development programme gave her the opportunity to work as an Audit Assistant at KPMG in Birmingham. Raveena studied our MSc International Accounting and Finance #WeDoBusiness 

https://www2.aston.ac.uk/study/postgraduate/taught-programmes/abs/the-aston-global-advantage/index

The Aston Global Advantage - Raveena's story

The role of doctors in the fight  against Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR)

The role of  nurses in the fight against Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR

How can the public fight the threat of Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR)

Margarita takes you through her experience of studying BSc Business & Management.

You can find more detail, including fees, modules, study modes etc here: https://www2.aston.ac.uk/study/courses/business-and-management-bsc

If you have any questions don’t hesitate to contact our admissions team: ugadmissions@aston.ac.uk

HERE IS BUSINESS & MANAGEMENT

Linglin takes you through her experience of studying International Business & Management as an international student.

You can find more detail, including international fees, courses, visas etc here: www.aston.ac.uk/international

If you have any questions don’t hesitate to contact our admissions team: ugadmissions@aston.ac.uk

HERE IS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS & MANAGEMENT

Aslaug takes you through her experience of studying BSc International Business & Management.

You can find more detail, including fees, modules, study modes etc here: https://www2.aston.ac.uk/study/courses/international-business-and-management-bsc

If you have any questions don’t hesitate to contact our admissions team: ugadmissions@aston.ac.uk

Amelia takes you through her experience of studying at Aston Business School.

You can find more detail, including fees, modules, study modes etc here: https://www2.aston.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/courses/abs/index

If you have any questions don’t hesitate to contact our admissions team: ugadmissions@aston.ac.uk

HERE IS ASTON BUSINESS SCHOOL

Ella takes you through her experience of studying International Business & Modern Languages.

You can find more detail, including fees, modules, study modes etc here: https://www2.aston.ac.uk/study/courses/international-business-and-modern-languages-bsc

If you have any questions don’t hesitate to contact our admissions team: ugadmissions@aston.ac.uk

HERE IS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS & MODERN LANGUAGES

aston-university-economists-say-prime-minister-can-reduce-uk-trade-vulnerability-with-china-visit

Aston University economists say Prime Minister can reduce UK trade vulnerability with China visit

Professor of Economics

Senior Lecturer, Economics, Finance and Entrepreneurship

 Greenland episode exposed UK’s lack of effective response to economic coercion from allies Research shows tariff retaliation would have cost the average UK household up to £324 per year Economists say China visit is “portfolio risk management” – diversification reduces vulnerability.  The Prime Minister’s visit to China – the first by a British PM since 2018 – is an opportunity to reduce the UK’s vulnerability to economic coercion, according to new research from Aston University.  

A policy paper from Aston Business School’s Centre for Business Prosperity analyses the January 2026 Greenland tariff episode, when President Trump threatened and then withdrew tariffs on eight European countries. The researchers found that the UK had no good options: retaliation would have made Britain worse off, while absorbing the tariffs left Europe without credible deterrence.

Director of the centre for business prosperity, Professor Jun Du, said: “The Greenland episode was a wake-up call. When your principal security ally threatens economic coercion, the old assumptions about who is safe and who is dangerous no longer hold. “The PM’s China visit should be framed as portfolio risk management – building diversified trading relationships that reduce the UK’s exposure to any single partner. Just as investors don’t put all their money in one stock, countries shouldn’t put all their trade into one basket. A UK with multiple strong partnerships is harder to pressure, whether the pressure comes from Washington or Beijing.”  The research found that coordinated UK–EU tariff retaliation would have cost British households up to £324 per year – the worst outcome modelled. But the authors argue that Europe has untapped leverage elsewhere: the US runs a €148 billion annual services surplus with the EU, and mutual investment exceeds €5.3 trillion.

Associate professor of economics and co-author, Dr Oleksandr Shepotylo, said: “Tariff retaliation fails because it hurts consumers and distorts the economy – the retaliator suffers similarly to the target. But Europe has cards it isn’t playing. Services, investment screening, and regulatory access are pressure points where Europe can respond effectively.”

UK exports to China fell by 10.4% in the year to Q2 2025, with goods exports down 23.1% – the sharpest decline among major trading partners. The researchers argue that this closes off the UK’s largest alternative market at precisely the moment US reliability is in question.

The paper identifies three priorities for UK policy:

Recognise the permanent incentives behind US tariffs. US tariff revenue hit $264 billion in 2025. Trade negotiations alone cannot resolve revenue-driven policy. Build UK–EU coordination on non-tariff instruments. Services, investment, procurement, and regulation offer leverage that tariffs do not. Treat China engagement as portfolio risk management. Concentration in any single market creates vulnerability. Diversification is not about picking sides – it’s about resilience.  Professor Du added: “The question for the Prime Minister is whether to use this breathing space to build resilience – or wait for the next Greenland.”  To read the policy paper in full, click on this link:  

medication-adherence-why-it-matters-and-how-we-can-improve-it-public-lecture-by-professor-ian-maidment

Medication adherence: Why it matters and how we can improve it – public lecture by Professor Ian Maidment

Professor of Clinical Pharmacy

 Professor Ian Maidment is a professor in clinical pharmacy at Aston Pharmacy School
His inaugural lecture will explain why patients struggle with taking medication and present possible solutions to the problem
Professor Maidment is a former practising pharmacist and an expert in medication optimisation and management in mental health and dementia.

Professor Ian Maidment, professor in clinical pharmacy at Aston Pharmacy School, will give a public lecture about his life’s work on 5 February 2025.

In his inaugural lecture, Professor Maidment will reflect on his journey from a childhood in Kent to becoming a leading researcher in clinical pharmacy. After more than two decades working in the NHS, in community pharmacy, mental health, dementia care, and leadership roles, he joined Aston University in 2012. His research focuses on the real-world challenges of medication optimisation for patients, carers, and healthcare professionals.

The title of Professor Maidment’s lecture is ‘Medication adherence: Why it matters and how we can improve it’. Every year, the UK spends nearly £21 billion on medicines. Yet up to half of people with long-term conditions do not take their medication as prescribed—a problem known as non-adherence. This has profound clinical consequences and significant financial implications for the NHS.

Professor Maidment will draw on his experience to explore how factors such as medication burden and side-effects influence adherence, the challenges posed by conditions such as dementia and severe mental illness, the role of pharmacy in supporting adherence and why tackling non-adherence requires a system-wide approach. He will also offer practical solutions to one of healthcare’s most persistent problems.

Professor Maidment said:

“We need to understand why patients struggle to take their medication and then develop and test solutions that work well.”

The lecture on Thursday 5 February 2026 will take place at Aston Business School. In-person tickets are available from Eventbrite. The public lecture will begin at 18:00 GMT with refreshments served from 17:30 GMT. It is free of charge and will be followed by a drinks reception. The lecture will also be streamed online.


new-research-partnership-to-develop-biodegradable-gloves-from-food-waste-for-healthcare-sector

New research partnership to develop biodegradable gloves from food waste for healthcare sector

Head of School of Infrastructure and Sustainable Engineering

  Knowledge Transfer Partnership between Aston University and PFE Medical to develop a biodegradable clinical glove from food waste
The gloves will provide a low-cost, convenient and sustainable alternative to the 1.4bn disposable gloves used in the NHS each year
The innovation will reduce clinical waste and costs and help the NHS reach its net zero goals.

Aston University and Midlands-based company PFE Medical are teaming up to create biodegradable gloves made from food waste for use in the NHS.

They will offer a low-cost, convenient alternative to disposable gloves without compromising patient safety. More than 1.4bn disposable gloves are used by the NHS each year. They create large volumes of clinical waste which has both an environmental and economic cost.

The Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) project will develop a more sustainable alternative made from polymers derived from food waste such as orange peel, able to degrade naturally. The gloves will initially be for use during low-risk tasks such as ultrasound scans, rather than in more critical situations such as operating theatres.

The gloves would be designed to not only reduce clinical waste and costs in the NHS, but also carbon emissions, helping the NHS reach its goal to be the world’s first net-zero health service. With most personal protective equipment (PPE) currently sourced from Chinese manufacturers, the goal is to develop a biodegradable glove that can be manufactured using a UK supply chain.

The challenging project draws on Aston University’s expertise in sustainable polymer chemistry, centred at Aston Institute for Membrane Excellence (AIME). Aston University has one of the largest research groups of polymer chemists in the UK. The project will be led at the University by Professor Paul Topham, director of AIME, and Dr James Wilson, AIME associate member.

The research team have chosen to focus on polymers from food waste in order to ensure that the final product can be manufactured sustainably. Most polymers are currently made from petroleum. Polymers made from food waste, ranging from fruit waste to corn or dairy products, have the potential for antioxidant and antibacterial properties if designed appropriately. The team will manipulate the polymer molecules so that they include the right monomers (the smaller units which make up the molecules) in the right location to achieve the properties they require.

Critical to the success of the project will be PFE Medical’s commercial and clinical experience of taking new innovations into medical use. It will be the third KTP between Aston University and PFE, following on from successful projects to develop an automated endoscope cleaner, now in use across University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust (UHB).

Professor Topham said: “At Aston University, we have a long history of working with industry, of translating fundamental research into solutions for real world problems. This project with PFE Medical provides us with that route, to take our science and engineering and make a difference to peoples’ lives. That’s exactly where, as researchers, we want to be.”

Rob Hartley, CEO of PFE Medical, said: “Our previous KTP with Aston University was a phenomenal success, thanks to the brilliant team we had on board. I’m just as excited by this project, which is looking to solve an equally long-standing problem. If we can achieve our goal, then the implications are huge, going far beyond the NHS to all the other situations where people are wearing disposable gloves.”

KTPs, funded by Innovate UK, are collaborations between a business, a university and a highly qualified research associate. The UK-wide programme helps businesses to improve their competitiveness and productivity through the better use of knowledge, technology and skills. Aston University is a sector-leading KTP provider, ranked first for project quality, and joint first for the volume of active projects.

For further details about this KTP, visit the webpage: www.aston.ac.uk/business/collaborate-with-us/knowledge-transfer-partnership/at-work/pfe-medical.


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