How can we solve the housing crisis without sacrificing the planet?
How do we solve the housing crisis? The government’s headline answer is that we need to build 1.5 million new homes over the next five years – and that we need to build on areas of “green belt” land to do so. But in a world where the construction industry is responsible for a huge proportion of our carbon emissions, waste and biodiversity loss, it’s reasonable to ask how this ambition is compatible with addressing the multiple intersecting environmental emergencies we’re facing.
In this seminar, we’ll look again at the problems underlying the housing crisis, asking whether these problems can be addressed effectively without doing excessive damage to our environment. We’ll consider innovative solutions – ranging from policy, to planning, to community action – that may or may not involve building more and faster, but which recognise the complexity of the situation and the care needed to address it responsibly.
Speakers will be announced shortly.
This event is being co-hosted and chaired by the Oxfordshire Community Land Trust.
This event will take place at 5:30pm on Wed 30th April 2025 at Kellogg College.
Upcoming events
2024-25 Event dates:
- Wed 30th April 2025 - How can we solve the housing crisis without sacrificing the planet?
- Wed 18th June 2025
2025-26 Event dates:
- Wed 15th October 2025
- Wed 3rd December 2025
- Wed 21st January 2026
- Wed 11th March 2026
- Wed 29th April 2026
- Wed 17th April 2026
All seminars are hosted between 5:30pm and 6:30pm at Kellogg College.
Sign up to our mailing list to stay up to date with the centre's activities and seminars.
Past events
Our GCHU seminars are filmed and are available to download and watch. Below is an archive of links to the recordings of all events in the GCHU Public Seminar series.
Building our way out of the housing crisis: can regions work?
The UK faces challenges of housing its population, and developing an economy that can deliver better everyday livelihoods for the majority, reducing social and geographical inequalities. Regional economies have often been the driving force for countrywide economic development, and the creation of new metro mayors have brought regions back into focus.
This seminar explored the possibilities of regions to harness the potential of local small and medium-sized businesses, to generate more sustainable solutions, and to develop local resources more efficiently. Four guest speakers pitched their ideas on how regional and locally-led activities can efficiently solve wider environmental and societal challenges.
The event was held on Wednesday 12th March 2025, 5:30pm, Kellogg College.
Speakers:
Dr Graeme Larsen | Associate Dean (Sustainability), University of College and Estate Management & Visiting Professor RMIT University, Australia
Megi Zala | Research Associate In Sustainable Urbanisation (KTP Associate) The King's Foundation
Geoff Anderson | Federation of Master Builders, Southern Region President & Managing Director, Anderson Contractors Limited
Anna Strongman | Chief Executive Officer, Oxford University Development
Can polarisation be addressed through community dialogue?
22nd January 2025
Chair: Dr Astrid Krisch
Speakers: Rebecca Sutton, Dr Caesar Atuire, Ed Hodgson, Kate Pumphrey
Why should we care about healthier homes?
4th December 2024
Chair: Dr Lidia Katia C. Manzo
Speakers: Professor Susan J Smith, Professor Ken Gibb, Virginia Barbaro, Sammy-Jo Hagan
Cycling in cities: can active travel work for everyone?
16th October 2024
Chair: Dr Juliet Carpenter
Speakers: Professor Rachel Aldred, Kate Ball, Duncan Dollimore, Hassan Sabrie
What makes an age-friendly neighbourhood?
12th June 2024
Chair: Dr Hannah Grove
Speakers: Professor George Leeson, Charlotte Lewis, Sir Tony Baldry, Kelly-Marie Rodgers
Creating Thriving Communities: How do we build socially productive places?
24th April 2024
Chair: Emeritus Professor Timothy Dixon
Speakers: Dr Ani Raiden, Liane Hartley, Simon Grove-White, Nigel Carter
Roads to ruin? Public transport, inequality, and the way forward
6th March 2024
Chair: Dr Juliet Carpenter
Speakers: Sarah Leeming, Luke Marion, Anna Plyushteva, Pete Brunskill
COP28: Over and Out?
17th January 2024
Chair: Dr David Howard
Speakers: Professor Isabel Oliver, Dr Rosie Rowe, Paul Skinner, Cassie Sutherland
How can community wellbeing be supported in the neighbourhood?
29th November 2023
Chair: Dr Astrid Krisch
Speakers: Professor Jane South, Ansaf Azhar, Joanne Smithson, Simon Sadinsky
15-minute cities: Can they work for everyone?
11th October 2023
Chair: Dr Juliet Carpenter
Speakers: Professor Tim Jones, Julia Thrift, Cllr Louise Upton, Professor Richard Dunning
Re-imagining our urban future: how can city visions help us shape healthy and sustainable places?
14th June 2023
Chair: Emeritus Professor Timothy Dixon.
Speakers: Professor Michael Keith, Cllr Anna Railton, Dr Tolullah Oni, Mike Hood.
Systems change: How can cities accelerate progress towards net zero?
26th April 2023
Chair: Dr Katherine Maxwell.
Speakers: Dr Andy Kerr, Caroline Green, Dr Gireesh Shrimali, Maia Kutner
Why Adapt our Homes to Rising Temperatures?
7th March 2023
Chair: Dr Jesus Lizana.
Speakers: Dr Radhika Khosla, Dr André Paul Neto-Bradley, Dr Patrick Fahr, Charlie Luxton
Can citizens' juries help to address urban challenges?
18th January 2023
Chair: Dr Alison Chisholm.
Speakers: Dr Juliet Carpenter, Sven Evans, Professor Alan Renwick, Claire Taylor.
What Creates Healthy Cities?
12th October 2022
Speakers: Lord Best, Julia Thrift, Dr Stephanie Tierney, Councillor Susan Brown
Retrofitting and designing healthy built environments: How can buildings help our health?
15th June 2022
Speakers: Professor Rajat Gupta, Dr Anna Ulrikke Andersen, Cllr Michael O'Connor, Dr Sydney Ayers Mercer
Healthy by design: What role for the built environment in creating healthy cities?
27th April 2022
Chair: Lord Best
Speakers: Dr Helen Pineo, Iona O'Carroll, Dr Rosie Rowe
Artificial Intelligence in Urban Health: Is AI a solution for healthy cities?
9th March 2022
Speakers: Prof Gina Neff, Dr Alison Powell, Dr Esra Suel
The cycling paradox - how can cycling be encouraged as a healthy, sustainable, and safe mode of transport?
1st December 2021
Speakers: Dr Tim Jones, Dr Alison Hill, Steve Unwin, Louis Odgers, Professor Carl Heneghan
Low Traffic Neighbourhoods: Can they work for everyone?
13th October 2021
Speakers: Dr Rachel Lee, Patrick Lingwood, Lucy Saunders, Dr Scott Urban
Delivering healthcare for rapid urbanisation
22nd January 2020
Speakers: Annette Pluddemann, Lucy Stevens, Hubert Lam, Mikaela Patrick, Carl Heneghan
Managing migration: cities, governance, integration.
4th December 2019
Speakers: Cecile Riallant, Colleen Thouez, David Howard, Thomas Lacroix
Next steps? Mixed use, walkable cities.
24th October 2019
Speakers: Karen Barrass, Daniel Elsea, Joanne Murraybrown, Ben Murphy, David Howard
Europe, Migration and Cities.
9th July 2019
Speakers: Sarah Spencer, Phoebe Clay, Michael Keith
Kellogg Urban Knowledge Exchange seminar: Healthy Cities
8th January 2019
Speakers: Carl Heneghan, Danny McDonnell, Sian Whyte, Chris Naylor
Kellogg Urban Knowledge Exchange: Rapid Urbanisation
27th June 2018
Speakers: Fiona Harvey, Peter Osborn, Ben Bolgar, Bob Allies, Victoria Hills
Kellogg Urban Knowledge Exchange: Urban Heritage
7th June 2018
Speakers: Geoffrey Tyack, Leidulf Mydland, Debbie Dance, Barbara Weiss, Oliver Cox
Kellogg Urban Knowledge Exchange seminar: Urban Public Art
24th April 2018
Speakers: Cathy Oakes, Leon Wainwright, Clare Melhuish, Sean Henry, Steven Parissien