How can water help us think differently about place, policy and public service reform? In this episode of Placecast, presenter Nicola Headlam is joined by Deryck Irving from the University of Stirling and the FORTH2O Local Policy Innovation Partnership (LPIP) to explore how water can act as a powerful lens for understanding place-based innovation, resilience and collaboration. Drawing on work across central Scotland, Deryck discusses the challenges of managing water as both a vital resource and a driver of economic, social and environmental outcomes.
The conversation ranges from community engagement and knowledge brokering to the future of devolution and place leadership. Nicola and Deryck reflect on the importance of working across boundaries, sharing lessons from both successes and failures, and building partnerships that can tackle complex challenges such as climate resilience, flooding, water scarcity and inequality. The episode offers valuable insights for anyone interested in how evidence, policy and local action can come together to create meaningful change.
Guest Speaker
Deryck Irving
Deryck Irving, a member of the Hydro Nation Chair research and innovation team at the University of Stirling, specialises in blue-green infrastructure and nature-based solutions for sustainable placemaking. He has over 30 years of ecological experience and expertise in collaborative working and stakeholder engagement, from policy through to practical delivery. Deryck is the Place Lead for FORTH20.
FORTH2O is funded by the UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) to inform and address these issues. It is a local policy innovation partnership (LPIP) in the region covering the Forth Water Basin: Fife, Clackmannanshire, Stirling, Falkirk, Edinburgh and the Lothians. FORTH2O is working with partners across academia, government, policy, industry, community and voluntary sectors to co-design research and policy innovations to support a more connected, resilient, and equitable water system that better serves the needs of people and the environment.
View Deryck’s LinkedIn profile.
Host
Dr Nicola Headlam
Nicola Headlam has over 20 years of experience working across all aspects of the multi-helix innovation system, including central and local government, civil society and campaigning, academic research and knowledge mobilisation, and industry. Along the way, she has honed her expertise in urban and regional subnational economic development, the roles of government in shaping place, and in utilising data and evidence for transformation.
In 2024, she became a freelance economic advisor on the role of leadership and partnerships, urban and living lab forms for research, the future of cities and foresighting methods, urban transformations, place-branding and urban regeneration and the spatial consequences of public policy.
View Nicola’s LinkedIn Profile
Transcript
Find out more about the Local Policy Innovation Partnership Hub.
Disclaimer:
The views expressed in this analysis post are those of the author and not necessarily those of City-REDI or the University of Birmingham.
Generative AI was used to generate parts of the blog using the transcript from the podcast.