Stockholm Environment Institute
Source: https://www.york.ac.uk/sei/ Parent: https://www.york.ac.uk/about/departments/
Bridging science, policy and practice
Who we are
Stockholm Environment Institute is an international non-profit research institute that tackles climate, environment and sustainable development challenges. We have offices in Stockholm (HQ), Bangkok, Bogotá, Nairobi, Oxford, Tallinn and the US.
Since SEI was established in 1989 there has been a centre hosted at the University of York. With over 30 years of established research, SEI York has built a reputation for bridging science and policy at all levels, from work with local partners to global multilateral organisations.
In 2024, SEI York became a Research Centre, sitting at the same level as a university department within the Faculty of Sciences. We now have nearly 60 core members of staff. SEI York staff also participate in teaching, as well as PhD and MRes supervision.
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The University of York's Environment Building, where SEI York is based.
Research areas
SEI York works on five core areas. Our researchers – including our cohort of PhD students – work at international, national and local scales, with a presence both within the local and regional community, around the University of York, and in many high, middle and low-income countries
Air quality, climate and environmental change
Inclusive citizen science
Critical environmental governance
Environments, human health and wellbeing
Sustainable consumption and production
Postgraduate research
We actively encourage PhD proposals. At SEI York, you can conduct research in a wide variety of fields including air quality, climate change, sustainable consumption and production, well-being and behavioural change, participatory research (including citizen science), and ecosystem services.
News and events
Why regional cooperation is vital for better air quality in Asia and the Pacific
12 March 2026
Opinion: In this blog post for Asian Development Bank (ADB), SEI researcher Gary Haq (along with ADB co-authors) argues that national efforts alone cannot effectively address air pollution: regional collaboration is needed to address this transboundary problem.
Chris West is new Trase co-director
27 February 2026
Trase is pleased to announce that Chris West, from the Stockholm Environment Institute York, has been appointed as Trase’s new co-director, replacing SEI’s Toby Gardner.
Local leadership is the key missing ingredient in the UK’s retrofit revolution
4 February 2026
Opinion: The UK should shift away from national, top-down retrofit schemes to locally led delivery, explains SEI's Luke Gooding in Inside Housing.
The UK Partnering for Accelerated Climate Transitions project goes live in Abuja
11 December 2025
Press release: with the start of the UK PACT national initiative to strengthen private sector capacity for climate and clean air action, Nigeria takes an important step toward cleaner air and a more climate-resilient economy
SEI undergraduate teaching
SEI York experts deliver the module Sustainability and Policy: Research, Engage, Change as part of the award-winning York Interdisciplinary Modules initiative. YIMs are open to final year undergraduates from all disciplines.
The module presents critical aspects of a series of environmental and social challenges with a focus on policy engagement in its different forms. It provides students with the skills to critically engage with these challenges and gives them the opportunity to explore how change can be achieved. Over the course of the module, students engage with real-life SEI research and practice through case studies.