Critical Supply Chains & Environmental Security

Building data-driven insight to secure supply chains, foresee systemic shocks, and safeguard critical resources for a resilient future.

 

Photo Credit: Christopher Furlong, Getty Images

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Global Supply Chains as a network

Why Critical Supply Chains Matter

Society is critically dependent on (usually just-in-time) supply chains for food and other critical resources. These are threatened, on varying time horizons, by:

  • climate impacts on fresh water and agriculture, economic instability and failing states
  • climate impacts on trade routes and choke points (e.g. maritime)
  • geopolitical realignment, loss of globalisation, trade conflict and market failures
  • future pandemics and other global shocks to supply operations

Our premise is that supply chain resilience is a critical factor in national security and cannot be taken for granted. Our vision is to build, via interdisciplinary collaborations, a UK centre for data-driven supply chain modelling and forecasting that will help to inform policy makers and warn of systemic shocks at both national and global levels.

Objectives

  • To model and forecast vulnerabilities in critical supply chains using advanced data-driven and interdisciplinary approaches.
  • To assess the impact of climate change, geopolitical shifts, and global shocks on supply chain stability.
  • To design strategies and tools for enhancing resilience and adaptive capacity in national and global supply systems.
  • To inform policymakers and industry leaders with evidence-based insights to anticipate and mitigate systemic risks.

Questions

  • What are the most critical risk factors threatening global and national supply chains over the next decade?
  • How can integrated models predict cascading failures across interconnected supply networks?
  • What strategies and policies most effectively enhance resilience in the face of climate, geopolitical, and economic shocks?
  • How can interdisciplinary research shape proactive frameworks for supply chain security and national preparedness?

Members

Bill Oxbury

Professor Bill Oxbury

Professor in Practice for MARS, Professor in Practice - Data and Cyber Research, Enterprise and Engagement

Centre for Sustainable Soils, MARS: Mathematics for AI in Real-world Systems

Rob Lamb

Professor Rob Lamb

Professor in Practice

Centre for Sustainable Soils, DSAIL- Environment, Extreme Value Theory, Morecambe Bay Curriculum, Sustainable Catchments, Water Science

+44 (0)7866 715761
Kostas Selviaridis

Professor Kostas Selviaridis

Chair in Operations and Supply Chain Management

Centre for Productivity and Innovation, Centre for Transport & Logistics (CENTRAL), Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport in the UK , Health Systems, Pentland Centre, Supply Chain Management

B173, B - Floor, Management School
Jessica Bridgen

Dr Jessica Bridgen

Lecturer in Mathematical AI

Bayesian and Computational Statistics, Biostatistics , MARS: Mathematics for AI in Real-world Systems

Luciana Mendes Barbosa

Dr Luciana Mendes Barbosa

Lecturer in Sociology (Climate Change)

Critical Geographies, Energy Lancaster