Catherine Walker

Catherine Walker is an Honorary Research Fellow at the University of Manchester's Sustainable Consumption Institute and affiliated with the Department of Politics. She is also an Honorary Researcher at the University of Melbourne's School of Geography, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences. Her work bridges child and youth geographies with environmental politics, focusing on intergenerational negotiations in immigrant households during the climate crisis. She leads an ESRC-funded project examining climate responses in Manchester and Melbourne, and collaborates on the Leverhulme Trust’s ‘Inclusive Environmental Sustainabilities’ initiative.

Education: PhD in Sociology (UCL Institute of Education, 2016); MSc Social Science (University of London, 2010); BA Hispanic Studies (University of Nottingham, 2007).

Research interests include children’s environmental agency, sustainability education, and cross-national studies. Methodological expertise spans narrative analysis, photo-elicitation, and ethical research with vulnerable groups. She contributed to the UN SDGs 4 (Education) and 13 (Climate Action).

Grants/Advising: ESRC New Investigator Award (2021–2023), Leverhulme Trust (2021–2024). Supervised students at University of Birmingham and co-organized community engagement events on climate change and sustainability with immigrant communities.

Labs/Teams: Core member of the Sustainable Consumption Institute, collaborating with Melbourne researchers to advance migrant-focused environmental research agendas.