Meliora: a podcast from the Sustainability & Resilience Institute
Welcome to the Green Gown Award winning Meliora Podcast from the Sustainability and Resilience Institute at the University of Southampton!
This podcast explores the greatest and most wicked problem that is sustainability, whilst looking at how we are collectively addressing this critical global challenge.
Sustainability needs to be addressed by understanding how the economy, society, culture, politics and environment intersect, and this is the focus that informs each episode of the Meliora podcast.
In each episode, host Professor Simon Kemp and guest hosts are joined by a variety of guests, including academics, students, staff, researchers, alumni, community groups and business leaders.
The aim of the podcast is to shine a light on the vast range of topics surrounding sustainability and to allow listeners to learn about the critical challenges we face, as well as how they can be part of the solution. We also ensure our fantastic students have the opportunity to share their brilliant work with the world.
Podcast host: Professor Simon Kemp, Deputy Director of the Sustainability & Resilience Institute, University of Southampton
Podcast editors: Jack Dinham, Ellie Howell, Mya Harvey, Lily Killner, Sophie Green, Libby Kale, School of Geography and Environmental Science, University of Southampton
Podcast communications: Tyler Domone-Hollands, Hannah Parish, Alexander Ayerst, Maya Stevens, University of Southampton
Please do get in touch to discuss this podcast and any of the issues we raise by emailing sri@soton.ac.uk
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Meliora: a podcast from the Sustainability & Resilience Institute
Samuel Inkster: 'A knowledge, attitude and practices (K-A-P) study assessing social perceptions to plastic pollution in Can Tho, Vietnam'.
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In this episode of the Meliora Podcast Student Research Symposium we are joined by Samuel Inkster (MSci Environmental Science) to discuss his Independent Research Project 'A knowledge, attitude and practices (K-A-P) study assessing social perceptions to plastic pollution in Can Tho, Vietnam', which is part of the Sustainability & Resilience Institute (University of Southampton) and Mekong Institute (Can Tho University) research collaboration.
Humankind has become so attached to plastic, that it is now impossible to live a life without it. Plastic is everywhere, causing a multitude of health, environmental, and visual problems. However, few studies look at why we are continuing to and increasingly use plastic. This episode explores our perception of plastic disposal, in the most heavily impacted region, southeast Asia. It adopts the Knowledge, Attitude, Practices (KAP) study framework to comprehensively assess the perception of plastic pollution in Can Tho, Vietnam. Different perspectives were incorporated through a convergent parallel mixed-methods design, using both surveys and interviews. Results show that the residents in Can Tho have a strong knowledge of, and attitude to preventing plastic pollution, and that more knowledge leads to significantly higher attitude. Male respondents had significantly higher attitudes. The novelty of this study is that it is the first to apply the KAP method on the public in Can Tho, and amongst the minority of studies to look at people and plastic as interlinked. This study provides valuable insight, highlighting the gap between attitude and practice, suggesting solutions such as government soft power e.g. through incentives to give ease in adopting sustainable behaviour and behaviour centred education. It is through these suggestions that the capability, motivation and opportunity to adopt pro-environmental behaviour arise, and this will be critical in helping Vietnam transition away from plastic.
Episode guest: Samuel Inkster, MSci Environmental Science
Episode host: Prof Simon Kemp
Episode producer and editor: Mya Harvey
The Meliora Podcast Student Research Symposium is part of the 2026 Student Takeover Season where we celebrate the fantastic sustainability research work of our Undergraduate Students.
