Sustainable Development and Consumption

Sustainable Development and Consumption

Driving transformative, policy-relevant research on sustainable development and consumption to shape resilient, inclusive, and net-zero futures.​

The Cluster of Sustainable Development and Consumption​ (SDC) is an interdisciplinary research platform focused on advancing rigorous, policy-relevant scholarship on sustainability and development challenges in a globalised and digitally transforming economy. The cluster brings together researchers examining how patterns of resources utilisation, production and consumption, financial and market mechanisms, digital innovation, and public policy interact to shape sustainable and inclusive development outcomes, with a particular emphasis on emerging and transition economies.

The cluster adopts a systems-based perspective, recognising that sustainability challenges cannot be addressed through isolated disciplinary approaches. Instead, it investigates the interconnected roles of individual and organisational behaviour, business models, markets, technologies, and institutions. By integrating insights across these domains, the cluster seeks to generate evidence that informs both academic debate and real-world decision-making.​

Our goals

Impact

Advancing rigorous, interdisciplinary, and policy-relevant research that supports sustainable and inclusive development while informing real-world decision-making

Partnerships

Collaborating with researchers, industry, and policymakers to address complex, interconnected sustainability challenges

Thought leadership

Generating high-quality evidence that contributes to academic debate and shapes pathways in sustainability, climate action, and development

What we do

The cluster’s research activities are organised around four thematic pillars that provide intellectual structure while allowing flexibility and diversity in research approaches:

1. Digitalisation, Innovation, and Sustainable Development (Pillar lead: Dr Chung Phan)
Research in this pillar explores how digital technologies - such as platforms, data analytics, artificial intelligence, and financial technologies—can enable or hinder sustainable development, including their applications in circular economy models, production and climate solutions.
2. Sustainable Finance and Market Mechanisms (Pillar lead: Dr Fiza Qureshi)
This pillar focuses on the role of financial systems and market-based instruments in supporting sustainability and climate transitions, including green and transition finance, ESG and disclosure frameworks, carbon markets, FinTech, green FinTech, and climate-related financial risk.
3. Policy, Institutions, and Development Pathways (Pillar lead: Dr Tuan Chu)
This pillar examines regulatory design, governance structures, and institutional frameworks shaping sustainability outcomes, with an emphasis on comparative policy analysis, public policy, development trade-offs, and public - private coordination.
4. Sustainable Consumption and Behavioural Change (Pillar lead: Dr Vicki Little)
Research under this pillar examines household and firm-level consumption decisions, behavioural interventions, incentives, social norms, and institutional contexts that influence sustainable consumption practices.
Sustainability Development

Key expertise

  • Digitalisation Transformation, Innovation and Sustainable Development
  • Sustainable Finance and its Intersection with Technologies including FinTech
  • Policy, Institution, and Development Studies
  • Sustainable Consumption/Behaviour
  • Behavioural Finance and Economics

Key highlights

  • Co-led RMIT's Festival of Social Impact 2024
  • Total grant value of more than AUD 500,000 over the last 3 years
  • More than 30 Q1/A/A*-ranked publications

Cluster highlights

Cluster Lead​

Bob Mcclelland

Professor Robert McClelland​

Professor Robert McClelland is a distinguished academic leader with over 50 years in higher education and currently serves as Dean of The Business School at RMIT. He holds a PhD in Blended and Virtual Learning and is a Fellow of both the Royal Statistical Society and the Higher Education Academy. His expertise spans business education, research methods, sustainability, and digital health with 150 publications and has supervised over 40 doctoral candidates. Robert has led major international research projects, pioneered open learning degrees, and contributed to global initiatives in sustainability, health, and business innovation, while mentoring academic and research leaders worldwide.​

Associate Professor Huy Pham​

Associate Professor Huy Pham is an Associate Professor of Finance at RMIT University Vietnam. He leads sustainability initiatives across APAC and is a pioneer in integrating fintech, blockchain, and crypto into curricula. With over 40 publications in leading journals, his research spans sustainable finance, digital assets, and empirical finance, contributing to UN SDGs. As a recognised expert, he advises industry and speaks at ADB and APEC, with commentary featured in major global media. He previously served as CFO of GreenAnt and currently is CFO of MoneyFi.Fund, advancing AI-driven DeFi solutions for seamless stablecoin monetisation across digital asset ecosystems.

Cluster members​

  • Professor Tra Pham - Head of Department, Economics & Finance
  • Professor Bob Baulch - Professor, Economics
  • Dr Trinh Tran - Research Fellow Coordinator, Deputy Dean, Research & Innovation
  • Dr Irfan Ul Haq - Senior Lecturer, Logistics & Supply Chain
  • Dr Chung Phan - Lecturer, Economics
  • Dr Nhung Vu - Lecturer, Economics
  • Dr Richard Ramsawak - Senior Lecturer, Economics
  • Dr Nhu Do - Lecturer, Management
  • Dr Hanh Le - Lecturer, Finance
  • Dr Phuong Nguyen - Lecturer, Management
  • Dr Anushka Siriwardana - Lecturer, Digital Marketing
  • Dr My Dang - Lecturer, International Business
  • Dr Han Jung Woo - Interim Deputy Dean, Academic and Quality
  • Dr Que Tran - Lecturer, HRM
  • Dr Anh Dao - Senior Lecturer, Finance
  • Dr Jasper Teow - Lecturer, Digital Marketing
  • Dr Anh Nguyen Thi Van - Associate Program Manager, Digital Marketing
  • Dr Minh Nguyen - Lecturer, Blockchain Enabled Business
  • Dr Binh Nguyen Hoang - Lecturer, Accounting
  • Dr Vicki Little - Program Manager cum HDR Coordinator, Deputy Dean, Research & Innovation
  • Dr Fiza Qureshi - Senior Lecturer, Finance
  • Dr Hussein-Elhakim Al Issa - Lecturer, Management
  • Dr Huy Doan Bao - Senior Lecturer, Finance
  • Dr Anh Tuan Nguyen - Lecturer, Finance
  • Dr Samuel Buertey - Associate Program Manager, Accounting & Law
  • Dr Tuan Chu - Associate Program Manager, Undergraduate Business Programs
  • Mr Nhan Nguyen - Interim Associate Program Manager, Undergraduate Business Programs
  • Ms Nghia Luu - Associate Lecturer, Digital Marketing

Polycentric Approaches to the Management of Urban Water Resources in Southeast Asia - A Localization of the Sustainability Goals of Agenda 2030 and the New Urban Agenda at the City/Municipality Level (BORDA)

Grant/Funder: Sustainable development of urban regions, German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF)

Project lead: Dr Trinh Tran

Waste in Humanitarian Operations: Reduction and Minimisation (WORM)

Grant/Funder: Horizon Europe Framework Programme (HORIZON) - Coordination and Support Actions, European Commission

Project lead: Professor Robert McClelland, Dr Trinh Tran

Mekong Thought Leadership and Think Tanks Network / Flagship Study on “Urban Heat Resilience: Bridging Science, Policy, and Sustainable Design (ADPC)

Grant/Funder: The Mekong Thought Leadership and Think Tanks Network Program, ADPC

Project lead: Dr Trinh Tran

Mekong Delta Background Paper: land accumulation, land use and climate change

Funder: World Bank Vietnam

Project lead: Professor Bob Baulch

Vietnam Climate Tech Funding Ecosystem (CT-FE) 2025 Report

Funder: NEXVN

Project lead: Dr Duy Dang

Urban Heat Resilience: Bridging Science, Policy, and Sustainable Design in Thailand, Cambodia, and Vietnam

Grant/Funder: CLARE - ASEAN Program, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (UK)

Project lead: Dr Seng Kiong Kok

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