SEE Here School of Earth and Environment In this update: WELCOME from the Head of School & Editors Research successes and prizes awarded In the news: highlighting where our research has hit the headlines Learning and Teaching update on our ADF and UTF projects Update on the building project and a summary of sustainable features Meet our new staff And now for the fun bit... Next Issue: Autumn 2010 Welcome to an update on our activity in 2009! The 2008/09 academic year was an extremely successful one for the School affirming our status as a leading centre for research across and between a broad range of disciplines and as a provider of high quality taught programmes. The ethos of research excellence as the basis for teaching continues to provide benefits. Notably, the excellent National Student Survey responses and the RAE assessment of our research outputs, environment and esteem show that our hard work is valued by both our students and peers. The coming year will bring new challenges, but it will also bring exciting opportunities to the School. Most notably, the move to the new SEE Building will provide a single, state-of-the-art home for the School to move forward in as we seek to address key global research challenges and to train the next generation of students in a dynamic, collegiate environment. Here’s to a successful 2009 / 2010 ! Andy Dougill, Piers Forster and Joanna Bowen, Autumn 2009 2008/2009 has been an exceptional year of research successes for our school. The year began with us waiting nervously for the Research Assessment Exercise (RAE) results – a 5 year peer review of our School’s research. We needn’t have worried, our peers confirmed our place as one of the country’s very best research establishments - second only to Edinburgh in research power (see Nature Figure below) and praising our world leading publication record in many areas. This success has continued this year with many ground-breaking publications – see some of the highlights later in this newsletter. We have also achieved an unprecedented level of funding success and have attracted international leading researchers to new appointments. We have continued to attract high level of funding from the National Environment Research Council (NERC), with the University a very narrow second (to Edinburgh again) in total NERC income awarded. We will also soon welcome three NERC Advanced Research Fellows to the School (Dom Spracklen, Bridget Wade, Phil Livermore). These are highly competitive and provide 5 years of dedicated research funding for world-leading researchers. The last year also saw the successful launch of the ESRC Centre for Climate Change Economics and Policy that we co-host with the LSE. We have also continued to grow and diversify our industrial funding targeting a range of key sectors such as energy, water and environmental consultancy. The School has challenges ahead to continue to diversify research funding and gear up for the new Research Excellence Framework that will likely assess six publications from every academic staff member between 2008-2012, using both subjective and biblometric indicators. Nevertheless, with the move to the new building and the further external £1.2 million investment in new laboratory equipment, we are very well placed to push the frontiers of interdisciplinary research for many years to come. SEE Here: Research in the News Melting Icebergs help to slow global warming Melting icebergs are doing their own bit to halt the onward march of global warming. By releasing iron into the Southern Oceans, melting icebergs are fuelling the growth of plankton – which help to remove a substantial amount of CO2 from the atmosphere. Iron is an essential nutrient which limits the growth of plant life in the Southern Ocean. The main source of this iron is believed to be from atmospheric dust, but new evidence from the University of Leeds shows that icebergs could provide at least as much absorbable iron into the ocean. Supporting evidence from the Weddell Sea in the Southern Ocean shows that iron from melting icebergs acts as a fertilizer for plant life in the surrounding ocean. This in turn reduced the level of CO2 in the atmosphere – the main cause of climate change. “We’ve found a new source of iron delivery into the Southern Ocean, in the form of iron nanoparticles embedded in icebergs,” says Prof Rob Raiswell, a professor of sedimentary geochemistry at the University of Leeds. “This source has previously been overlooked because the iron in glacial sediments was assumed to be too inert for plankton to use, bet we have discovered iron oxides nanoparticulates that can be easily absorbed.” The research, funded by a Leverhulme Emeritus Fellowship and published in the journal Geochemical Transactions, used samples from icebergs and glaciers in Antarctica which were analysed using high resolution microscopy and chemical extraction methods to identify the iron nanoparticulates. The data allowed Leeds scientists to quantify the rates of nanoparticle iron supply from icebergs and assess the significance of these rates compared to other sources of iron. The results suggest that icebergs have a time-honored method of reducing rising CO2 levels. “We have reason to think that the iceberg delivery of nanoparticulate iron oxides during the last Ice Age (18000-21000 years ago) was a significant factor in maintaining the cold climate and the associated low CO2 concentrations. And if icebergs mitigated against climate warming in the past they should have the capacity to do so in the near future,” comments Raiswell. Autumn 2008 Autumn 2009 www.see.leeds.ac.uk www.see.leeds.ac.uk The thinning of a gigantic glacier in Antarctica is accelerating, scientists warned today. The Pine Island Glacier in West Antarctica, which is around twice the size of Scotland, is losing ice four times as fast as it was a decade years ago. The research, published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters, also reveals that ice thinning is now occurring much further inland. At this rate scientists estimate that the main section of the glacier will have disappeared in just 100 years, six times sooner than was previously thought. The Pine Island Glacier is located within the most inaccessible area of Antarctica - over 1000 km from the nearest research base - and was for many years overlooked. Now, scientists have been able to track the glacier's development using continuous satellite measurements over the past 15 years. "Accelerated thinning of the Pine Island Glacier represents perhaps the greatest imbalance in the cryosphere today, and yet we would not have known about it if it weren't for a succession of satellite instruments," says Professor Andrew Shepherd, a co-author of the research from the Sustainability Research Institute. "Being able to assemble a continuous record of measurements over the past 15 years has provided us with the remarkable ability to identify both subtle and dramatic changes in ice that were previously hidden," he adds. Scientists believe that the retreat of glaciers in this sector of Antarctica is caused by warming of the surrounding oceans, though it is too early to link such a trend to global warming. The 5,400 km squared region of the Pine Island Glacier affected today is big enough to impact the rate at which sea level rise around the world. "Because the Pine Island Glacier contains enough ice to almost double the IPCC's best estimate of 21st century sea level rise, the manner in which the glacier will respond to the accelerated thinning is a matter of great concern " says Professor Shepherd. The research was led by Professor Duncan Wingham at University College London, and was funded by NERC. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/8200680.stm Scientists have developed a new cleaning protocol for space hardware, such as the scoops of Mars rovers, which could be used on future “Search for Life” missions on other planets. The new protocol was developed as part of a project to investigate life that exists in extreme Arctic environments, which are the closest analogue we have on Earth to the surface of Mars.  The studies are also designed to help guide future NASA and ESA planetary missions. Published today in the journal Astrobiology, the decontamination protocol was developed and tested by scientists at the University of Leeds and NASA.  It deals with the dilemma known as ‘forward contamination’ - ensuring that bugs from Earth don’t hitch a ride across space and jeopardise the integrity of samples collected by rovers. The decontamination protocol involves a cocktail of chemicals that were applied and tested on various sampling devices, including a glacial ice core drill and a rover scoop. “We are trying to avoid a case of mistaken identity,” says Professor Liane Benning, a biogeochemist from the University of Leeds and co-author of the paper. “We know that on Mars, if present, any biological signatures will be extremely scarce. Therefore it is essential that we are able to minimise ‘background noise’ and to document just how clean our sampling devices really are before we use them,” she adds. “We are now able to fully decontaminate sampling devices in the lab and field to null levels of detectable organic biosignatures, before any samples are collected.  Importantly, this new procedure doesn’t just sterilise, but it also cleans off any trace organic molecules of dead organisms,” says Professor Benning. The work was carried out as part of the Arctic Mars Analog Svalbard Expeditions (AMASE) which uses Svalbard (a set of islands in the Arctic ocean at 74-80°N) as an international test site for NASA and ESA “Search for Life” instrumentation scheduled to fly on future Mars missions. Svalbard is an excellent terrestrial analogue environment to Mars as life is scarce and it has a similar geology and many pristine glaciers. “This work also enabled recent habitability and biomarker preservation studies in the extreme glacial settings of Svalbard.  In addition, this work will guide future planetary missions, especially those to icy regions in the Solar System, such as Mars, or the moons of Jupiter and Saturn (Europa and Enceladus) where we are interested in understanding the potential habitats of cold-loving organisms living in ice,” says Dr Jennifer Eigenbrode, NASA research scientist. This work was carried out during the 2005 and 2006 field seasons of AMASE and was funded by a NASA ASTEP award to co-author Andrew Steele at the Carnegie Institution of Washington and grants from the Earth and Biosphere Institute at the University of Leeds to Liane G. Benning. The image shows the testing of next generation rovers onboard the Arctic Mars Analogue Svalbard Expedition. This "Cliffbot" rover is being designed to sample rock outcrops on Mars and the Moon where scientifically relevant samples are easier to access. Photo courtesy of Kvell Ove Storvik, Arctic Mars Analog Svalbard Expedition (AMASE). Rover courtesy of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology. Communities living on the Atlantic coasts of Ireland and Scotland must rediscover their shared Gaelic heritage to secure a peaceful and sustainable future, argues a new book by sustainability expert and walking enthusiast Joseph Murphy. At the Edge: Walking the Atlantic Coast of Ireland and Scotland tells the story of a 1500 km walk from Kerry to Lewis along the dramatic west coast of Ireland and Scotland and combines Gaelic history, culture and language, with sustainable development and a passion for walking. Over three months Joseph Murphy climbed mountains, traversed bogs and explored the communities and towns along the length of this coast. His book describes not just the stunning landscapes, but the warmth of the people he met, the challenges they face today, and the 2000 years of Gaelic history and culture that have shaped the region. "People on this coastline live in different countries and follow different religions. I want to show that they have Gaelic history, culture and language in common and that this can inform and underpin a vision of sustainability for the region," says Joseph Murphy, a Senior Research Fellow in the School of Earth and Environment. "Walking the coastline was also a chance to connect with part of my heritage that I knew almost nothing about. I think lots of people with Irish and Scottish heritage are in a similar position," adds Murphy. Gaelic (Irish and Scottish) is woven into the text throughout as the author rejoices in the cultural treasures of Ireland and Scotland, such as the illuminated manuscripts of Celtic Christianity and poetry of Aogán ó Rathaile and Alasdair MacMhaighstir Alasdair.  Murphy also describes breathtaking walks, including a ten hour hike along the Bangor trail through the Nephin Beg Mountains of Ballycroy National Park. However, At the Edge also deals with the more uneasy episodes in the region’s history – delving into difficult but unavoidable topics such as the Famine in Ireland, the Troubles in Northern Ireland and the Clearances in Scoland. The book draws heavily on Murphy’s career as an academic who has studied sustainable development, to make a passionate case for putting community, local decision-making and cultural values at the centre of sustainable development - rather than emphasising national or global priorities. For example, at the end of his walk he passed through the communities of Bràgar (Bragar) and Nis (Ness) on Lewis where local people were resisting a proposal for a giant wind farm. It has since been turned down. The development would have transformed the area, effectively industrialising a rural landscape and potentially undermining an important Gaelic speaking community. "It was hard for local people to resist because wind turbines represent clean energy and everyone knows that climate change is a problem. But in effect the imperative of sustainable development was being used unfairly against the community by developers." Murphy believes that communities should be able to define sustainable development for themselves and that they should be given the opportunity to pursue their vision. Alex Salmond, First Minister of Scotland, endorses the book and shares Joseph Murphy’s belief in the importance of the shared Gaelic history and culture of Ireland and Scoland.  "Today we must find ways to encourage and support Gaelic communities and regenerate this rich inheritance to the benefit not only of Scotland and Ireland but of their immediate neighbours and the wider world," he says. Salmond adds, "It is surely the case... that culture and language must be part of any meaningful definition of sustainability." Dr Murphy’s trip was sponsored by Colmcille, a cross border institution established in the context of Northern Ireland's Good Friday Agreement to strengthen links between Ireland, Northern Ireland and Scotland. He received additional support from the Scottish Arts Council. More information on the book is available from Sandstone Press. New cleaning protocol for future “search for life” missions SEE Here: Research in the News SEE Here: Research in the News SEE Here: Research in the News SEE Here: Successes and Awards New investment in SEE Infrastructure As we look forward to moving into our new building in the New Year, we have secured significant external investment in the School’s equipment and infrastructure totalling more than £1 million. This has been added to from the School’s Infrastructure Fund (SIF), to ensure that we will have the latest state of the art equipment and facilities to enable our delivery of world-leading research and high quality teaching across the School in the coming years. This investment includes: HEFCE funds of £648k to replace research equipment (with matched funding from the SIF) A Royal Society Wolfson Award of £300k to provide a new environmentally controlled research lab for the Sorby Multiphase Fluid Flow Lab New teaching equipment to add to University TCAP funds of £200k for new microscopes Staff & Research Students report on their recent research in Antarctica: A walk through Gaelic history and culture We are hosting three NERC Advanced Fellowships from Autumn 2009, including the School’s own Dom Spracklen for work on the impact of the biosphere on atmospheric aerosol and climate. Bruce Yardley has been awarded a Humboldt Research Award by the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation. In the course of the next two and a half years he will be spending 12 months carrying out research in Germany, based at the Geoforschungzentrum Potsdam, Free University, Berlin. Graham Stuart has been awarded the New Zealand Geophysics Prize for 2008 along with co-authors Martin Reyners and Donna Eberhart-Phillips for their Nature article entitled "The role of fluids in lower-crustal earthquakes near continental rifts" (Nature, v. 446, p. 1075-1078), Liane Benning has been awarded a Royal Society Wolfson Research Merit Award. Only 25 awards are made each year and they are given by the Royal Society ‘to individuals of proven outstanding ability to undertake independent, original research’. Dave Gubbins has been awarded the European Geosciences Union Arthur Holmes Medal. This is in recognition of Dave’s exceptional international standing in Solid Earth Geosciences, merit and scientific achievements. Emma Tompkins will be spending much of the next year working at the Dept for International Development as a Senior Research Fellow assessing climate change adaptation policies. SEE success! The completion of the external construction of our new building was celebrated with a traditional Topping-Out Ceremony on 12 March. Robert Sladdin (Director of Estates) is pictured laying the last of the concrete watched by Andy Dougill (Head of School), Jerry Lee and Marge Wilson. “This building is a well-deserved home for our School, which has been recognised as one of the very best in the country” said Andy. Work is progressing on the internal fittings and, all being well, we are looking forward to moving in early in 2010! Topping Out Ceremony, March 2009 Issue 1 Autumn 08 Ancient Volcanic Eruptions caused global mass extinction SEE Here: Research in the News ICAS (and NCAS) investigate atmospheric impacts on climate change Aerosol: a key piece of the climate change puzzle Fitting all the different pieces of the climate change puzzle together is one of the major challenges of our age. Aerosol is a key piece of this puzzle, but the size and shape of its effect is still unclear - a fact that jeopardises the reliability of all current predictions of climate change. Now, a new £630,000 project has been launched at the University of Leeds to tackle the conundrum of how aerosol affects climate. Aerosols are small particles suspended in the atmosphere, such as soot in smoke or chemicals emitted by trees, and are known by experts to have a huge cooling effect on our planet. This is because these particles act as tiny mirrors that reflect sunlight back into space. This effect is thought to be so large that, since the industrial period, the climactic cooling effect of aerosols has largely cancelled out the warming effect of greenhouse gases. This phenomenon has often been referred to as global dimming. "Aerosol is the most important factor that affects climate after greenhouse gases," says Professor Ken Carslaw from the University of Leeds, who is leading the research. "Aerosol pretty much counteracts a large part of global warming caused by greenhouse gases, meaning that temperature changes over the industrial period would have been a lot more intense if it weren’t for aerosol," explains Professor Carslaw. Aerosol has been described by the IPCC as the biggest source of uncertainty in climate change models. Being able to reduce uncertainty in climate models is important because it affects how confident we can be in models that predict the intensity of future climate changes. "The potentially catastrophic consequences of climate change mean that policy makers are no longer satisfied with climate scientists explaining that they have ten models that give a range of answers," adds Professor Carslaw. Currently there is very little understanding of why aerosol is such an uncertain factor in climate change. But unlike greenhouse gases, which have clear sources and spread evenly through the atmosphere, aerosols are affected by a range of complex factors including weather patterns, so it is much harder to predict their climatic effect. The project, which also involves the Met Office Hadley Centre and the University of Oxford, aims to design advanced global models of aerosols by identifying specific processes that lead to aerosol production and try and quantify the levels of uncertainty of each. The work will draw heavily on existing data sets from aircraft, surface observatories and satellites that have yet to be fully exploited and the global aerosol model that has already been developed at Leeds (Global Model of Aerosol Processes). The Aerosol Model Robustness and Sensitivity Study (AEROS) is a 3-year study funded by the Natural Environment Research Council in the UK. For more information please contact Professor Ken Carslaw K.S.Carslaw@leeds.ac.uk SEE 2009: Meet our New Staff for 2009/10; Fun and Games Meet our new staff for 2009/10: Academic Staff Emily Boyd, Lecturer in Environment and Development Mark Hildyard, Lecturer in Geomechanics Nicolas Houlie, Lecturer in Geophysics Peter Knippertz, Lecturer in Dynamical Meteorology Phil Livermore, NERC Advanced Fellow IGT Vern Manville, Water@Leeds Lecturer Caroline Peacock, Lecturer in Biogeochemistry Richard Phillips, Lecturer in Structural Geology Claire Quinn, Lecturer in Natural Resource Management Andy Shepherd, Professor of Earth Observation Bridget Wade, NERC Advanced Fellow ESSI Research Staff Luis Coimbra e Silva, PDRA IGT working with Jon Mound Lynn Evans, PDRA IGT working with Greg Houseman Yong Ren, PDRA IGT working with Greg Houseman and Graham Stuart Kerstin Schepanski, PDRA ICAS working with Peter Knippertz Tadashi Yamasaki, PDRA IGT working with Greg Houseman Teaching Staff Sarah Bradbury, Teaching Assistant SRI Graham McLeod, L&T Project Officer working with Rob Mortimer on the ADF Geological Compass Project Clerical / Administrative /Technical Staff Tan Pheng Chua (TP) UG Administrator covering Katrina Firth’s maternity leave Alex Shirvani, PGT Admissions Officer Nick Sinopoulos, Facilities Technician Also welcoming to new roles…. Sam Allshorn, PDRA ESSI working with Simon Bottrell Nesha Beharry-Borg, Lecturer in Water Resource Management (Water@Leeds) Lucie Middlemiss, Lecturer in Sustainability Dan Morgan, Lecturer in Igneous Petrology Tim Needham, Senior Lecturer in Applied Structural Geology Dominic Spracklen, NERC Advanced Fellow ICAS Our prize and award winners WELCOME WELCOME WELCOME 2 3 4 5 6 7 11 Piecing together Antarctica’s lost forest 50 million years ago Antarctica wasn't the icy wasteland we think of today, but a lush green forest. Our knowledge of Antarctica's forest is patchy - but now an innovative project at the University of Leeds is providing a new insight into this lost ecosystem. The forest on Antarctica existed during a period of global warmth when there were no ice caps. Fossilised leaves provide one of the only clues about the ecosystem, and very little is understood about any insect or animal life that lived there. The new study compares the limited fossil records with leaves from Chilean forests today. A close comparison of the fossilised leaves with the Chilean leaves allow scientists to gather clues about the insect life that existed in the ancient forests. Comparing the leaves also gives a good indication of what kind of climate existed millions of years ago on Antarctica, and the evolutionary history of the southern hemisphere. "The vegetation in Antarctica in the Eocene period, 50 million years ago, was very similar to that in Chile today - suggesting strong evolutionary connections between Antarctica and South America," says Claire McDonald, a PhD student in SEE who led the research. McDonald spent six months collecting over 100,000 leaves from comparable trees in six sites in central and southern Chile for the study. "It is possible to directly compare the bite marks on fossilised leaves with the bite marks on leaves from modern Chilean forests," explains McDonald. During her time in the Chilean forests McDonald became a tree-climbing expert, devising her own method of using ropes and pulleys to collect leaves without damaging any trees. She then laboriously compared all 100,000 leaves with around 2,000 fossils of ancient leaves that originate from the King George Island and Seymour Island on the Antarctic Peninsula. The leaves show startlingly similar patterns of insect attack, which gives clues to the kind of bugs that existed in Antarctica, as there are currently no fossilised records of insects. McDonald found leaf evidence of insects including beetles, larvae of sawflies, moths and butterflies. Interestingly, she discovered small reproduction chambers on both sets of leaves which indicate that other invertebrates, called nematodes, may also have lived in the forests of Antarctica. The degree of insect attack sheds light on the type of forest that grew in Antarctica, and hence the climate around 50 million years ago. The work confirms that Antarctica benefited from warm westerly currents, especially in the western peninsula, unlike the cold currents that it experiences today. This work was part of a PhD research project funded by the Earth and Biosphere Institute at the University of Leeds and the British Antarctic Survey. The fieldwork in Chile also received funding from the Antarctic Science Bursary, The Trans-Antarctic Association, The Paleontological Association, The Geological Society, The Glasgow Education and Marshall Trust and The Vegetarian Charity. www.see.leeds.ac.uk Autumn 2009 4 A previously unknown giant volcanic eruption that led to global mass extinction 260million years ago has been uncovered by a group of scientists which includes Professor Paul Wignall (ESSI). The eruption in the Emeishan province of south-west China unleashed around half a million cubic kilometres of lava, covering an area 5 times the size of Wales, and wiping out marine life around the world. Unusually, scientists were able to pinpoint the exact timing of the eruption and directly link it to a mass extinction event in the study published today in Science.  This is because the eruptions occurred in a shallow sea - meaning that the lava appears today as a distinctive layer of igneous rock sandwiched between layers of sedimentary rock containing easily datable fossilised marine life. The layer of fossilised rock directly after the eruption shows mass extinction of different life forms, clearly linking the onset of the eruptions with a major environmental catastrophe. The global effect of the eruption is also due to the proximity of the volcano to a shallow sea.  The collision of fast flowing lava with shallow sea water caused a violent explosion at the start of the eruptions - throwing huge quantities of sulphur dioxide into the stratosphere. “When fast flowing, low viscosity magma meets shallow sea it’s like throwing water into a chip pan - there’s spectacular explosion producing gigantic clouds of steam,” explains Professor Paul Wignall, a palaeontologist in the School of Earth and Environment, and the lead author of the paper. The injection of sulphur dioxide into the atmosphere would have lead to massive cloud formation spreading around the world - cooling the planet and ultimately resulting in a torrent of acid rain.  Scientists estimate from the fossil record that the environmental disaster happened at the start of the eruption.  “The abrupt extinction of marine life we can clearly see in the fossil record firmly links giant volcanic eruptions with global environmental catastrophe, a correlation that has often been controversial,” adds Professor Wignall. Previous studies have linked increased carbon dioxide produced by volcanic eruptions with mass extinctions.  However, because of the very long term warming effect that occurs with increased atmospheric carbon dioxide (as we see with current climate change) the causal link between global environmental changes and volcanic eruptions has been hard to confirm.  This work was done in collaboration with the Chinese University of Geosciences in Wuhan and funded by a grant from the Natural Environment Research Council, UK. The original paper in Science: http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/abstract/324/5931/1179 Senior NCAS/ICAS Scientist briefs on Geo-Engineering Dr Alan Gadian, one of NCAS’ senior research scientists, who is based in ICAS, has recently been invited to give national and international talks on the back of recent theoretical study into the feasibility of seeding clouds to counter global warming1. This paper, published with colleagues from the US National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) and Centre for Atmospheric Science at the University of Manchester, is based on an original idea by Professor John Latham2.  It examines the feasibility of initiating (or growing) extensive clouds over the sea, by spraying microscopic seawater droplets into the atmosphere. In theory this could increase the reflectivity of the earth - known as the albedo - with the clouds reflecting back more of the sunlight into space, thus cooling the earth.  These droplets would be pumped into the air solar and wind powered vessels, this is an example of what has commonly become known as Geo-Engineering...... 1. Latham J., Rasch P., Chih-Chieh Chen, Kettles L, Gadian A, Gettelman A, Morrison H, Bower K, Choularton T.  2008, Global temperature stabilization via controlled albedo enhancement of low-level maritime clouds. Phil. Trans. R. Soc. A (doi:10.1098/rsta.2008.0137) 2. Latham J. 2000, Control of global warming? Nature 347, 339-340 (doi:10.1038/347339b0) Geo-Engineering schemes hope to minimise, reduce or alter the effect of climate change by changing the properties of our environment.  Geo-engineering methods either try to directly reduce the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere - known as carbon sequestration - or they look to modify the earth's solar reflectivity cooling the planet by increasing the amount of sunlight reflected back to space. Very recently the interest in geo-engineering has grown, both politically and in the media.  The attention has now turned to environmental scientists to provide an independent scientific view on the possibilities of implementing geo-engineering projects to compensate for the effects of man made climate changes. The results show that, whilst in principle this cloud whitening scheme could have an important role to play in global temperature stabilisation, there are current gaps in scientific knowledge on whether the technique is capable of producing significant cooling.  Cloud seeding www.see.leeds.ac.uk Autumn 2009 5 www.see.leeds.ac.uk Autumn 2009 2 www.see.leeds.ac.uk Autumn 2009 Antarctic glacier thinning at an alarming rate www.see.leeds.ac.uk Autumn 2009 6 Industrialisation of China increases fragility of global food supply Global grain markets are facing breaking point according to new research by Dr Elisabeth Simelton (SRI) into the agricultural stability of China. Experts predict that if China's recent urbanisation trends continue, and the country imports just 5% more of its grain, the entire world's grain export would be swallowed whole. The knock-on effect on the food supply - and on prices - to developing nations could be huge. Sustainability researchers have conducted a major study into the vulnerability of Chinese cropland to drought over the past 40 years, which has highlighted the growing fragility of global grain supply. Increased urban development in previously rich farming areas is a likely cause. "China is a country undergoing a massive transformation, which is having a profound effect on land use," says Dr Elisabeth Simelton, research fellow at the Sustainability Research Institute at the University of Leeds, and lead author of the study. "Growing grain is a fundamentally low profit exercise, and is increasingly being carried out on low quality land with high vulnerability to drought." The study looked at China's three main grain crops; rice, wheat and corn, to assess how socio-economic factors affect their vulnerability to drought.  Researchers compared farming areas with a resilient crop yield with areas that have suffered large crop losses with only minor droughts. They found that traditionally wealthy coastal areas are just as susceptible to drought as areas with poor topography in the east of the country. "Quality land is increasingly being used for high profit crops, such as vegetables and flowers.  The impact of this on local and global economies is an issue that the newly created Centre for Climate Change, Economics and Policy (CCCEP) will address," explains Dr Simelton. …/cont. CCCEP is a partnership between the University of Leeds and the London School of Economics.  Its main objectives include developing better climate change models and understanding how developing countries can adapt to climate change. At the moment the Chinese government claims that China is 95% self sufficient in terms of grain supply.  If China were to start importing just 5% of its grain (to make up a shortfall produced by low yields or change of land use to more profitable crops) the demand would hoover up the entire world's grain export. The pressure on grain availability for international grain markets could, in turn, have a huge knock-on effect. Poorer countries are particularly vulnerable, as demonstrated by the 2007-2008 food crisis. Published in the journal Environmental Science and Policy, the study used provincial statistics of harvests and rainfall together with qualitative case studies to establish the differences between land that is sensitive to drought and land that is not. "One aim of this research is better understanding of the socio-economic responses to difficult conditions so that we can improve models of climate change" says Dr Simelton. "These trends of urbanisation are also happening in India, with the population predicted to keep on rising until at least 2050.  Ultimately the limiting factor for grain production is land, and the quality of that land." The research is part of the Quantifying and Understanding the Earth System (QUEST) project and has been funded by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC).  QUEST aims to look at global scale impacts of climate change across a range of areas including fisheries, agriculture, and epidemiology. www.see.leeds.ac.uk Autumn 2009 7 www.see.leeds.ac.uk Autumn 2009 11 And now for the fun bit... Suduko Instructions: Using the digits O-9 and the letters A-F, fill the grid so that every column, row and block contains the digits 0-9 and letters A-F. No number or letter can repeat within any column, row or block. Optical Illusion At first this image appears to be a spiral but its actually a set of independent circles. SEE Here: Update on our New Building www.see.leeds.ac.uk Autumn 2009 9 Our New Building The University of Leeds has shown its commitment to the merged School of Earth and Environment by earmarking £23.5 million for a new building. The project is the biggest single building project on campus and will be completed by the end of 2009. The building project will refurbish the existing Earth Sciences building and add a new wing. Progress on site Work continues apace on our new building project. The laboratory tower was handed over to us in late April and, despite a few teething problems, we have gradually been reoccupying the laboratory space in the subsequent months. The remainder of the refurbishment and the new wing elements of the project are virtually on schedule. The furniture fit out will commence from mid-November and, all being well, we will be moving into the building in early 2010. SEE Here: Building Project Sustainability Features www.see.leeds.ac.uk Autumn 2009 10 The building will incorporate a whole host of sustainable features both in its construction and use: REDUCE Air-tightness 92.5% Thermal mass and natural ventilation designed to minimise cooling requirements Solar-reducing glass—Low ‘E’ Sophisticated BMS Major enabler for behavioural change Educational & research benefits Low Energy Lighting Systems LUX level sensors Efficiency Improvements in M&E Plant Low energy-rated plant Commissioning of Building Developing a scheme to enable building commissioning at maximum efficiency Energy Monitoring and Display Building user display panels to actively monitor energy performance and encourage involvement in reducing energy consumption Occupancy and PIR sensors—linked to heating, lighting and ventilation plant Enhanced metering strategy Lighting control system—daylight sensing CO2 detection in seminar spaces to improve air quality Energy Efficient Equipment LV fume cupboard where possible in analytical labs Increase Renewable Energy Usage Photo-Voltaic Cells Reduce Energy Use To maximise natural light penetration RE-USE Refurbishment of Univ Building Significant enhancement of building energy and performance—reduce energy consumption and CO2 emissions Upgrade façade—enhanced glazing spec and increased insulation (minimise solar gain and reduce cooling load) Maximise re-use of all existing materials (Target 75%) Reduce waste and re-use material on construction site Reduce Depletion of Non-renewable Materials Reduce School’s carbon emissions and increase efficiency through maximised use of CHP plant—further reductions in future energy costs for heating and electricity Water Saving Measures Rainwater harvesting Low flow taps and low capacity flush WC systems – including aerated taps and showers, and waterless urinals Rainwater attenuation to reduce peak surface water discharges – 1 in 100 year storm RECYCLE Recycling Maximum use of Cat A and recycled materials 30% target and work with Recycle Action Yorkshire Furniture and fit-out to maximise recycled materials e.g. furniture tender to include recycled and recyclable products Ecological Enhancements The area surrounding our new building and extending into the central campus is being re-landscaped and planted with bio-diverse native meadow Images of the New Building Above: Inside the new UG Reception area looking towards the UG Office, Level 10 Bottom Left: The new glass link bridge between the old and new buildings Bottom Right: Landscaping underway in the outdoor space between the buildings www.see.leeds.ac.uk Autumn 2009 8 SEE Here: Learning and Teaching The School of Earth and Environment has seen its overall satisfaction score in the National Student Survey rise from 86% last year to 91% for 2009. Scores were above the University of Leeds average in all categories, placing us 5th out of 40 departments across the campus, a significant rise from 23rd place last year. Scores for BA and BSc Environment programmes remain high, and scores for Geology programmes are also now high, following significant improvements in all areas assessed by this survey of final year students. Well done and thank you to all of the staff involved in making the improvements that have been reflected in our extremely positive 2009 NSS results, especially Rob Mortimer and Andrea Jackson. NSS Success! Enchinoderms from Scanning Electron Microscope Facility, E Condliffe The editors would like to thank all those who contributed text and images to this issue of SEE Here. The next issue will be produced and distributed in Autumn 2010 Research Success: Second to One Building on the success of last year's National Student Survey, we have a number of important Learning and Teaching projects underway in the School. ‘Countdown to University Study’ is a new on-line resource to help incoming undergraduate students adapt to university life through explaining what it’s like to be a student at Leeds, what’s expected of them within their discipline, and the breadth of opportunities open to them. Some of the key features include: An introduction to their degree programme and key teaching staff, with a video welcome from their programme manager Videos case studies of current students talking about their degree, life within the School and university – and top tips for surviving the first few weeks Information to help prepare students for a different approach to learning Examples of inspiring research, and how they will engage with research through their studies Optional activities that will be followed up in classes when they arrive Photo galleries of field trips and laboratory classes to provide a flavour of what they will experience A forum and social networking site where new students can meet, chat and work together before they even set foot in Leeds. The resource is available to students through Blackboard as soon as their place has been confirmed at Leeds and is being trialled for the first time this year. The next few months will evaluate the resource so that improvements can be made for next year. A similar resource has also been created for the School of Geography. The project is being co-ordinated by Dr Andrea Jackson and developed by Andrew Smith (learning technologist) with financial support from the University’s Academic Development Fund. A web based version of the resource can be viewed at https://vlebb.leeds.ac.uk. Send any comments and ideas for contributions for the next version to Andrea (andrea@env.leeds.ac.uk). Dr Andrea Jackson, Countdown to University Life Project Leader Screenshots from the Countdown to University Life Website 'Pathways to success' will see a re-launch of our Geological Sciences (GS) programme with a modified structure and innovative new e-learning resources and support.  The project aims are: To create a distinctive new GS programme in which students can follow bespoke ‘pathways’ or ‘tracks’ which augment the core curriculum and develop distinctive skills appropriate to particular areas of graduate research and/or employment. To produce an electronic ‘Course Compass’ to help students navigate these pathways through the programme and make informed module choices. To facilitate this programme through distinct practical teaching by developing a dynamic research-led specimen collection, with an accompanying e-collection of supporting material relevant to each track.  The project is being co-ordinated by Rob Mortimer, Dan Morgan and other staff within the School with financial support from the University’s Academic Development Fund. ‘Evaluating feedback mechanisms in the School of Earth and Environment’ is a project being carried out by Rob Mortimer as part of his University Teaching Fellowship. Although our National Student Survey (NSS) scores for assessment and feedback have shown a substantial increase over the last year, this remains an area where we remain actively engaged with our students to ensure that they get the best learning experience. The project will build on the introduction of last year’s highly effective ‘Feedback Week’ and will see introduction of further feedback sessions, a review of best practice in feedback across the sector, and a consultation with staff and students within the School regarding our current systems. The aim will be to produce a series of guidelines as to how we can further improve the feedback given for our assessments. The above projects are in-line with last year’s L&T themes: Communication; Engagement in L&T; Research into Teaching; Consistency; Student Support; and Portfolio Rationalisation. Many of these are ongoing but new themes for the year ahead include: Efficiency and Student Etiquette. School of Earth and Environment University of Leeds Leeds LS2 9JT t 0113 343 5222 f 0113 343 5259 www.see.leeds.ac.uk New Learning and Teaching Initiatives in the School Image: Man vs the Volcano, Montserrat, West Indies Mark Thomas (SEE Photo Competition Winner 2009) Watch out for the SEE Photo Competition 2010—there will be a prize to be won!