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A research programme in the Department of Landscape, University of Sheffield from 1993 to the present has developed radically new types of designed urban plant communities that support a rich native biodiversity, embody low carbon, and contribute to storm-water infiltration into soils, reducing urban flooding. These communities are simple to maintain, cost-effective, and highly attractive. This combination of factors has led to wide application in practice by government agencies, local authorities, and by the public in private gardens. We were invited to apply our approach in full at the London 2012 Olympic Park, the largest and most high profile Landscape Architecture project in the world in 2012, and this in itself has had great impact on international thought and practice.
The applied use of earthworms in soil restoration, bio-monitoring, agro-ecosystems and organic waste management has had wide-reaching impact on the commercial sector and the public. A variety of commercial groups (such as the Forestry Commission and BAE Systems) have benefitted from this research in both the UK and abroad. In addition to this, earthworm research has also reached the public domain through outreach activities and media coverage. For example, this UoA was involved in a National Open Air Laboratories campaign. Our earthworm identification guide produced in collaboration with the Natural History Museum in London has now been widely distributed and used.
Newcastle research into improving commercial soil-based greenhouse productivity has led to an increase in profitability (due to higher yields and lower costs) and a significant reduction in the negative environmental impacts of commercial, organic and other soil-based greenhouse crop production systems in Europe (UK, Greece and Crete). Newcastle's research has led to improved profits to UK organic tomato farmers estimated to be up to £100,000/ha/year and has allowed large scale organic greenhouse production to be a viable option to meet the demands of the UK organic market. In Greece increased profits are estimated at €25,000 per ha/year and in Crete the estimated value of reduced soil disease control and pest management is €110,000 per ha/year.
Professor Gowing and his associates' research demonstrated the sensitivity of grassland species to soil moisture regime. They developed a method for quantifying the relationship between plant community composition and soil moisture regime which showed that controlling water levels in traditional ways led to conservation of important plant species and/or enhanced diversity. This research led to the Environment Agency issuing practical guidelines to site managers for these internationally important sites, with a lead section written by Gowing. Advice has been given directly to owners and managers via the Floodplain Meadows Partnership led by the OU, engendering parallel studies abroad.
Research conducted by the University of Reading between 2002 and 2007 influenced management options mandated under the UK Government's agri-environmental schemes. Several innovative large-scale manipulative field experiments were used to measure the diversity of different groups of invertebrates in response to various management regimes in uncultivated field margins of farmland. The outcomes of this research fed directly into agri-environment scheme options and provided supportive evidence for management advice and advocacy work by several environmental non-government organisations. Changes in the management of field margins brought about through government scheme agreements and advocacy efforts by conservation groups has led to enhanced farmland biodiversity and improved habitat for threatened wildlife valued by the general public and conservationists.
Impacts: I) Improved provision of environmental services in Belize, including the creation of plant reference collections / databases and the training of conservation professionals and students. II) Land-management policy formation by the Government of Belize and NGOs.
Significance and reach: Over the period 2009 - July 2013 there has been a step-change in the quality of biodiversity monitoring carried out by NGOs and the Government of Belize; including the latter being better able to meet international reporting requirements. Over the same period, 40 conservation professionals have been trained in Belize.
Underpinned by: Research into savanna plant diversity, led by the University of Edinburgh (1996 - 2012).
The Sinai Baton Blue is the world's smallest butterfly, and is restricted to the St. Katherine Protectorate in the South Sinai region of Egypt. Research by Francis Gilbert's group on climate change and biodiversity in Egypt surveyed populations of the butterfly for the first time and ensured it received IUCN Critically Endangered status. The butterfly became the focus of biodiversity awareness campaigns in Egypt: appearing on a stamp, in Government-backed educational programmes in schools, and as the flagship species for conservation in Egypt's most important National Park. Current work contributes to international conservation of this extremely rare species and its host-plant, respecting indigenous Bedouin knowledge, benefitting their tribal community, and ensuring international conservation strategies incorporate local pastoralist traditions to sustain the genetic diversity of the planet.
This case study describes the impact of the research of the Centre for Earth and Ecosystem Responses to Environmental Change (CEEREC), MMU, on the protection and restoration of native ecosystems and upland semi-natural habitats that are affected by nitrogen pollution. CEEREC investigates the harm caused by nitrogen pollution to a range of semi-natural habitats. We also explore the impact of historic pollution in upland Britain and the potential for recovery through ecological restoration. Our research has informed evidence-based changes to UK, EU and US emission control policy and on the mitigation and restoration methods (e.g. `BeadaMoss™) of pollution affected landscapes.
This Unit's staff and associates have considerable expertise in land management, focussing on two issues faced in Africa; the management of communal rangelands and the management of native species for the benefit of local communities. Coventry University is a recognized centre of global knowledge on Prosopis, a series of economically and ecologically important tree species, but also widely-considered potentially serious weeds in many countries. Underpinning research carried out at Coventry was pivotal to the correct identification, evaluation and subsequent management and utilisation of the most common tropical species, Prosopis juliflora and Prosopis pallida. Other research, on the management of common rangelands, has provided an understanding of the way common land rights are expressed in communal areas and the social, political and ecological factors which govern them.
The Unit's research has led to economic impacts, including for The Mesquite Company (Texas) who generate USD 150,000 each year from the sale of Prosopis products. The research has also had impact on public policy and society in Kenya and South Africa. In Kenya, the Government changed its approach towards Prosopis from eradication towards management and lifted a blanket-ban on the use of plant-based charcoal as a result of the Unit's research. This enabled the Green Power Station (currently employing 2000 people) to be established. In South Africa, policy debate has been informed by research on the governance of common land. The research has also had impact on creativity, culture and society, informing public and political debate in South Africa, Kenya and India. Beneficiaries include businesses developing new products and producing energy; local communities in South Africa and Kenya, and the South African and Kenyan Governments.
Preziosi and his research group have taken a leading role in conducting biodiversity research in the Ecuadorian Amazon, working in collaboration with national and local governments and indigenous communities. It is critical to monitor and conserve biodiversity in the Ecuadorian Amazon and preserve this unique habitat for local, national and international benefit. Preziosi's research group have demonstrated that indigenous people can be trained to monitor biodiversity accurately. The impact of introducing these new skills to local people in the Payamino community is that they have been empowered to locally monitor and adaptively manage their own resources. By educating local people about the importance of biodiversity, Preziosi's research group have changed the behaviours and attitudes of the community, leading to reduced participation in environmentally harmful practices.