CDT SIS and NEXUS research featured in Nature International Journal of Science, August 2019

https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-019-02423-9

CDT SIS Conference

The fifth annual CDT-SIS conference is taking place on the 20th November 2019. This years conference will be titled: ‘Creating a Sustainable World’. Make sure to sign up to attend or present here: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/cdt-sis-conference-2019-creating-a-sustainable-future-tickets-59536590545

RunandRevise week Southampton Parkrun, 11th May 2019

Students and staff led by Prof Paul Kemp attended the Southampton Parkrun as part of the #RunandRevise week. #RunandRevise week, supported by Mind, is encouraging all 16–25 year old students to take a break from exam revision and improve their mental wellbeing through running.

Energy and Fish Waste in Columbia, 8th May 2019

Tumaco, Colombia is the second largest city on the Colombian pacific coast and has a large fishing industry. Fish waste there represents a significant organic waste stream that adds no value to fish-related industries, but causes severe environmental burdens. A Newton Institutional Links project funded by the British Council and Colciencias is aimed to tackle this waste stream. During the project a workshop was held with Tumaco local artisanal fishers associations on ‘Strengthening the Rural Economy through the Management and Use of its Waste in the Municipality of San Andres de Tumaco’ in April 2019. Very positive responses were received from artisanal fishers representatives with regard to keeping fish wastes for resource recovery instead of ocean dumping, and to trying out biogas fuelled cook stoves.

Interview with Tumaco artisanal fishermen associations:

The link to interview at Universidad Nacional de Colombia at Palmira: http://agenciadenoticias.unal.edu.co/detalle/article/junto-a-universidades-britanicas-la-un-sienta-las-bases-para-biorrefineria-en-tumaco.html

The project page on the University website: https://www.southampton.ac.uk/engineering/research/projects/development-of-binary-refine-systems.page

The Environmental labs Facebook post on the trip to Columbia: https://www.facebook.com/environmental.lab.university.of.southampton/posts/1183788731782249

UK Parliament declares climate change emergency, 1st May 2019

The UK Government on the 1st May 2019 declared a climate change emergency. The research being carried out by the NEXUS USRG is pivotal in helping tackle the effects of climate change.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-48126677

New NEXUS project – EWF NEXUS Brazil, April 2019

In Brazil, inland fisheries supplement livelihoods and provide an important source of protein for low-income communities. At the same time, to meet unprecedented demands for energy the development of hydroelectric power has resulted in more than 80% of electricity consumed being produced by this means, with plans to develop this resource further. While hydropower reduces poverty and increase quality of life, the impact on fisheries and the low-income people they support will be damaging if not managed sustainably, thus reflecting a classic Energy-Water-Food NEXUS challenge and a potential source of environmental conflict. This project will establish strong interdisciplinary collaborations involving early career researchers in Brazil and the UK through the establishment of a hub, in Minas Gerais, to develop solutions to global challenges that include sustainable energy for all, food security, and infrastructure. Activities will focus on transferring experience gained at the University of Southampton Strategic Research Group in NEXUS Science to quantify the impacts of large fish mortality events at existing dams (e.g. barotrauma), and develop fishing engineering solutions (e.g. behavioural deterrents using acoustics; optimisation modelling for decision-making and decommissioning of dams) to protect fisheries at both existing and planned sites. Successful solutions will bring positive socio-economic benefits, through reducing negative environmental impacts of the hydropower industry and consequently protecting fisheries resources. Impacts will also be generated through: i) the development of Brazilian capability in fishing engineering and ii) the transfer of tools and technology to partner organisations. Workshops will transfer results across organizations (e.g. energy industry, regulatory agencies, SME’s) and stimulate discussion aiming at improving and developing policies in Brazil to enhance sustainable resource development.

Project objectives:

1. Through using a state-of-the-art pressure chamber at the University of São João del-Rei (UFSJ) in Minas Gerais state, the project will quantify the impact of barotrauma associated with passage of commercially important fish through turbines/spillways.
2. Translate techniques developed at the University of Southampton (UoS) to test, under laboratory conditions, the deterrent effects of acoustic stimuli to repel test species away from hazardous areas (e.g. turbine intakes).
3. Develop a proof of concept optimisation planning tool to identify the best set of dam construction and decommissioning sites in a case study river network (São Francisco River in Minas Gerais state) to maximise hydropower generation potential while minimising negative ecosystem impacts.
4. Hold a series of workshops to facilitate knowledge transfer and training of early career researchers, engineers, and employees of SMEs in fishing engineering and to discuss policies to enhance fisheries conservation.

This work is supported by an Institutional Links grant, ID 332396528, under the Newton-Brazil Fund partnership. The grant is funded by the UK Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) and Universidade Federal de São João del-Rei and delivered by the British Council. For further information, please visit www.newtonfund.ac.uk.

Water, Energy and Food NEXUS conference 2019

The Water, Energy and Food NEXUS conference is taking place on the 10th April 2019 at Boldrewood Campus at the University of Southampton.

Please make sure to book your ticket now via the eventbrite page: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/water-energy-food-nexus-conference-tickets-57593612044

Farmers Today – Miscanthus Trials

Urban Nexus workshop outputs

Around 60 people took part in the Nexus Network Urban Nexus workshop on 12 and 13 May at the University of Sussex in Brighton.

Speakers drew inspiration from cities across the world to address the topic of ‘Nexuses of the Urban: Interactions between water, energy and food provision for sustainable cities’.

We are grateful to the speakers for allowing us to publish their content on the Nexus Network website. So if you were not able to attend the event, here is a flavour of the topics covered:

• Keynote speaker Dunu Roy from Hazards International, Delhi, spoke on The Urban Nexuses of Social Injustice
• Emily O’Brien from the Brighton and Hove Food Partnership, spoke on Sustainable and healthy food – views from the city of Brighton and Hove
• Bella Wheeler from the Brighton Unemployed Families Project asked How can networks, relationships and community help solutions to poverty and sustainability?
• Vanesa Castan Broto from University College London spoke on Urban infrastructure landscape and the politics of dwelling
• Tim Moss from Humboldt University of Berlin, looked at Unpacking and re-assembling the ‘urban nexus’: a socio-technical perspective on urban infrastructures.
• Liz Varga from Cranfield University addressed A scale perspective on the ‘urban nexus’: the integration of different scales of infrastructure system.
• Adriana Allen from University College London spoke on Stairways to heaven: the urban nexus in Lima

Following the event, people were inspired to explore the meanings of the Urban Nexus further, in a number of blog posts:

• Fiona Marshall from the STEPS Centre and Ritu Priya from the Jawaharlal Nehru University, Delhi published a blog on the STEPS Centre website on ‘Why we need to reveal the hidden connections at the heart of cities.’
• Suzanne Fisher-Murray posted Making visible the hidden cogs of the urban nexus on the STEPS Centre website.

For more details of the event, see the Urban Nexus webpage.