Dr B Ogutu, Prof J Dash
No more applications being accepted
Competition Funded PhD Project (European/UK Students Only)
About the Project
The pressure to produce sufficient food to meet the nutritional needs of the burgeoning human population is the main driving force behind agricultural development. Conversion of vegetated land surface to crop production has been identified as one of the major contributors of Green House Gas (GHG) emissions and hence global warming and climate change. In Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), smallholder-farming systems dominate the agricultural sector, but are highly vulnerable to extreme weather events and changing climatic conditions. However, adopting certain types of agricultural practises has the potential of helping to mitigate the increase in GHG emissions and hence the adverse effects of global warming. Within these systems, a number of agricultural practices are adopted including: agroforestry, zero tillage farming, mixed crop farming, organic farming etc. The aim of this study is estimate the relative contribution of different farming system to GHG fluxes in smallholder farms in SSA and their carbon sequestration potential compared to other typical land use in these regions such as forest, grassland. The study will use field based methods (e.g. measurement of soil GHG fluxes, collection of soil carbon data) to quantify the carbon feedback from different farming system. Earth Observation data and Gross primary productivity models will be used to upscale these results to regional and national scale.
The ECaS research group focusses on climate change impacts and adaptation, sustainability science, and global environmental monitoring including innovative use of Earth observation data, including Earth system science. We have a world-leading reputation for research on climate change impacts and adaptation strategies, with lead authorships in the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Fifth Assessment report.
Candidates must have or expect to gain a first or strong upper second class degree, in an appropriate discipline, not necessarily Geography. Experience of coding (R, Matlab, Python etc.) and image processing is desirable but not essential as training can be provided. For the latest information on postgraduate opportunities see www.southampton.ac.uk/geography/postgraduate/research_degrees/studentships.page?
Supervisory team: Dr Booker Ogutu, Prof Jadu Dash and Dr Jeremiah Okeyo (External, University of Embu, Kenya)
The PhD project will commence September 2019.
Funding Notes
This is one of a range of topics currently being advertised. Funding will go to the project(s) with the best applicant(s). The studentship is to be funded at UKRI level, currently £14,777 per annum, with an RTSG of £750. The studentship will fully support British and EU nationals only. International students can apply but they must be able to meet the difference between home/EU and International tuition fees themselves.
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