Quantifying the response and sensitivity of tropical forest carbon sinks to various drivers

About the project

Terrestrial ecosystems play an important role in the climate system and the global carbon cycle. For example, terrestrial vegetation acts as a carbon sink by absorbing up to 15-30% of all anthropogenic CO 2 emissions through photosynthesis. This absorption regulates the build-up of CO 2 in the atmosphere, which in turn influences the levels of global warming and associated climate change.

However, climate change and anthropogenic activities are threatening the role of terrestrial vegetation to act as carbon sink. Several factors (e.g. CO 2 fertilization, climate, nitrogen deposition, land use and land cover change, extreme climatic events etc.) have been identified as key variables that influence the ability of terrestrial ecosystems to act as carbon sink.

However, there is currently uncertainty on the response of terrestrial ecosystem carbon sinks to the dynamics of these drivers. Identifying factors that affect the capacity of the terrestrial vegetation to absorb carbon and quantifying the magnitude of their sensitivity to driving factors is important in accurately projecting future coupled carbon cycle and climate system.

Therefore, this study aims to quantify the dynamics of tropical forest carbon sinks and their response and sensitivity to various environmental drivers.

For full project details visit the Inspire project page .

Supervisors

• Dr Booker Ogutu (University of Southampton)
• Professor Jadu Dash (University of Southampton)

Dr Booker Ogutu

• Developing methods of retrieving bio-geophysical variables from Earth Observation data
• Understanding the effects of environmental change on terrestrial vegetation
• Quantifying terrestrial carbon balance and its dynamics in a changing climate

Professor Jadu Dash

• Satellite derived land surface phenology and its validation with ground data
• Developing a chlorophyll content based production efficiency model to quantify terrestrial carbon uptake
• Impact of extreme climatic events on vegetation phenology

Entry requirements

A 2:1 honours degree, or its international equivalent , in one of these subjects:

• any Earth or environmental science discipline
• biology

Fees and funding

INSPIRE studentships are funded by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC, part of UK Research and Innovation, UKRI). The stipend is in line with UKRI standard levels, including the recent cost of living increase.

All studentships are fully funded for 3.5 years.

How to apply

To make an application, visit the how to apply section of the INSPIRE website .

Contact us

For questions about the project, contact Dr Booker Ogutu.

Email: B.O.Ogutu@southampton.ac.uk

For questions about the application process, contact the graduate school office.

Email: gsnocs@soton.ac.uk

Research areas