Wytham Woods to be European base for international climate change research programme - 18 August 2008
Over the next five years Wytham Woods near Oxford will become the European hub of an ambitious global research programme into the impacts of climate change on forests.
Earthwatch, an Oxford-based environmental charity, has announced the opening of its Europe Regional Climate Centre as part of the HSBC Climate Partnership.
The Climate Centre will be the base for a five-year climate change and forestry research programme that Earthwatch is running with the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (CEH) and two local partners, the Environmental Change Institute (ECI), and Oxford University’s Wildlife and Conservation Research Unit (WildCRU). The new centre is one of five throughout the world. The others are located in Brazil, India, China and North America.
Teams of HSBC employees from all over Europe and members of the local Oxfordshire community will spend time working alongside scientists in Wytham Woods. They will look at many aspects of forest ecology from the flow of carbon within woodlands to the response of populations of small mammals and insects to changes in weather patterns. Between them, the teams will clock up an impressive 40,000 hours of field work, equivalent to a single scientist working alone for 21 years.
Dr Mike Morecroft of CEH said, "We are pleased to be a partner in this innovative project with Earthwatch, HSBC and Oxford University. CEH research at Wytham Woods has given new insights into the way trees take up carbon dioxide and regulate water loss. We have also monitored climate change impacts on biodiversity at Wytham since 1992. This new project allows us to expand our work to small woods and copses across the surrounding landscape, helping us to better understand the effects of fragmentation on forests. It also provides a great bridge between the worlds of science, commerce and the voluntary sector: something that will be crucial to meeting the challenges of climate change.”
The research that will be carried out in Wytham Woods fits into the wider global research programme and results will be shared with scientists and forest managers.
Dr Dan Bebber, Head of Climate Change Research at Earthwatch said, “Oxfordshire’s woodlands are typical of many temperate European forests. They have been heavily impacted by forestry and agriculture over the years, potentially rendering them vulnerable to climate change. The data that we gather here in Oxfordshire will be relevant to similar forests throughout northern Europe and will help us to predict how these ecosystems will respond to climate change.”
Additional information
Media enquiries about this work should be directed to the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology press office.
The Centre for Ecology & Hydrology has had a long connection with research at Wytham Woods.The site is an important part of the UK Environmental Change Network (ECN). The UK ECN is managed by CEH scientists.
In 2006, BBC Environment correspondent, Sarah Mukherjee discussed climate change with Mike Morecroft on top of a tree in the Wytham forest. You can see the interview on the BBC website here.
HSBC Climate Partnership
The HSBC Climate Partnership brings together HSBC, the Climate Group, Earthwatch, the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute and WWF to tackle the urgent threat of climate change on people, water, forests and cities.The Partnership (HCP) is a $100 million, five-year project funded by HSBC which was launched in May 2007.
More information on the partnership can be found on this website .
Earthwatch
Earthwatch Institute (Europe) is an international environmental charity engaging people worldwide in scientific field research and education to promote the understanding and action necessary for a sustainable environment. More information can be found on the Earthwatch website.
As part of the HSBC Climate Partnership, Earthwatch is carrying out a programme of forest research in five locations worldwide. Research will determine how we can best manage forests to reduce the negative impacts of climate change.
Earthwatch and HSBC have developed the largest known employee engagement programme on climate change, which aims to motivate over 100,000 people to take action. The programme includes online learning, local volunteering projects and a two-week field programme on climate change and its implications for business. More information on the engagement programme can be found on the Earthwatch website.
