Results 111 to 120 of 132
At the first meeting of a new Environment & Sustainability Network in May, Leeds based charities, community groups, and voluntary organisations came together with academics from the University of Leeds. The event provided an opportunity for people from a range of organisations and backgrounds to come together and share thoughts on topics from the circular...
The UK's first Air Pollution Garden has been established at Sheffield Botanical Gardens through a collaboration between the three White Rose universities of Leeds, York and Sheffield. An Air Pollution Garden contains plants that are particularly sensitive to damage by pollutants in the air. These plants can help us identify regions that experience high concentrations...
Emissions from trees could be playing a more important role in the atmosphere than previously thought, according to two new studies involving LEAF scientists. When particles in the atmosphere reach a certain size they are able to act as seeds for cloud droplets to form around. This means that understanding where particles in the atmosphere...
Humans have been emitting carbon dioxide (CO2) into the atmosphere for several hundred years through the combustion of fossil fuels and the burning of vegetation. But this CO2, the most important anthropogenic greenhouse gas, doesn’t just remain in the air forever; around half of it is taken up by the world’s oceans and continents. Understanding...
Last week, LEAF Co-Director Dominick Spracklen and LEAF Co-ordinator Cat Scott spoke to Made in Leeds about the Forest Observatory coming to Leeds this summer: LEAF researchers from across the University are working with Leeds City Council to establish a Forest Observatory here in Leeds. The Leeds Forest Observatory (LFO) will allow students and staff...
By Ricardo Faustino de Lima - Universidade de Lisboa & Martin Dallimer - University of Leeds; article originally published on The Conversation. When visiting the volcanic islands of São Tomé and Príncipe off the coast of West Africa, one is immediately struck by how unusual these tropical islands are. The steep, volcanic mountains seem to...
The burning of solid fuels in homes across Asia, Africa and Eastern Europe may be causing up to 800,000 premature deaths per year. A new study from LEAF scientists in the School of Earth and Environment, investigated the impacts of residential solid fuel combustion on ambient air. “Nearly three billion people burn wood, animal and...
Continued deforestation of the Amazon rainforest could reduce rainfall over the region, according to a new study, with consequences for forest ecosystems and local economies. Forests affect the fluxes of moisture and energy between the land surface and the atmosphere which can affect rainfall, both locally and downwind of the forest. Large scale removal of...
LEAF's Co-Director Dominick Spracklen has been awarded a 2015 Philip Leverhulme Prize in recognition of his research in understanding interactions between the Earth’s biosphere, atmosphere and climate and the way that these are being altered by human activity. Dom’s recent research has ranged from the impacts of deforestation on air quality and rainfall, to carbon...
In collaboration with the United Bank of Carbon, and the Sustainable Cities Group at the University of Leeds, LEAF researchers have produced a report summarising the latest research on the impact of green spaces in urban areas. In 2014, around 54% of the world’s population were living in towns and cities, and this number is...