Controls on the stability of soils and their functioning under land use and climate change
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Manchester
Department Name: Earth Atmospheric and Env Sciences
Abstract
Soils provide many functions for humans, including the storage of carbon and nutrient cycling, which are crucial for the production of food and mitigation of climate change. However, there is much concern that soils, and the functions that they provide, are being threatened by a range of pressures, including intensive farming methods and increased frequency of extreme climatic events, such as drought. Not only do these disturbances pose an immediate threat to the functioning of soils, but they could also impair their ability to resist and recover from further stresses that come in the future.
Our project will tackle this problem by addressing two general questions: first, what makes a soil able to withstand and recover from disturbance events, such as drought, and, second how can we use this knowledge to ensure soils can buffer disturbances in the future? These are questions that have puzzled soil scientists for many years, but so far, remain unresolved. An area that offers much promise, however, in tackling this issue is food web ecology. Food webs are the networks of interactions describing who eats whom amongst the myriad organisms within an ecosystem. And in soil, they are the engine that drives the very processes of nutrient cycling and energy flow on which the functioning of soil and the terrestrial ecosystems they support, depend. It has been proposed for many years, but so far not fully tested in soil, that simple food webs are less able to withstand and recover from disturbance events, such as drought than complex ones. We want to test this theory in soil, which harbours some of the most complex, but also sensitive, food webs on Earth. We test the idea, through experiments and models, that the ability of a soil to withstand, recover and adapt to disturbance events depends on the architecture and diversity of the soil food web, which governs the rate of transfer of nutrients and energy through the plant-soil system. We also propose that soil disturbances associated with intensive land use, such as trampling and fertiliser addition, erode the very food web structures that make the soil system stable, thereby reducing the ability of soil to resist and recover from future disturbances, such as extreme weather events. We will also resolve what makes a food web stable, and test the roles of different types of organisms in soil, such as mycorrhizal fungi, which we believe play a major role. And finally, we will develop new models to help us better predict how soils will respond to future threats and to guide management decisions on sustainable soil management in a rapidly changing world.
These question are at the heart of the NERC Soil Security programme which seeks to resolve what controls the ability of soils and their functions to resist, recover and ultimately adapt, to perturbations, such as those caused by land use and extreme climatic events.
Our project will tackle this problem by addressing two general questions: first, what makes a soil able to withstand and recover from disturbance events, such as drought, and, second how can we use this knowledge to ensure soils can buffer disturbances in the future? These are questions that have puzzled soil scientists for many years, but so far, remain unresolved. An area that offers much promise, however, in tackling this issue is food web ecology. Food webs are the networks of interactions describing who eats whom amongst the myriad organisms within an ecosystem. And in soil, they are the engine that drives the very processes of nutrient cycling and energy flow on which the functioning of soil and the terrestrial ecosystems they support, depend. It has been proposed for many years, but so far not fully tested in soil, that simple food webs are less able to withstand and recover from disturbance events, such as drought than complex ones. We want to test this theory in soil, which harbours some of the most complex, but also sensitive, food webs on Earth. We test the idea, through experiments and models, that the ability of a soil to withstand, recover and adapt to disturbance events depends on the architecture and diversity of the soil food web, which governs the rate of transfer of nutrients and energy through the plant-soil system. We also propose that soil disturbances associated with intensive land use, such as trampling and fertiliser addition, erode the very food web structures that make the soil system stable, thereby reducing the ability of soil to resist and recover from future disturbances, such as extreme weather events. We will also resolve what makes a food web stable, and test the roles of different types of organisms in soil, such as mycorrhizal fungi, which we believe play a major role. And finally, we will develop new models to help us better predict how soils will respond to future threats and to guide management decisions on sustainable soil management in a rapidly changing world.
These question are at the heart of the NERC Soil Security programme which seeks to resolve what controls the ability of soils and their functions to resist, recover and ultimately adapt, to perturbations, such as those caused by land use and extreme climatic events.
Planned Impact
Who will benefit from our research?
Project beneficiaries will include the bioscience, ecology and wider scientific research community interested in sustainable and productive food production. Key stakeholders include landowners, farmers groups (e.g. NFU, SNFU, NFUW, HCC, EBLEX, QMS, Soil Association), societies (BES, BSSS), conservation bodies (Plant Life, The Grassland Trust, British Grassland Society, Wildlife Trusts) and local and national government departments (Defra; EA) and agencies (SEPA; EA, Natural England; Countryside Council for Wales, Scottish Natural Heritage) who will benefit as science supported policy develops. We will liaise with BSSS and the Global Soil Partnership to ensure our project goals are integrated into the planned activities for International Year of Soils 2015.
Other beneficiaries are commercial organisations involved in habitat restoration, in particular, horticultural businesses that supply native seed and seed mixes. These businesses stand to benefit from our research through learning (via knowledge exchange; KE) how drought, land management and soil conditions influences communities to resist and recover from the effects of climate change. These organisations also have a financial interest in being able to produce seed mixtures that are stress resistant, and that are more likely to result in habitat restoration that remains successful over the long-term.
It will be vital that our findings are communicated to non-academics and non-researchers within the plant breeding community and end-users. Engagement with these groups will be facilitated though two stakeholder workshops, and through interaction with the Cool Farm Alliance, an umbrella organisation that liaises with numerous businesses with interests in agricultural-related matters. We will also showcase our findings and portfolio of expertise through presentations to farmers groups, building on our existing network forums, public talks and online resources (e.g. You Tube).
How will they benefit from our research?
Data generated in this project will have major implications for our potential to alter soil C and N cycling through land management. A key component of the work is the integration of empirical data with predictive models: this opens up opportunities to gain rapid insight into how specific environmental and edaphic contexts may affect the ability of soils to resist, recover and adapt to perturbations such as drought. Our work will open up the possibility for input of our mechanistic framework into farm management systems, aimed at, for example, coupling enhanced/sustained yields (cf food security) with C storage potential and mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions.
Members of the general public will benefit through (i) an enhanced awareness of climate impacts on biodiversity, (ii) increased knowledge of the role of natural ecosystems in providing valuable goods and services to humanity, and (iii) the role of science in improving the conservation and management of grassland ecosystems and in underpinning our understanding of how the landscape can function for our collective benefit.
Project beneficiaries will include the bioscience, ecology and wider scientific research community interested in sustainable and productive food production. Key stakeholders include landowners, farmers groups (e.g. NFU, SNFU, NFUW, HCC, EBLEX, QMS, Soil Association), societies (BES, BSSS), conservation bodies (Plant Life, The Grassland Trust, British Grassland Society, Wildlife Trusts) and local and national government departments (Defra; EA) and agencies (SEPA; EA, Natural England; Countryside Council for Wales, Scottish Natural Heritage) who will benefit as science supported policy develops. We will liaise with BSSS and the Global Soil Partnership to ensure our project goals are integrated into the planned activities for International Year of Soils 2015.
Other beneficiaries are commercial organisations involved in habitat restoration, in particular, horticultural businesses that supply native seed and seed mixes. These businesses stand to benefit from our research through learning (via knowledge exchange; KE) how drought, land management and soil conditions influences communities to resist and recover from the effects of climate change. These organisations also have a financial interest in being able to produce seed mixtures that are stress resistant, and that are more likely to result in habitat restoration that remains successful over the long-term.
It will be vital that our findings are communicated to non-academics and non-researchers within the plant breeding community and end-users. Engagement with these groups will be facilitated though two stakeholder workshops, and through interaction with the Cool Farm Alliance, an umbrella organisation that liaises with numerous businesses with interests in agricultural-related matters. We will also showcase our findings and portfolio of expertise through presentations to farmers groups, building on our existing network forums, public talks and online resources (e.g. You Tube).
How will they benefit from our research?
Data generated in this project will have major implications for our potential to alter soil C and N cycling through land management. A key component of the work is the integration of empirical data with predictive models: this opens up opportunities to gain rapid insight into how specific environmental and edaphic contexts may affect the ability of soils to resist, recover and adapt to perturbations such as drought. Our work will open up the possibility for input of our mechanistic framework into farm management systems, aimed at, for example, coupling enhanced/sustained yields (cf food security) with C storage potential and mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions.
Members of the general public will benefit through (i) an enhanced awareness of climate impacts on biodiversity, (ii) increased knowledge of the role of natural ecosystems in providing valuable goods and services to humanity, and (iii) the role of science in improving the conservation and management of grassland ecosystems and in underpinning our understanding of how the landscape can function for our collective benefit.
Organisations
Publications
Bardgett, R.D.
(2017)
Microbial Biomass: A Paradigm Shift in Terrestrial Biogeochemistry
Caruso T
(2018)
Soil organic carbon dynamics matching ecological equilibrium theory.
in Ecology and evolution
Chomel M
(2019)
Drought decreases incorporation of recent plant photosynthate into soil food webs regardless of their trophic complexity.
in Global change biology
Van Den Hoogen J
(2019)
Soil nematode abundance and functional group composition at a global scale.
in Nature
Bardgett RD
(2020)
Soil microbial community responses to climate extremes: resistance, resilience and transitions to alternative states.
in Philosophical transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological sciences
Van Den Hoogen J
(2020)
A global database of soil nematode abundance and functional group composition.
in Scientific data
Rhymes J
(2021)
Are researchers following best storage practices for measuring soil biochemical properties?
in SOIL
Bastida F
(2021)
Soil microbial diversity-biomass relationships are driven by soil carbon content across global biomes.
in The ISME journal
De Castro F
(2021)
Local stability properties of complex, species-rich soil food webs with functional block structure.
in Ecology and evolution
Description | The project began in 2015 and five experiments involving the entire soil security project team have been completed: a pilot study on the impact of drought and flood on soil communities and processes; another pilot study of the flow of 13C through differently structured soil food webs in response to drought; a glasshouse study of the mechanisms controlling soil food web structure and their response to drought; and two field experiments, done over summer 2016 and 2017, looking at the stability of soil food webs subject to drought and land use change. The latter experiments involved a nationwide sampling programme of intensive and extensive grasslands (n = 15 sites, each with paired extensive and intensive fields) subjected to drought or not, followed by intensive sampling of the soil food web over time. One of the pilot experiments have been published in the journal Global Change Biology (Chomel et al. 2019), the other one have been completed and data analyses are underway, and paper writing is currently underway. As for the glasshouse and field experiments, sample analysis is nearly complete and data processing is underway. Our project has generated a number of key findings that are currently being written up for publication in leading journals. Key findings include: 1. Drought modifies C incorporation into the soil food web. In this study (Chomel et al 2019), we investigated how soil food web composition modulates the response of soil functions related to C cycling and the capture and transfer below-ground of recent photosynthate C by plants to drought. For that purpose, we built microcosms containing soil from semi-natural acid grassland, and examined how simplified food webs (with 1, 2, or 3 trophic groups) and drought influence mycorrhizal fungal abundance, decomposition and soil CO2 efflux, and the flux of C from a common temperate grassland plant species, Agrostis capillaris, to soil organisms using 13C stable isotope labelling. Overall, our results show that drought and soil food web composition do not interact to affect C cycling and microbial community composition, but there were independent effects of each factor on C cycling, with an overall stronger effect of drought. Under drought, the net uptake of 13C by plants was reduced and its retention in plant biomass was greater, leading to a strong decrease in carbon transfer below-ground. This study emphasises the sensitivity of critical pathways of C transfer from plants to soil organisms, and predict that below-ground C flow will be lowered with increasing drought predicted with climate change. 2. Soil food web structure mediates stability of soil food webs across UK grasslands. In this study we aimed to relate changes in the soil food web that can result from differences in land management intensity to the resistance and resilience of those food webs, and their functioning, to drought. We identified 15 grassland sites across three regions of the UK (Devon, Yorkshire Dales and Scotland), each site having paired grasslands under intensive and extensive management, which had resulted in differently structured food webs. We measured multiple dimensions of stability of biomass production of entire food webs and their components, in three ways: variation over time, resistance to a drought event, and resilience after the drought event. We mimicked a drought event by subjecting each site to 8 weeks of simulated summer drought using rain shelters. We measured multiple facets of food web structure, including diversity metrics, fungal and bacterial energy channels, asymmetry and flow of energy through the food webs. Initial analysis indicates that abiotic factors such as pH and climate structure the soil food web, and this structure has a mediating effect on the stability of the soil food web over time and in response to drought. Analysis is still ongoing and we aim to relate the stability of the food web to its functioning, in terms of carbon dioxide production and plant productivity. As part of this study, we also conducted stable C and N isotope pulse-chase labelling. Results of the labelling indicate that intensive management reduced 13C net transfer to plant roots, mycorrhizal hyphae, soil fungivorous fauna and soil CO2 efflux indicating a reduction of the carbon transfer from the plant to belowground though mycorrhizal pathway with land use intensification. Plant shoot C uptake and transfer to roots are impacted by drought in intensive grassland, but there is no effect in extensive grassland. This could indicate that plant communities are less resistant to drought in intensively managed grassland. Our results indicate that the overall soil activity rely proportionally less on plant-derived carbon in intensively managed grassland. These studies are currently being written up for eventual publication. 3. Dominant soil microbial taxa are highly resistant and resilient to drought in UK grasslands. We took samples from the above study and sequenced the bacterial and fungal communities, in collaboration with NERC Soil Security project lead Rob Griffiths. We classified resulting microbial taxa as dominant if they were found across all studied regions and represented the top 10% of taxa when organized by their relative abundance. Dominant bacteria represented 84.6% of all bacterial reads, and dominant fungi represented 63.0% of all fungal reads. We found that 88% of dominant bacterial taxa and 86% of dominant fungal taxa were tolerant to drought. In addition, 5% of dominant bacterial taxa and 7% of dominant fungal taxa were opportunistic, increasing in relative abundance in response to drought. Intensive management increased the relative abundance of opportunistic and tolerant taxa, but had no effect on the relative abundance of sensitive taxa. In general, all dominant taxa recovered to control levels after 60 days of recovery from drought, indicating high resilience of these communities. These novel results show that the majority of microbial taxa found in UK grasslands are resistant and resilient to drought, which may help to explain why these taxa dominate bacterial communities. This study will be submitted in a high profile journal in 2021. 4. Physical disturbance and nutrient addition alter the structure of the soil food web and its resistance and resilience to drought. We constructed field disturbance matrices - with factorial combinations of two levels each of trampling and fertiliser N additions - in order to analyse the impact of disturbance on soil food web structure. We then collected intact cores from the matrices and subjected them to drought in a controlled glasshouse environment, to quantify the resistance and resilience of the soil food webs and soil functions. Initial results show that trampling decreased plant root biomass and fungal biomass, and N additions decreased fungal biomass. Ongoing analysis will explore the effects of these changes on the soil food web and its functioning, as well as its resistance and resilience to drought in the glasshouse. As part of this study, we conducted stable 13C and 15N isotope pulse-chase labelling, and analysis is ongoing. It is too early to draw firm conclusions from this study as data analysis is ongoing. 5. As an additional study, we explored conceptual advances in soil organic carbon (SOC) dynamics using a dynamic equilibrium theory of SOC founded on classic ecological theory (Caruso et al. 2018). We postulated that the persistence of SOC is an equilibrium point where SOC losses resulting from continuous decomposition and SOC gains due to SOC protection are balanced. We showed that we can describe the temporal dynamics of SOC remarkably well (average and median R2 = 0.75) in publicly available SOC time series from experiments that investigated the effects of agricultural practices in arable soils. The predictive power of our simplistic model is not meant to compete with that of current multi-pool SOC models or recent developments that include microbial loops, but is shows how the conceptual distinction between the forces that control SOC loss and gain, and their equilibrium, can shed light on SOC dynamics. Specifically, our analysis shows that, regardless of specific mechanisms, the persistence of SOC will depend on the ultimate equilibrium between SOC gains and losses, which may depend on environmental (e.g. temperature) and ecological (e.g. spatially structured microbial activities) factors and the relative roles of these factors. Future experimental studies should quantify these roles to formulate a new generation of SOC dynamics model. This work has been published in Ecology and Evolution (Caruso et al. 2018). |
Exploitation Route | We are exploring ways of using our findings to inform land management decisions to promote the stability of soil functioning, and presented the work at the Soil Security Final meeting where many stakeholders were present |
Sectors | Agriculture Food and Drink Environment |
Description | A series of engagement activities have involved NERC Soil Security Research which have served to inform the general public and practitioners on the research we are doing and emerging results, and on the general importance of soil biodiversity for the stability of ecosystem functions. |
First Year Of Impact | 2015 |
Sector | Agriculture, Food and Drink,Environment |
Impact Types | Societal |
Description | Diversity, stability and functioning of the soil microbiome |
Amount | € 2,500,000 (EUR) |
Funding ID | 883621 - SoilResist - ERC-2019-ADG |
Organisation | European Research Council (ERC) |
Sector | Public |
Country | Belgium |
Start | 05/2021 |
End | 05/2026 |
Title | Data from: Soil organic carbon dynamics matching ecological equilibrium theory |
Description | The persistence of soil organic carbon (SOC) has traditionally been explained as a combination of recalcitrance properties and stabilization processes, which lead to the formation of complex organic compounds. However, recent conceptual advances and experimental evidence challenge this view. Here, we test these conceptual advances using a dynamic equilibrium theory of SOC founded on classic ecological theory. We postulate that the persistence of SOC is an equilibrium point where SOC losses resulting from continuous decomposition and SOC gains due to SOC protection are balanced. We show that we can describe the temporal dynamics of SOC remarkably well (average and median R2 = 0.75) in publicly available SOC time series from experiments that investigated the effects of agricultural practices in arable soils. The predictive power of our simplistic model is not meant to compete with that of current multi-pool SOC models or recent developments that include microbial loops. The simplicity of our analysis can, however, show how the conceptual distinction between the forces that control SOC loss and gain, and their equilibrium, can shed light on SOC dynamics. Specifically, our analysis shows that, regardless of specific mechanisms, the persistence of SOC will depend on the ultimate equilibrium between SOC gains and losses, which may depend on environmental (e.g., temperature) and ecological (e.g., spatially structured microbial activities) factors and the relative roles of these factors. Future experimental studies should quantify these roles to formulate a new generation of SOC dynamics model. |
Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
Year Produced | 2019 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
URL | https://datadryad.org/stash/dataset/doi:10.5061/dryad.ch10ss4 |
Title | Metadata |
Description | Metadata file. |
Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
Year Produced | 2020 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
URL | https://springernature.figshare.com/articles/Metadata/11733894 |
Title | Metadata |
Description | Metadata file. |
Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
Year Produced | 2020 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
URL | https://springernature.figshare.com/articles/Metadata/11733894/1 |
Title | Metadata record for: A global database of soil nematode abundance and functional group composition |
Description | This dataset contains key characteristics about the data described in the Data Descriptor A global database of soil nematode abundance and functional group composition. Contents: 1. human readable metadata summary table in CSV format 2. machine readable metadata file in JSON format |
Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
Year Produced | 2020 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
URL | https://springernature.figshare.com/articles/Metadata_record_for_A_global_database_of_soil_nematode_... |
Title | Metadata record for: A global database of soil nematode abundance and functional group composition |
Description | This dataset contains key characteristics about the data described in the Data Descriptor A global database of soil nematode abundance and functional group composition. Contents: 1. human readable metadata summary table in CSV format 2. machine readable metadata file in JSON format |
Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
Year Produced | 2020 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
URL | https://springernature.figshare.com/articles/Metadata_record_for_A_global_database_of_soil_nematode_... |
Title | Nematode_abundance_aggregated_wCovar |
Description | Soil nematode abundance data, aggregated into 1,933 unique 1-km pixels, each of which is linked to 73 global environmental covariate data layers. |
Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
Year Produced | 2020 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
URL | https://springernature.figshare.com/articles/Nematode_abundance_aggregated_wCovar/11733891/1 |
Title | Nematode_abundance_aggregated_wCovar |
Description | Soil nematode abundance data, aggregated into 1,933 unique 1-km pixels, each of which is linked to 73 global environmental covariate data layers. |
Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
Year Produced | 2020 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
URL | https://springernature.figshare.com/articles/Nematode_abundance_aggregated_wCovar/11733891 |
Title | Nematode_abundance_dataset |
Description | Soil nematoda abundance data. This dataset includes 6,825 georeferenced soil samples from all continents and biomes. |
Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
Year Produced | 2020 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
URL | https://springernature.figshare.com/articles/Nematode_abundance_dataset/11733897 |
Title | Nematode_abundance_dataset |
Description | Soil nematoda abundance data. This dataset includes 6,825 georeferenced soil samples from all continents and biomes. |
Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
Year Produced | 2020 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
URL | https://springernature.figshare.com/articles/Nematode_abundance_dataset/11733897/1 |
Title | R code Fig. 1 from Soil microbial community responses to climate extremes: resistance, resilience and transitions to alternative states. |
Description | Modified Noy Meirs R code |
Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
Year Produced | 2020 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
URL | https://rs.figshare.com/articles/dataset/R_code_Fig_2_from_Soil_microbial_community_responses_to_cli... |
Title | R code Fig. 1 from Soil microbial community responses to climate extremes: resistance, resilience and transitions to alternative states. |
Description | Modified Noy Meirs R code |
Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
Year Produced | 2020 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
URL | https://rs.figshare.com/articles/dataset/R_code_Fig_2_from_Soil_microbial_community_responses_to_cli... |
Title | R code Fig.2 from Soil microbial community responses to climate extremes: resistance, resilience and transitions to alternative states |
Description | Modified Noy Meirs R code |
Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
Year Produced | 2019 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
URL | https://rs.figshare.com/articles/dataset/R_code_Fig_2_from_Soil_microbial_community_responses_to_cli... |
Description | A summer of science - a celebration of NERC environmental research |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | In celebration of the Natural Environment Research Council's (NERC) 50th anniversary, a series of special science outreach events have taken place as part of the "summer of science". As part of this, four teams of scientists from the FLS were given funding to host the "FLS environmental roadshows". The roadshow took place in 3 events - the FLS Community Open Day, a special adult-only event at the Manchester Museum and a one day exhibition at the Jodrell Bank Observatory is Cheshire. The open day saw over 850 people come to the University where they got to learn about the exciting life of plants. For the one day exhibition the team were based at the Jodrell Discover Centre. The family friendly event saw cockroaches running up children's arms, earthworms moving through soil and hands on experiences with carnivorous plants. The adults at the centre were taught about food security, radioactive contamination and soil ecology. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
URL | http://www.ls.manchester.ac.uk/news/categories/research/articles/?id=A-Summer-of-Science---a-Celebra... |
Description | Belowground microbial responses to global change in alpine ecosystems, International Mountain Conference, Innsbruck, Sept 2022. |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Plenary lecture on belowground microbial responses to global change in alpine ecosystems, International Mountain Conference, Innsbruck, Sept 2022, which sparked questions and discussion afterwards. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
URL | https://www.uibk.ac.at/congress/imc2022/index.html.en |
Description | Britishe Ecological Meeting Annual meeting |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Other audiences |
Results and Impact | This is a international meeting with renowned plenary speakers for a packed programme of diverse thematic topics in Ecology, engaging workshops, and lot of Networking Opportunities. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
URL | https://www.britishecologicalsociety.org/events/annual-meeting-2019/ |
Description | Cafe Scientific Bath, Unseen Majority, Jan 2016 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Richard Bardgett gave Cafe Scientific presentation at the Bath Science Cafe, January 2016, discussing the functional importance of belowground life, with reference to BBSRC and NERC funded research. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
URL | http://bathsciencecafe.org |
Description | Contributed to BBC World Service Series "The Understory: Life in Soil" |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press) |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Contributed to 2 series of the BBC Word Service "The Understory: Life in Soil", talking about the soils, their biodiversity and its importance for sustainability. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
URL | https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w3ct43cm |
Description | Controls on the stability of soils and their functioning under land use and climate change; talk presented by Dr Jocelyn Lavelle at the Soil Security Programme Spring Meeting, Reading, UK, March 2016. |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Study participants or study members |
Results and Impact | Informed the soil security programme of our research activity to date and future plans |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
Description | Distinguished Scientists Seminar, International Forum for Advanced Environmental Sciences and Technology (iFAST) on aboveground-belowground linkages, ecosystem processes, and global change. |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Distinguished Scientists Seminar, International Forum for Advanced Environmental Sciences and Technology (iFAST) to an international academic audience of approximately 280, followed up by invitation to present seminar at Oklahoma University in 2024 |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
URL | http://ieg4.rccc.ou.edu/NewIEGWebsiteFiles/iFASTFlyers/R.D.Bardgett.iFAST.flyer.2023Sep06.pdf |
Description | International symposium on Above- and Below-Ground Biodiversity for Sustainable Ecosystems, AgrosScope |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Other audiences |
Results and Impact | Biodiversity loss has become a global concern as increasing evidence highlights the importance of diverse species interactions as the main drivers of the ecosystem services on which society depends. This symposium focuses on the importance of above and belowground biodiversity for ecosystem functioning, multifunctionality and sustainability. Various talks will highlight the importance of biodiversity for agro-ecosystem functioning as this symposium is linked to the Biodiversa research project "Agricultural Diversification: Digging Deeper" investigating the importance of agricultural crop diversification. There was 120 international participants. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
URL | https://www.agroscope.admin.ch/agroscope/en/home/news/events/details/2019/above-and-below-biodiversi... |
Description | International symposium on Above- and Below-Ground Biodiversity for Sustainable Ecosystems, AgrosScope |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Keynote lecture on soil microbial community responses to climate extremes: resistance, resilience and transitions to alternative states. Symposium on Above- and Below-Ground Biodiversity for Sustainable Ecosystems, AgrosScope, Zurich, Nov 2019. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
Description | Invited lecture University Bern, Ecology Lecture Series, Oct 2022 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
Results and Impact | Invited talk at the University of Bern, Switzerland, as part of their Ecology Lecture Series, October 2022. The presentation was mainly to undergraduate and postgraduate students, but also to research and academic staff at the University. The talk generated discussions and potential future collaborations. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
Description | Invited talk, University of Estonia, January 2023 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
Results and Impact | Invited talk at the University of Estonia on below ground responses to climate extremes, which generated discussions and potential future collaborations. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
Description | Keynote lecture, NERC STARS Annual Conference, Windermere |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
Results and Impact | Keynote talk at STARS annual conference, Windermere, Jan 2019 |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
Description | Keynote presentation on below ground responses to climate change in mountain ecosystems at International Mountain Congress, Innsbruck 2022 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Other audiences |
Results and Impact | Findings from our research were presented to an international audience of scientists and stakeholders with interests in different aspects of mountain ecosystems. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
URL | https://www.imc2022.info/sessions/belowground-microbial-responses-to-global-change-in-alpine-ecosyst... |
Description | Keynote talk on soil microbial community responses to climate extremes: resistance, resilience and transitions to alternative states, Soil Ecology Lecture Series, China, 2022 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
Results and Impact | Presentation on soil microbial community responses to climate extremes: resistance, resilience and transitions to alternative states to the Chinese Soil Ecology Lecture Series, which provoked a series of questions and some future collaborations. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
Description | LIfe in Soil: does it matter? Royal Society Edinburgh Event, Feb 2016 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Richard Bardgett Guest speaker at Royal Society Edinburgh Event, 24th February 2016, Life in Soil: does in matter? The event was organised to raise awareness of the importance of soil life along the general public, policy makers and practitioners, and landonwers and farmers. Talks were followed by a lively panel discussion. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
URL | https://www.royalsoced.org.uk/events/event.php?id=420 |
Description | Linkages between above- and below-ground communities and global change. Plenary 3rd Global Soil Biodiversity Conference, Dublin, 2023 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Plenary lecture and opening talk at the 3rd Global Soil Biodiversity Conference, Dublin, 2023, Linkages between above- and below-ground communities and global change. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
URL | https://gsb2023.org/ |
Description | Online invited talk on "The Science behind Soil Health", Flowers From the Farm, Feb 2022 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Invited talk and video on soil biodiversity at the "Flowers on the Farm" online annual conference, from soils to sales, Feb 2022. Sparked much discussion and contacts with attendees afterwards for more information, and some media interest. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
URL | https://www.floraldaily.com/article/9400141/flowers-from-the-farm-launches-growing-season-with-roman... |
Description | Online presentation on Zoom into Soil: Regenerative Agriculture, BSSS/BES Webinar, Jan 2022 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Online presentation at British Soil Science Society/British Ecological Society workshop "Zoom into Soil: Regenerative Agriculture", Webinar, Jan 2022. Audience mainly practitioners and scientists, and online YouTube video produced from the workshop has been watched by >1300 viewers. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
URL | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RggdJPe6nio |
Description | Online seminar on aboveground-belowground interactions, James Hutton Institute, Dundee, Scotland. |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Online seminar on aboveground-belowground interactions, James Hutton Institute, Dundee, Scotland., that led to discussions on the topic afterwards. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
Description | PhD Workshop Alpine Biology and Global Change, University of Innsbruck |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
Results and Impact | Plenary lecture on soil microbial community responses to climate extremes: resistance, resilience and transitions to alternative states, PhD Workshop Alpine Biology and Global Change, University of Innsburck, Jan 2020. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
Description | Plenary Lecture British Ecological Society Annual Meeting, Belfast, 2019. |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
Results and Impact | Plenary Lecture, The hidden majority: soil biodiversity, ecosystem processes, and global change. Celebrating Global Ecology, British Ecological Society Annual Meeting, Belfast, Dec 2019. The talk generated discussions and debate, and helped to raise awareness of the importance of soil biodiversity for ecological processes. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
Description | Plenary and opening talk: Harnessing biodiversity for soil health. XXV International Grassland Congress May 14-19, 2023, Kentucky, USA. |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Plenary talk, Harnessing biodiversity for soil health. XXV International Grassland Congress May 14-19, 2023, Kentucky, USA. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
URL | https://www.internationalgrasslands.org |
Description | Project talk presented by Richard Bardgett at the Soil Security Programme Spring Meeting, Reading, UK, September 2016 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Study participants or study members |
Results and Impact | Informed soil security programme participants of research progress to date and future plans |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
Description | Public Meeting on Soil Biodiversity, Rothamsted Research, July 2015 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Richard Bardgett guest speaker at public meeting on soil biodiversity: how to explore and utilise life in soil, July 2015. Belowground biodiversity is largely out of sight and mind, but there is mounting evidence to show that the vast diversity of microorganisms and animals that live belowground contribute significantly to shaping the structure and function of terrestrial ecosystems. This talk will consider new insights into the distribution and ecological roles of belowground biodiversity, and consider some of consequences of changing soil biodiversity under future environmental change. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
URL | http://www.rothamsted.ac.uk/events/soil-biodiversity |
Description | Round table discussion Chinese Academy of Science, Max Plank Institute Round Table, Shanghai, Nov 2019. |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Study participants or study members |
Results and Impact | Invited member and international expert with presentation on research challenges related to soil biodiversity and ecosystem functioning under global change: resistance and resilience to climate extremes. Chinese Acedemy of Science, Max Plank Institute Round Table, Shanghai, Nov 2019. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
Description | Soil Matters, Public Lecture, Andrew Raven Trust, Morvern |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Supporters |
Results and Impact | Presented plenary lecture at an event "Soil Matters" organised by the Andrew Raven Trust. Approximately 60-70 people attended the weekend event, including a range of stakeholders and the lecture was open to the local community. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
URL | http://andrewraventrust.org.uk/annual_weekend/weekend/soil_matters_managing_scotlands_soils_in_the_2... |
Description | Talk at the US Soil Ecology Society Meeting, Toledo. |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
Results and Impact | Talk by Jocelyn Lavallee at the US Soil Ecology Society Meeting, Toledo, USA Lavallee, J. M., Delgado-Baquerizo, M., Chomel, M., Goodall, T., de Castro, F., Alvarez- Segura, N., Rhymes, J. M., Magilton, M., de Vries, F. T., Baggs, E., Emmerson, M., Johnson, D., Caruso, T., Griffiths, R. and Bardgett, R. 2019. Dominant soil microbial taxa are resistant to drought in UK grasslands. Soil Ecology Society Annual Meeting, Toledo, OH. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
Description | Talk on biodiversity for sustainable soils, BASE Annual Conference, Nottingham, Feb 2022 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Invited talk at the BASE (biodiversity, agriculture, soils, environment) AGM and conference on Biodiversity for Sustainable Soils, Nottingham, Feb 2022. The talk considered to contribution of biodiversity to soil health and was delivered to an audience of farmers, land managers, and policymakers. The talk generated discussion and debate, and served to raise awareness of the science base behind soil biodiversity and its contribution to soil health. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
URL | https://base-uk.co.uk/news-article.asp?id=107 |
Description | Time Travel Through Soil |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Presentation at public event at the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences, Amsterdam |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
URL | https://knaw.nl/en/news/calendar/time-travel-through-soil |
Description | UnEarthed NERC Showcase |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Presented soil research at NERC Unearthed Event, Edinburgh, as part of Soil Security Programme |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |