Exploring technical, economic and behavioural barriers to global soil carbon sequestration

The world must pursue "net negative emissions" or "drawdown" strategies to have a reasonable chance of avoiding catastrophic climate change. All scenarios for keeping global temperature change below 1.5C or 2C involve extensive carbon sequestration. Agricultural soils, grasslands, and wetlands are huge potential sinks for carbon if properly managed. This studentship will explore the state of our scientific understanding, results from field trials, emerging policy frameworks, and proposals to accelerate progress and build the field of soil-based carbon sequestration globally. The studentship is part of a recently awarded NERC project 'Soils research to deliver greenhouse gas removals and abatement technologies' (SOILS-R-GGREAT) to be conducted by a consortium (including SRUC, JHI and University of Edinburgh) led by Professor Peter Smith at the University of Aberdeen. As such, the student will gain significant exposure to a programme of research being conducted by leading research teams in the UK and internationally

At UK level, the Soils-R-GRREAT project will provide evidence on national and global potential of soil based GGRs to support national climate change policy at the UK, and devolved administration levels. Project outputs will provide evidence to the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) BEIS and the UK Committee on Climate Change (CCC). The team is already working with the CCC to define the potential for land-based GGRs, and feeds into the work of BEIS. Since the CCC provides statutory advice on national carbon budgets and future UK reporting requirements (through Nationally Determined Contributions; NDCs) of the Paris Agreement of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). In addition to BEIS and CCC, we have made contact with other relevant UK stakeholders, particularly those concerned with soil policy in the Soils Team in Defra, the Welsh Government and Scottish Government.

At international level, the work will contribute to, and use output from, three significant global initiatives aimed at assessing and implementing GGR through soils: 1) the International Soil Carbon Network (ISCN) which is collating global data (site level and soil survey) to assess changes in soil C, for which PS is on the International Advisory Board, 2) The Global Research Alliance on agricultural greenhouse gases, which has a theme on global soil carbon sequestration (PS leads the farm level theme), and 3) the International "4 per 1000" initiative, an outcome of the Paris Climate Agreement in December 2015, for which PS and L Wollenberg are on the Scientific and Technical Committee. The work also aligns with work being undertaken on the Global Carbon Project under the Managing Global Negative Emissions (MagNET).

This project will also contribute significantly to The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change in the context of its 6th Assessment Report. PS has applied for the convening lead author role on land use mitigation for AR6 (2021), a role he had for AR4 and AR5. We intend to publish preliminary outputs after 9 months so that they can be cited and used in the two Special Reports on "land use and climate change" (for which PS is on the Science Steering Committee), and the "1.5 degree target". A support letter from IPCC is provided. Where appropriate, outputs will also be made accessible to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD).

Our stakeholder engagement process will enable national and international stakeholders to provide input at various stages in the project. Our project partner CCAFS represent the CGIAR system, and so will facilitate input globally from the CGIAR system, but also global outreach to this community. A budget of £10,000 is allocated to stakeholder consultation, which will cover travel and subsistence to allow project researchers to interview key respondents, and venue hire, and travel and subsistence for invitees at the dedicated expert stakeholder workshop to be held in project month 40. Invitees will include policy makers from BEIS, Defra, Scottish Government, Welsh Government, scientists from the CCC, representatives from IPCC WGIII, non BEIS/CCC members of the project advisory board and key international representatives from the FAO, ISCN, Global Research Alliance and the 4per1000 initiative.

Real world impact will be delivered through our networks of land managers including a) numerous national and international projects on soil management among consortium partners, b) partner networks across the globe via CCAFS / CGIAR, and c) practitioner networks through the Global Research Alliance, ISCN and the 4per1000 initiative. We will provide advice on and promote sustainable soil management practices that co-deliver to soil GGR, and contribute to the SDGs.