Meteorological Solutions Inc - A Trinity Consultants Company’s Post

Brownfield Land, Greenspace and Nature Based Solutions This morning I attended an excellent webinar on brownfield land and the benefits of its re-use for greenspace, natural capital and biodiversity. The webinar was run by SiLC (Specialist in Land Condition Register), a network of engineering experts in land management and restoration. I had the chance to share information on our forthcoming publication on progress with re-use of vacant and derelict land as well as touching on our guidance on Delivering Community Benefits from Land and our research on the land market in Scotland. I learnt a great deal at the webinar and was encouraged by the good work being undertaken across the UK to restore damaged and contaminated land and to make sure that nature and local communities benefit from that restoration. Some key themes emerged (for me) from the event: How do we properly measure the benefits of land re-use and nature restoration so that decisions on land use and investment fully take account of these benefits? How can private finance be encouraged to invest in land and nature restoration and what will this mean for the type of projects and case studies that we discuss at future events? How do we ensure that communities are at the heart of and benefit from land use decisions? Lots of learning for me and lots to think about in our future work.

The GWC in 2024 is working to revitalize the Colorado River Research Group (CRRG), a group of prominent academics and close colleagues offering an “independent, scientific voice” on key Colorado River issues. The CRRG was formed in 2014, and has produced policy briefs on many salient subjects, including basin hydrology and climatology, reservoir operations, Tribal water rights, environmental restoration, and water conservation. The most recent CRRG policy brief was issued earlier this month, and is entitled: “Imagining the River We Deserve: How the Post-2026 Rulemaking is Only One Step Towards Sustainability”. Echoing the theme of the upcoming June conference, the publication acknowledges that the current post-2026 rulemaking is critically important in stabilizing the two big reservoirs on the system. That work should not, however, distract attention from the much grander goals of the Colorado River community for a healthy, sustainable river managed in a holistic fashion. The Colorado, after all, is the ecological and cultural centerpiece of the Southwest; it’s much more than a plumbing system. Post-2026, its unclear whether there’s a clear process, or set of processes, for getting all this work done. The CRRG intends to play a role in shaping and informing those discussions. Karletta Chief Associate Professor & Extension Specialist Historian, UA Native Faculty Association | Dept. of Environmental Science, University of Arizona Bonnie G. Colby, Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics | University of Arizona John Fleck Director of Water Resources, Department of Economics | University of New Mexico Karl Flessa Professor of Geosciences | University of Arizona Kristiana Hansen Associate Professor and Extension Water Resource Economist, Dept. of Agricultural and Applied Economics | University of Wyoming Osvel Hinojosa-Huerta Director of the Coastal Solutions Fellows Program, Lab of Ornithology | Cornell University Doug Kenney Western Water Policy Program Director GWC | University of Colorado Law School Eric Kuhn Colorado River District; General Manager (retired) Matthew McKinney Co-Facilitator, Water & Tribes Initiative, Colorado River Basin / Director, Center for Natural Resources & Environmental Policy | University of Montana Jonathan Overpeck Dean, School for Environment and Sustainability | University of Michigan Jason Robison Carl M. Williams Professor of Law & Social Responsibility | University of Wyoming College of Law John Schmidt Director, Center for Colorado River Studies, Watershed Sciences | Utah State University Kathryn Sorensen Director of Research, Kyl Center for Water Policy at Morrison Institute | Senior Global Futures Scientist, Julie Ann Wrigley Global Futures Laboratory, Arizona State University Bradley Udall Senior Water and Climate Research Scientist/Scholar, Colorado State University, Colorado Water Institute https://lnkd.in/gEyNrY68

🌊 When it comes to the intersection of progress and preservation in marine conservation and research, it's time to dive deeper and challenge the status quo. Here are some thought-provoking viewpoints that demand contemplation and spark debate: 🔍 **Controversial Considerations**: - **Balancing Act**: The Seawater Life Support project raises the question of how we navigate the balance between technological advancements and environmental impact. Are we treading carefully or treading water? - **Ethical Boundaries**: As we embrace innovative solutions, where do we draw the line on the ethics of intervention in natural ecosystems? Is progress always synonymous with positive change? - **Community Engagement**: In the realm of marine conservation, community involvement is key. But do enough voices have a seat at the table, and how can inclusivity drive more sustainable outcomes? - **Long-Term Vision**: Looking beyond immediate benefits, what strategies are in place to ensure that projects like this are not just short-lived successes but catalysts for lasting change? 🦈 It's time to challenge assumptions, provoke discussion, and steer our collective ship towards a future where progress and preservation coexist harmoniously. Let's embrace the depths of complexity, confront the controversies, and chart a course towards a more sustainable marine world. https://lnkd.in/gJ_bHm7d

Attending IMCC: International Marine Conservation Congress? I'll be presenting on the last day! Many early career marine scientists report that they *want* to perform conservation relevant research, but that they do not know how to effectively do this. This is often because of a lack of understanding of how science is used by conservation advocates and policymakers, or even a lack of understanding of the conservation and natural resources management policymaking process in general. As a result, many well-intentioned scientists spend years performing work that is functionally useless to conservation. Here we present practical, actionable advice from survey responses from natural resources managers, conservation advocates, and scientists with extensive experience performing policy-relevant research. We also present a novel, simple checklist for determining whether or not a given research project is indeed important for conservation and management.

Here's a great video from the Ecological Continuity Trust featuring Rothamsted Research #Parkgrass experiments and Sample Archive. These resources are also backed by 180 years of #data freely available at https://lnkd.in/eijvvHfs - a truly unique and valuable scientific legacy and still very relevant today

“Why environmental science and engineering? Because it provides satisfaction for the curious. The challenges are numerous and intriguing. The impact of your work is significant for all of us living on this pale blue dot we call home.” -Dr. Peter Goodwin, this year's José de Acosta lecturer at University of San Francisco Learn more about the challenges and opportunities in the fast-growing #environmentalmanagement field and gain insights into large ecosystem recovery strategies and examples in our latest blog. https://lnkd.in/eascJWk7 #usfcamsem #usfmsem #ecosystemrecovery #environmentaljustice #environmentalscience University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science

LESS THAN 1 MONTH TO GO! HAVE YOU REGISTERED FOR OUR UPCOMING WEBINAR ? 'Maximising Natural Capital Benefits for Brownfield and Sustainable Development'? Taking place on Thursday 20th June 2024 11am - 1pm at a cost of £30,  this webinar will explore how government seeks to support the reframing of nature, in terms of the value to people and the economy to create sustainable development. Attendees will hear, through case study examples, about how organisations are already implementing this approach and the resulting benefits achieved. Can development only be a threat to soil quality and natural habitats? How do we reconcile the competing needs of nature versus man? Too long we have underestimated the value and importance that the natural environment contributes to our well-being. Chaired by Mark H... (Climate & Sustainability – Lead at The Pensions Regulator), attendees will hear presentations from Tim Graham(Director at RSK Wilding and Nature Positive), David Stuart (Policy and Practice Lead at Scottish Land Commission), Martina Girvan Senior Technical Director – Ecology at Arcadis),Yolande Macklin (Senior Associate Director, Land Quality, Jacobs) and Dr. Darren Beriro (Principal Geoscientist, British Geological Survey). TO REGISTER : https://lnkd.in/e7qv2hKE

📢 New publications! Six new reports from year 1 of the Seascapes project now available! Read more: https://lnkd.in/etVHDHKa The Seascapes project, part of the Marine Natural Capital and Ecosystem Assessment (mNCEA) programme, aims to help policymakers understand the different uses and values of marine natural capital for people and society. It aims to provide a more holistic understanding of the benefits and complex trade-offs involved in managing our marine environment, with the aim of supporting the sustainable use of coastal and marine environments. New reports focus on: 🔗 Marine Natural Capital Logic Chains 🌊 Quantifying links between humans and marine natural capital assets ⚖️ Marine Ecosystem Services Trade-offs 🌱 Case study on Saltmarsh restoration 📋 Marine Natural Capital and Ecosystem Services Assessment Products Review 📈 Marine Data flows 📷 Phil Hearing/Unsplash

We've been posting this week about several research awards made to CEE faculty recently, described here: "Stanford physicians, lawyers, engineers, food security experts, geophysicists, and others soon will collaborate to develop an early warning system for wildfire smoke pollution, make agriculture more sustainable, uncover industrial slavery, and more. The Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment is awarding nearly $5 million to 24 faculty teams pursuing solutions to major environmental challenges through interdisciplinary research and translation of discoveries. In addition to six Big Ideas for Oceans projects and two Human and Planetary Health Early Career Award projects receiving Woods support, the Environmental Venture Projects (EVP) and Realizing Environmental Innovation Program (REIP) will support 16 innovative projects. EVP provides up to $250,000 per faculty research team for interdisciplinary research that seeks to identify solutions to pressing problems of the environment and sustainability. REIP provides up to $500,000, and is intended to provide next stage funding to move existing interdisciplinary environmental research projects toward solutions implemented by public stakeholders and private market actors. Since EVP began in 2004 and REIP began in 2015, Woods has awarded more than $30 million in grants to 182 research teams representing all seven of Stanford’s schools and working in 37 different countries. These projects have gone on to receive more than $90 million in additional funding from other sources." Read an overview of the program at https://lnkd.in/gAStXfAG. Civil and Environmental Engineering at Stanford University Professor Stephen Monismith will collaborate with Nicole Ardoin, Fiorenza Micheli and Robert Dunbar on the project, "Balancing conservation and fishing community needs" thanks to one of these awards. You can read more about the project at the link below. https://lnkd.in/gD-jJV4K