Ensure - Joint Centre for Environmental Sustainability and Resiliance University of Exeter China University of Hong Kong

ENSURE Collaborative Projects

Five collaborative projects have been funded by ENSURE (2019–2023) with a view to building capacity and strengthening international profile. Together they engage over 30 researchers from both Exeter and CUHK, in the fields of Atmospheric, Oceanic, and Environmental Sciences, Medicine and Public Health, Law, Social Sciences, and Mathematics.

These projects are:

Global Food Security, Climate Change and Resilience: An International Perspective

(Jan 2019-Dec 2022)

Project Coordinators: Prof. Hon-Ming Lam, Director, State Key Laboratory of Agrobiotechnology (CUHK), and Dr. Catherine Caine, Lecturer, Law School (Exeter)

Project Aim: To examine the inter-relationship between agricultural intensification, consumers’ diets/food choice, and human health with the aim of developing policies which will alleviate climate change and minimise environmental impacts.

Transboundary Air Pollution in China and the UK: Intensity, Attribution and Impacts

(Jan 2019-Jul 2021)

Project PIs: Prof. Steve Yim*, Associate Professor, Department of Geography and Resource Management (CUHK), and Prof. Jim Haywood, Professor of Atmospheric Science, Department of Mathematics (Exeter)

Project Aim: To gain a better understanding about emissions, chemical transformations, and deposition rates of air pollutants and the resultant population exposures and health impact.

* Prof. Yim had left CUHK and is now with Nanyang Technological University.

Sustainability of Coastal Megalopolises in the Face of Global Environmental Change: China’s Greater Bay Area

Jan 2019-Dec 2020

Project PIs: Prof. Joe Lee, Co-Director, ENSURE (CUHK), and Prof. Brendan Godley, Professor of Conservation Science, College of Life and Environmental Sciences (Exeter)

Project Aim: To study the capacity of coastal ecosystems in the Greater Bay Area to provide critical services that sustain human livelihood, health, and wellbeing with a view to developing a framework to inform development in other coastal mega-cities.

Hydrological Significance of Rock Glaciers: Potential Water Resources in a Warming Climate

(May 2021-Apr 2023)

Project PIs: Prof. Lin Liu, Associate Professor, Earth System Science Programme (CUHK), and Prof. Stephan Harrison, Professor of Climate and Environmental Change, Department of Geography (Exeter)

Project Aim: To assess rock glaciers as a potential water resource by developing climate projections and a hydrological model to understand their future behaviour.

Global Forest Management to Reap Triple Benefits for Economy, Health, and Climate

(May 2021-Apr 2023)

Project PIs: Prof. Amos Tai, Associate Professor, Earth System Science Programme (CUHK), and Prof. Stephen Sitch, Chair in Climate Change, Department of Geography

Project Aim: To evaluate different approaches of implementing large-scale tree-planting programmes in China and the UK, considering all pros and cons to reduce trade-offs to ensure co-benefits for human health, economic opportunities, social equity and climate resilience