Research projects
Our research has impact. Not only in Scotland but across the rest of the world.
We look at the physical elements of landscapes such as mountains, hills and water bodies. We consider living elements such as soil and vegetation. And we research different geographic characteristics and activities such as human land uses and the impact of climate change and the nature crisis on it all.
Our science is carried out in laboratories and glasshouses, field plots and farms, in villages and towns, in Scotland and abroad, often in collaboration with others.
Find out more about our pioneering research below:
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MERLIN
MERLIN stands for Mainstreaming Ecological Restoration of freshwater-related ecosystems in a Landscape context: INnovation, upscaling and transformation. MERLIN is a European Horizon 2020 project (2021-2025).
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DiversiTree
DiversiTree aims to increase the resilience of current and future woodlands to climate change and tree diseases by understanding the methods to, and the impacts of, diversifying tree species composition within our woods.
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Galvanising Change via Natural Capital
Across many sectors, decision-making and planning processes have typically not prioritised or consider nature as important. As a result, nature continues to be degraded. One response to this challenge is the concept of ‘Natural Capital’ – the stocks and flows of services arising from nature.
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MOVING – MOuntain Valorisation through INterconnectedness and Green growth
The overall objective of MOVING is to build capacities and co-develop for the establishment of new or upgraded/upscaled value chains that contribute to resilience and sustainability of mountain areas.
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Bringing in participatory approaches to widen the scope of natural capital valuation
Natural capital valuation can offer a basis for decision-making and monitoring the effects of policies, land and resource management decisions.
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SEAMS – Sustainability in Education and Agriculture using Mixtures
To develop, promote and implement crop species mixtures as a sustainable crop production system for Scotland and as a resource for knowledge exchange on food production, agricultural ecology, and environmental sustainability to a wider audience including school groups.
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Climate Change Impacts on Natural Capital
Climate change poses a substantial threat to Scotland’s air, water, soils, geology and all living things – our natural capital. There is therefore an urgent need to research the impacts of climate change on Scotland’s assets.
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Achieving multi-purpose nature-based solutions
In the context of the climate and biodiversity emergencies, there is a need not only to mitigate against these changes, but also adapt to current and future water-related environmental pressures.
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Enabling inclusivity in biodiversity narratives
Research increasingly asserts that biodiversity enhancement and conservation will be more inclusive and effective if we pay serious and analytical attention to narratives.
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Emerging water futures
This project which started in April 2022 and runs until March 2027 aims to support development of a proactive approach to water management under future environmental change.
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Stories of nature connections
The stories presented here reflect the experiences of people involved in the Creating Natural Connections project, such as volunteers, participants in nature walks, project staff and trainees.
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Emerging Water Futures: Resilience of Private Water Supplies
Understanding of rural communities’ vulnerability and risk perceptions to water scarcity and variable water quality.
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Exploring the potential of Regional Farm and Rural Support Groups to stimulate Green Finance Markets
This project aims to assess the potential of existing farmer groups across England to support Green Finance markets and other landscape scale environmental management initiatives.
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Macaulay Development Trust Project in Land Use and Societal Metabolism
Scotland’s Net Zero by 2045: Modeling societal metabolic potentials and scenarios toward emissions reductions.