ARCC news for May 2015
ARCC network news
ARCC/CIRIA collaborate on contaminated land event
29 June 2015, London
CIRIA (the Construction Industry Research & Information Association) and the ARCC network are working together to review how recent extreme weather conditions, in particular flooding, have affected the design and delivery of contaminated land projects in the UK. The event will explore the impact of extreme weather events on the mobility of contaminants, the effectiveness of remediation processes and risk management and how to make contaminated land remediation projects more ‘flood proof’ in the future. There is no charge for this event, but please register as spaces are limited.
EPSRC data policy now live
OpenARCC – our dedicated resource for supporting research data management – has a new article on implementing the EPSRC (Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council)’s data policy. The article also points to further guidance available on OpenARCC.
ARCC network takes its story to the rest of Europe
At last week’s European Climate Change Adaptation conference in Copenhagen, the ARCC network’s Roger Street presented lessons drawn from the network’s experience of influencing adaptation action. The presentation explored issues such as the characteristics of an effective researcher-stakeholder relationship, the need for openness, flexibility and shared expectations, and the added value of an overarching network to support a broad communications and engagement programme. You can take a look at the presentation at our website.
Early career researcher skills development workshop – output all online
All final outputs from the recent ARCC network’s early career researcher event on preparing fellowship and research proposals are now online, including presentations and an event summary highlighting key key issues to consider when developing proposals.
Reminder – new research fellowships from EPSRC
A quick reminder that the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) is inviting outline proposals for a number of EPSRC Challenge Fellowships (post-doctoral and early career researchers) in the Living With Environmental Change theme. The closing date for submission of outline proposals is 10 June 2015.
Project news
iBUILD across the Atlantic
Researchers from iBUILD have been busy at the Association of American Geographers (AAG) Conference, organising sessions and reflecting on aspects of the discussion. Recent blogs from the team consider the relationship between public and private finance, the fragility of funding for US infrastructure and observations of the physical frailty of US transport infrastructure.
Other news
NERC Environmental risks to infrastructure innovation programme
NERC is investing up to £1m to support short-term feasibility studies and longer-term translation projects to improve the access to and translation of research in quantifying environmental risks, impacts of multi-hazard risks and uncertainty in decision-making for infrastructure. Deadline for expressions of interest is 28 May 2015.
US launches its Climate Resilience Toolkit
The US Government has created an excellent online resource to help people and organisations to manage their climate risks. It is designed to be accessible to all, including individuals, businesses and government. It brings together a risk management framework, climate data, adaptation case studies and a list of training resources.
Co-production of knowledge – td-net toolbox of approaches
Sciences Switzerland has produced an online toolbox of methods for addressing the challenges of co-producing knowledge, whether that involves different academic disciplines or collaboration with non-academic experts. The methods have been chosen primarily because of their application across disciplines, approaches and subject matter.
Looking for contributions on climate change and housing
Abstracts are being invited for papers for a forthcoming themed issue of ‘Municipal Engineer’, a journal of the Institution of Civil Engineers, focused on housing and climate change. Relevant topics include resilience to extreme weather, and the deadline for abstracts (200 words) is 31 July 2015.
- ICE: Call for papers: Housing and climate change (pdf, 1.1 MB)
- Proceedings of the ICE – Municipal Engineer
- Online Submission and Review Interface for Municipal Engineer
Systems Integration of Energy Supply and Demand Scoping Workshop
The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) is holding a workshop to identify research gaps and challenges in systems integration of energy supply and demand. The workshop findings will contribute to a forthcoming £5m call for a thematic research centre. The call for expressions of interest closes on 22 May, and the workshop will be held on 24 June.
New data resource on UK coastal flood events
An accessible and elegant new online tool – Surgewatch – allows anyone to find out about the history of coastal flooding around the UK and to download the underlying data. Created by a team from the University of Southampton, the National Oceanography Centre and the British Oceanographic Data Centre, Surgewatch aims to support a better understanding of coastal flooding, and is intended for use by researchers, engineers and planners. It uses sea level records from the National Tide Gauge Network, and the researchers are inviting further information in the form of photos, videos and narratives to be submitted.
- Nature: A user-friendly database of coastal flooding in the United Kingdom from 1915–2014
- The Conversation: Been flooded recently? These scientists want to hear from you
Events
Union of Concerned Scientists, Science Network Workshop series – communication and advocacy for scientists
May/June 2015
Forthcoming webinars look at effective communication, covering topics complementary to the ground covered in some of the first ARCC network events for early career researchers.
Transforming Energy Demand through Digital Innovation (TEDDINET): Energy social scientists in a multidisciplinary setting: opportunities and challenges
22 May 2015, Bath
Some free places still available. Please email sam.staddon@ed.ac.uk or see TEDDINET website for further information.
Flooding and coastal erosion risk management and FCERM.net Annual Assembly
28 May 2015, Edinburgh
More information (pdf)
Academy of Urbanism Annual Congress – health, happiness and wellbeing,
4–6 June 2015, Birmingham
Tomorrow’s City Today: prospects for standardising sustainable urban development
12 June 2015, London
Registration and further information
Designing City Resilience
16–17 June 2015, London
NHS Sustainable Development Unit route map event
8 July 2015, Grantham
International Symposium for Next Generation Infrastructure
14–15 September 2015, Washington DC, USA
UK Passivhaus conference 2015
20 October 2015, London
European Climate Change Adaptation (ECCA) conference 2017
6–8 June 2017, Glasgow
As ECCA2015 draws to an end, it’s time to look ahead to the next ECCA event, which will be held in Glasgow.
Tweeted…
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Houses built after 1990, flats & London homes at higher risk of overheating bit.ly/1zjZscX @lborouniversity
Innovative new auto-shading to reduce overheating | http://bit.ly/1DXXg6K @globalconreview
Health effects of home energy efficiency interventions – new study http://bmj.co/1ENmM5t @BMJ_Open @uclnews
How cities are outgrowing the automobile | http://bit.ly/1GBrC36 @guardian