The Grantham Institute for Climate Change celebrates its research

The Grantham Outlook 2010 reports on how the Institute is addressing climate change, for example, by developing a better understanding of ocean dynamics - <em>News</em>

By Natasha Martineau
Tuesday 18 May 2010

In the three years since the Grantham Institute for Climate Change was formed at Imperial College London, it has established a thriving multidisciplinary research programme and a series of networks to ensure that policy, business and public decisions are based on the best scientific evidence available.

Today, the Institute celebrates its progress with the publication of its Outlook 2010 report [pdf], which introduces some of its researchers and PhD students, and highlights its recent work in partnering with other organisations to bring about real change.

The Grantham Institute was founded in 2007 with a donation to Imperial from Jeremy and Hannelore Grantham through their Foundation for the Protection of the Environment. Support from the Granthams and other partners has helped the Institute to build a strong community of established world class researchers and to establish a thriving cohort of PhD students, which now stands at 37 strong.

Download the Grantham Outlook 2010 report [pdf]

The Institute research programme focuses on improving our understanding of the science behind climate change, as well as developing new technologies for mitigating and adapting to its worst effects. Researchers and PhD students are working to answer a huge range of questions to solve some of the problems caused by climate change, including:

• How can we improve our modelling of ocean dynamics better - one of the most computationally intense problems in modern science?
• How will species interact differently as global warming takes its course?
• Can countries with the technology to make a plastic bag also make a solar cell?
• What are the best ways of capturing and safely storing carbon dioxide from power stations?
• What can one of the world's largest ecological experiments tell us about the effects of deforestation on human carbon emissions?
• How can we incorporate new weather forecasting into the insurance industry's old catastrophe models?

The report also presents an update on the Institute's work broader influencing work: "We continue to welcome public opportunities to discuss our research - to speak frankly about what we know, where uncertainties lie, and what we have yet to discover," says Professor Sir Brian Hoskins, Grantham Institute Director. "We are keen to make sure that our research influences policy and feeds into public debate, so that we fulfil our commitment to society by ensuring that our research helps those whose lives are likely to be most affected by this pressing global challenge."