The developing world is projected to suffer disproportionately from the effects of climate change. Many uncertainties remain in the likely conditions the world will experience, for example in local rainfall, and the effects of such changes on agriculture, fisheries, and health and industrial development. It is today's early career researchers who will be tasked with tackling these challenges in future. To generate the skilled people necessary, we proposed an international PhD partnering between the University of Cape Town (UCT) and the University of East Anglia (UEA) in the areas of (1) understanding the climate system, including the ocean and atmosphere, and (2) developing capacity to cope with a changing climate.
The proposed partnership will exchange PhD students in the fields of climate science (e.g. climate modelling, ocean science, atmospheric science), climate impacts (e.g. social science, international development, human health, agriculture, fisheries) and adaptation strategies. UEA and UCT are two universities with strong expertise in these disciplines. These strong and complementary centres and academics are brought here together in a formal arrangement for the first time.
The PhD researchers will benefit from strong expertise in both UEA and UCT in a range of key and modern methods. They will learn the skills needed to fully develop as researchers and operate in a global research environment in their field. Our partnership includes world experts in the measurements of ocean currents, marine biogeochemistry and ecology, fisheries survey, and atmospheric trace gases, as well as experts in conducting fieldwork on climate change adaptation and on epidemiology. We also have expertise in the synthesis and analysis of global datasets such as the global temperature (CRUTEM) and global ocean CO2 (SOCAT), and expertise in the modelling of physical climate, biogeochemistry, and integrated assessments of impacts and adaptation options. Importantly, many of our academic staff are experienced in working in interdisciplinary teams, a skill that is becoming increasingly important to address issues related to climate who will benefit from the
The exchange of 10 PhD students on each side will take place ideally in annual cohorts of 3-4 students, with an initial cohort of UEA students going to South Africa around February 2016, and an annual cohort of South African students coming to UEA around September. Students will be paired with someone of similar interests on both sides. This arrangement will create a support group for the students both for helping to quickly integrate socially and professionally and to be productive in advancing their knowledge, skills and connections quickly. Furthermore, at least three members of academic staff from each of UEA and UCT will also take part in the exchange, one each year. Additional exchanges are envisaged from projects that are already on going.
The group will benefit from international visibility through their integration with the Tyndall Centre at UEA and the African Climate and Development Initiative at UCT, contacts with the staff developing the international Future Earth platform, and connections with staff members that play key roles in international efforts, such as the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and the World Research Programme.