The modern wave of environmentalism that swept most of the Western world since the 1960s, has generated considerable academic interest and has been widely documented. However there are apparent gaps in the knowledge, understanding and academic coverage of the phenomenon in the developing world, particularly in Africa. This thesis is an empirical exploration into the nature of environmentalism in Ghana, West Africa dwelling on the phenomena of environmental consciousness and movement activity. It identifies the presence of a small yet viable indigenous environmental movement. The movement is most visible through the partnering and collective networking activities of small, institutionalized local organizations that came together to form coalitions, share resources and work together on broad thematic issues that were of common concern.

Advances in sensor technology enable environmental monitoring programmes to record and store measurements at high-temporal resolution over long time periods. These large volumes of high-frequency data promote an increasingly comprehensive picture of many environmental processes that would not have been accessible in the past with monthly, fortnightly or even daily sampling. However, benefiting from these increasing amounts of high-frequency data presents various challenges in terms of data processing and statistical modeling using standard methods and software tools. These challenges are attributed to the large volumes of data, the persistent and long memory serial correlation in the data, the signal to noise ratio, and the complex and time-varying dynamics and inter-relationships between the different drivers of the process at different timescales. This thesis aims at using and developing a variety of statistical methods in both the time and frequency domains to effectively explore and analyze high-frequency time series data as well as to reduce their dimensionality, with specific application to a 3 year hydrological time series. Firstly, the thesis investigates the statistical challenges of exploring, modeling and analyzing these large volumes of high-frequency time series. Thereafter, it uses and develops more advanced statistical techniques to: (i) better visualize and identify the different modes of variability and common patterns in such data, and (ii) provide a more adequate dimension reduction representation to the data, which takes into account the persistent serial dependence structure and non-stationarity in the series. Throughout the thesis, a 15-minute resolution time series of excess partial pressure of carbon dioxide (EpCO2) obtained for a small catchment in the River Dee in Scotland has been used as an illustrative data set. Understanding the bio-geochemical and hydrological drivers of EpCO 2 is very important to the assessment of the global carbon budget. Specifically, Chapters 1 and 2 present a range of advanced statistical approaches in both the time and frequency domains, including wavelet analysis and additive models, to visualize and explore temporal variations and relationships between variables for the River Dee data across the different timescales to investigate the statistical challenges posed by such data. In Chapter 3, a functional data analysis approach is employed to identify the common daily patterns of EpCO2 by means of functional principal component analysis and functional cluster analysis. The techniques used in this chapter assume independent functional data. However, in numerous applications, functional observations are serially correlated over time, e.g. where each curve represents a segment of the whole time interval. In this situation, ignoring the temporal dependence may result in an inappropriate dimension reduction of the data and inefficient inference procedures. Subsequently, the dynamic functional principal components, recently developed by Hor mann et al. (2014), are considered in Chapter 4 to account for the temporal correlation using a frequency domain approach. A specific contribution of this thesis is the extension of the methodology of dynamic functional principal components to temporally dependent functional data estimated using any type of basis functions, not only orthogonal basis functions. Based on the scores of the proposed general version of dynamic functional principal components, a novel clustering approach is proposed and used to cluster the daily curves of EpCO2 taking into account the dependence structure in the data. The dynamic functional principal components depend in their construction on the assumption of second-order stationarity, which is not a realistic assumption in most environmental applications. Therefore, in Chapter 5, a second specific contribution of this thesis is the development of a time-varying dynamic functional principal components which allows the components to vary smoothly over time. The performance of these smooth dynamic functional principal components is evaluated empirically using the EpCO2 data and using a simulation study. The simulation study compares the performance of smooth and original dynamic functional principal components under both stationary and non-stationary conditions. The smooth dynamic functional principal components have shown considerable improvement in representing non-stationary dependent functional data in smaller dimensions. Using a bootstrap inference procedure, the smooth dynamic functional principal components have been subsequently employed to investigate whether or not the spectral density and covariance structure of the functional time series under study change over time. To account for the possible changes in the covariance structure, a clustering approach based on the proposed smooth dynamic functional principal components is suggested and the results of application are discussed. Finally, Chapter 6 provides a summary of the work presented within this thesis, discusses the limitations and implications and proposes areas for future research.

Food sovereignty is an alternative agricultural and rural development paradigm advocated by the international peasant movement La Vía Campesina. This investigation analyses food sovereignty through a historical cross-scale analysis focusing on the livelihoods of peasants in the sertão in North-Eastern Brazil. The overall aim is to assess the implementation and local effects of a policy, which is based on three food sovereignty principles, and determine in what ways and to what extent it promotes food sovereignty in practice. The three food sovereignty principles considered were support of peasants and small-scale family farmers, prioritisation and support of local food systems and commerce and promotion of agroecology. The policy analysed is the Brazilian government’s Food Acquisition Programme (FAP), as implemented in Mirandiba, Pernambuco by the NGO Conviver from 2005-2008. The analysis involved an assessment of the production and earnings by 359 participating families from 18 poor rural communities, as well as detailed case studies of the livelihood strategies of 14 families from two communities. A number of policy debates are explored, including rural poverty, food security and sustainable agricultural and rural development, to which this research provides three main contributions. Firstly, a new framework to explain the process of marginalisation of peasants through the influence of five mediating factors. Secondly, this framework helps deconstruct misconceptions about peasants and thereby provides support to La Via Campesina’s defence of ‘peasants’ and their livelihoods. Finally, as the first known indepth study of the implementation of the FAP on a local level, this investigation contributes to fill a gap in the research and literature on the operation and local impacts of both the FAP and governmental food procurement programmes more generally. This thesis argues food sovereignty can be achieved locally even within a context of general globalisation, through policies such as governmental food procurement programmes. The investigation concludes that food sovereignty is being pursued in areas of Brazil through the FAP and other progressive policies and movements, which are enabling peasants to improve their well-being, food security, self-esteem and to forge an adequate livelihood. The FAP is also contributing to the development of local food commerce systems and the promotion of agroecology both in Mirandiba and Brazil

As the demand for energy rises, Populus species are increasingly grown as bioenergy crops. Meanwhile, due to global change, predictions indicate that summer droughts will increase in frequency and intensity over Europe. This study was carried out to evaluate the adaptation to drought in Populus, at different levels: genetic, genomics and physiology. Forests trees such as poplar are very important ecologically and economically but the Populus genus is known to be drought sensitive. Consequently, it is essential to understand drought response and tolerance for those trees. Two populations of poplar were used for this study, a mapping population (Family 331) and a natural population of Populus nigra. The F2 mapping population obtained from a cross of Populus deltoides and Populus trichocarpa, showed differences in stomatal conductance and carbon isotope composition in both clones and the F2 progeny. It was also used to discover QTL related to water use efficiency highlighting interesting areas of the genome. Combining QTL discovery and microarray analysis of the two clones in response to drought, a list of candidate genes was defined for water use efficiency. The natural population of Populus nigra consisting of 500 genotypes of wild black poplar showed variation in numerous physiological measurements such as leaf development and carbon isotope discrimination in well-watered conditions depending on their latitude of origin. The drier genotypes (from Spain and South France) had the smallest leaf area which could be linked to an adaptation to drought. Physiological measurements of extreme genotypes in leaf size of this population revealed differences in response to water depending on their latitude of origin. Stomatal conductance rapidly decreased and water use efficiency improved for Spanish genotypes after a slow and moderate drought stress. Direct comparisons between the transcriptome of extreme genotypes from Spain and North Italy in well watered and drought conditions provided an insight into the genomic pathways induced during water deficit. Six candidate genes were selecting for further analysis using real-time PCR: two stomatal development genes (ERECTA and SPEECHLESS), two ABA related genes (ATHVA22A and CCD1), a second messenger (IP3) and a NAC transcription factor (RD26)

Future food security is under threat from both climate change and human population growth. Water scarcity is a major limitation to crop production worldwide and the effects of climate change are likely to exacerbate this. Furthermore, an ever increasing human population is driving our demand for food, fuel and fibre. In combination, climate change and population growth, and their interaction, creates a complex problem with regards to improving plant productivity with which to maintain food security. If crop production can be made more efficient, agricultural intensification can be achieved without the need to expand the world’s cropped area, which is unfeasible. Leafy salad crops are of significant nutritional value and are eaten globally, thus making them an exciting target for improving resource use efficiency in agriculture. This research focuses on water as a resource and takes two complementary approaches. Firstly, to improve the crop genetically so it produces more ‘crop per drop’ without a detrimental impact on yield. Secondly, the aim was to improve irrigation management in a commercial setting in order to use water more efficiently while attaining optimal crop yield and quality. Candidate SNPs within the lettuce genome have been elucidated which control both fresh weight and water use efficiency and these can now be used to inform a marker assisted selection breeding program. This breeding will produce a more water use efficient lettuce crop, which is not compromised in its ability to produce biomass, while also retaining the favoured traits of currently used commercial crops. Furthermore, it has been demonstrated using thermal imagery that water savings of almost 20% can be made in a commercial setting without any impact on crop yield or quality. The water savings which we have provided, if extended commercially, will confer significant savings in terms of water, waste and money.

The behaviour of Tidal Stream Turbines (TST) in the dynamic flow field caused by waves and rotor misalignment to the incoming flow (yaw) is currently poorly understood. The dynamic loading applied to the turbine could drive the structural design of the power capture and support subsystems, device size and its proximity to the water surface and sea bed. In addition, the strongly bi directional nature of the flow encountered at many tidal energy sites may lead to devices omitting yaw drives; accepting the additional dynamic loading associated with rotor misalignment and reduced power production in return for a reduction in capital cost. For such a design strategy it is imperative to quantify potential unsteady rotor loads so that the TST device design accommodates the inflow conditions and avoids an unacceptable increase in maintenance action or, more seriously, suffers sudden structural failure. The experiments presented as part of this work were conducted using a 1:20th scale 3-bladed horizontal axis TST at a large towing tank facility. The turbine had the capability to measure rotor thrust and torque, blade root strain, azimuthal position and speed. The maximum outof- plane bending moment was found to be as much as 9.5 times the in-plane bending moment, within the range of experiments conducted. A maximum loading range of 175% of the median out-of-plane bending moment and 100% of the median in-plane bending moment was observed for a turbine test case with zero yaw, scaled wave height of 2m and intrinsic wave period of 12.8s. A Blade Element Momentum (BEM) numerical model has been developed and modified to account for wave motion and yawed flow effects. This model includes a new dynamic inflow correction which is shown to be in close agreement with the measured experimental loads. The gravitational component was significant to the experimental in-plane blade bending moment and was included in the BEM model. Steady yaw loading on an individual blade was found to be negligible in comparison to wave loading (for the range of experiments conducted), but becomes important for the turbine rotor as a whole, reducing power capture and rotor thrust.

With growing concerns over future climate change, the need to understand past climate variability has become an important topic of research. In this thesis, a gap in knowledge of the transition to modern climatic conditions during the mid-Holocene is identified and addressed. Mid-Holocene atmospheric moisture availability has been reconstructed from five raised mires (Kortlandamossen, Tore Hill Moss, Raeburn Flow, Gällseredsmossen, and Misten Bog) located on geographical and climatological gradients across northwest Europe. In this thesis, a new testate amoebae-based palaeohydrological transfer function for south-central Sweden and an improved indicator-weighted Hydroclimatic Index (HCI) were created in order to establish univariate measures of mid-Holocene bog surface wetness (BSW). Together with detrended correspondence analysis, the HCI and testate amoebae transfer function were applied to palaeoecological data from the five bogs, in order to reconstruct climatic variability across northwest Europe from c. 9000 before present (BP) until c. 3500 BP. A series of wet and dry excursions of the bog surfaces were identified on all five bogs. These BSW changes were compared with palaeoclimatic evidence from the wider literature on a local, regional, continental and hemispheric scale. Throughout the early- to mid-Holocene, increased BSW on Misten Bog closely coincided with episodes of reduced SST in the North Atlantic. A similar link was established between SST and BSW on Raeburn Flow and Gällseredsmossen, following the end of the Holocene Thermal Maximum (HTM). The results from the analysis demonstrate that the HTM occurred asynchronously across northwest Europe. Reconstructions from all five bogs, except Misten Bog, showed a prolonged dry phase on the bog surface starting prior to c. 7000 BP. The end of the HTM occurred between c. 5600 BP and c. 4800 BP on all sites except Kortlandamossen, where regional environmental mechanisms delayed the end of the HTM. A climatic boundary at the end of the HTM was detected around 57ºN, with sites south of 57ºN experiencing the termination between c. 5600 BP and c. 5300, while it occurred between c. 4800 BP and c. 4400 BP on the sites north of this latitude. The only period when all five sites displayed similar BSW changes was between c. 4400 BP and c. 4000 BP, a period of global climatic change. A major wetting on the bogs during this time coincided with increased BSW and glacial advances across Europe as well as high lake levels in France and Switzerland.

No description available.

The composition of the Earth’s atmosphere is changing. Such changes can largely be attributed either directly or indirectly to anthropogenic activities. However, the effects that these changes will have on terrestrial vegetation in the future, represents an area of great uncertainty. The results that have been published in the literature have generally concluded that elevated atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration ([eCO2]) causes increased above- and below-ground biomass compared to ambient conditions. Members of the Populus genus have risen to the forefront of plant research into the effects of [eCO2]. Members of the genus are extremely fast-growing, making them suitable candidates for use as biomass energy crops. The Populus trichocarpa sequence was released in 2006, hence unveiling a huge genetic resource to the plant science community. Although a large amount of studies to date have been dedicated to the effects of [eCO2] on plant growth, few have focussed on the underlying genetic basis of the changes. However, thanks to the genetic resources that are now freely available, this has now been addressed. In the series of experiments presented in this thesis a combination of morphological measurements, gene expression and protein studies were used to assess the effects of [eCO2] on Populus leaves. The results of the studies presented here have shown that there were some differences in various aspects of plant growth as a result of [eCO2], although the magnitude of the response was lower than has been reported previously in the literature. However, there were rather few changes in transcript expression (as assessed by microarrays) due to [eCO2]. This conclusion was reproducible across different microarray platforms. This result was further confirmed by a proteomics experiment, which showed that there were no proteins whose abundance differed significantly between ambient and elevated [CO2]. It is possible that [eCO2] causes an additive effect on gene expression and hence the sensitivity of the techniques was such that these differences could not be identified. However, it may be possible that the plants demonstrate a plastic response to [eCO2] and that the techniques used to assess the response were inappropriate in this case. In such an instance, more targeted studies on particular biosynthetic pathways of interest (such as cell wall biosynthesis) may be more appropriate for any future trials.

Hydrological extremes within the UK have increased in intensity, frequency and persistence over recent years and are predicted to increase in variability throughout the 21st century. Past and future changes in hydrological extremes relative to climate change were investigated within Severn Uplands, a climate sensitive catchment. Using the Mann- Kendall trend detection test, time-series analysis over a 30-year period revealed a significant increase in winter and autumn precipitation and a decrease in summer precipitation. The analysis of flow time-series indicated an increase in winter and July flows and a decrease in spring flows. Changes in climate variability over the same period showed increases in air temperature and SST, and a reduction in snow cover. Climate variables were found to largely correlate with hydrological extremes which were characteristic of certain weather types and largely influenced by the NAO. To model future flows within the Severn Uplands a hydrological model (HEC-HMS) was used to simulate hydrological processes. The extreme hydrological event of November- December 2006 was used to calibrate the model. The difference between using radar and gauge precipitation data to drive the model was quantified. Radar data resulted in the smallest prediction accuracy followed by gauge-corrected radar data (corrected using the mean-field bias where gauge rainfall was interpolated using cokriging) and then gauge precipitation which had the largest prediction accuracy. Model accuracy was sufficient using the gauge corrected radar and gauge precipitation data as inputs, so both were altered for future predictions to investigate the propagation of uncertainty. Predicted changes in temperature and precipitation by the UKCIP02 scenarios were used to alter the baseline extreme event to predict changes in peak flow and outflow volume. Both radar- and gaugedriven hydrological modelling predicted large flow increases for the 21st century with increases up to 8% by the 2020s, 18% by the 2050s and 30% by the 2080s. Discrepancies between predictions were observed when using the different data inputs.