ELSA - Earth & Life Systems Alliance

ELSA Research

Having publicly launched ELSA, the focus is now on seeing some high quality science carried out within the Alliance. A total of ten projects have been supported through two peer-reviewed competitive funding rounds.

The projects funded so far are:

Agricultural transitions:

The exploitation of microalgae

Dr Ian Bancroft (Dept of Crop Genetics, JIC); Dr Mark Coleman (School of Biological Sciences, UEA); Dr Kay Denyer (Department of Metabolic Biology, JIC); Dr Craig Faulds (Sustainability in the Food Chain Exploitation PlatformIFR); Dr John French (InCrops project); Prof. Gill Malin (School of Environmental Sciences, UEA), Prof. Alison Smith (Department of Metabolic Biology, JIC); Dr Bruce Tofield (CRED partnership, UEA); Dr Keith Waldron (Sustainability in the Food Chain Exploitation Platform, Institute of Food Research)

Scoping Study: Agricultural transitions in the East of England

Prof. Kerry Turner (Director, CSERGE, School of Environmental Sciences) and Dr David Laurie (Department of Crop Genetics, John Innes Centre)

UK Climate Change Scenarios for Agricultural Applications

Dr Kay Denyer (Dept of Metabolic Biology, JIC); Dr Steve Dorling (School of Environmental Sciences, UEA); Dr Clare Goodess (School of Environmental Sciences, UEA); Phil Jones (School of Environmental Sciences, UEA); David Laurie (Dept of Crop Genetics, JIC)

Biodiversity:

Developing self-sustaining microbial microcosms to study biogeochemical cycling

Dr Hywel Williams (School of Environmental Sciences, UEA) and Dr Philip Poole (Dept of Molecular Microbiology, JIC)

Adaptive variation in salt tolerance in saltmarsh grasses

Dr Margaret Boulton (Dept of Disease and Stress Biology, JIC); Prof. Tony Davy (School of Biological Sciences, UEA); Prof. Alastair Grant (School of Environmental Sciences, UEA); Dr Simon Griffiths (Dept of Crop Genetics, JIC); Dr David Laurie (Dept of Crop Genetics, JIC)

Adaptation of flowering time to climate change

Prof. Caroline Dean (Dept of Cell and Development Biology, JIC), Prof. Alastair Grant, (School of Environmental Sciences, UEA)
Plus active collaboration with Dr Svante Holm University of Mid-Sweden

Metatranscriptomic analysis of the response of rhizosphere bacteria to environmental change

Dr Jon Clarke, Prof. Alastair Grant (School of Environmental Sciences, UEA); Dr Simon Griffiths (Dept of Crop Genetics, JIC); Dr Philip Poole (Dept of Molecular Microbiology, JIC)

Elemental Cycles:

Regulation of methyl halide and related organohalogen production in Arabidopsis and Brassica

Prof. Bill Sturges (School of Environmental Sciences, UEA); Dr David Oram (School of Environmental Sciences, UEA); Dr Lars Ostergaard (Dept of Crop Genetics, JIC) and Dr Giles Oldroyd (JIC)

Developing self-sustaining microbial microcosms to study biogeochemical cycling

Dr Hywel Williams (School of Environmental Sciences, UEA) and Dr Philip Poole (Dept of Molecular Microbiology, JIC)

Could the first land plants have caused the Ordovician glaciations?

Prof. Tim Lenton (School of Environmental Sciences, UEA)

Identification of genes involved in DMSP biosynthesis in marine diatoms

Dr Stanislav Kopriva, Dept of Metabolic Biology, JIC); Prof. Gill Malin (School of Environmental Sciences, UEA)