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Quantifying the impact of the urban biosphere on the net flux of CO2 from cities into the atmosphere.

Objective

Due to the offsetting effect of the urban biosphere resulting from the photosynthetic uptake of CO2 by plants that are often well watered and fertilized, the precise impact of urban emissions on the global burden of GHGs is challenging to quantify. Green-space initiatives that increase the vegetative coverage of the landscape, and therefore the productivity of the urban ecosystem for sequestration of CO2 are often proposed as GHG reducing strategies, despite there being very little quantitative evidence for the effectiveness or efficiency of such strategies. Uncertainty in the time scales for respiration of carbon previously taken up through photosynthesis obscures the picture even further. Meanwhile, as the modern urban landscape is continually evolving, with green spaces and parks becoming a more integral component and with suburbs expanding outward from city centers into previously rural, agricultural, and natural areas, it is apparent that we lack the scientific understanding of how best to implement planning strategies that minimize the impact of such changes on climate.
I have expertise in urban metabolism and quantifying carbon footprint at city level, however I lack the scientific knowledge required to understand and quantify the impact of the (urban) biosphere on the net flux of CO2 from cities into the atmosphere. UC Merced, presently leading a 4-yr NSF project in atmospheric modeling of COS to understand carbon cycle processes in urban ecosystems, provides the ideal training ground for me to gain the skills necessary to reach excellence in this multi-disciplinary effort to making our cities more sustainable. The project aims to answer the following questions:
• What is the global impact of urban/suburban ecosystems on atmospheric CO2?
• How will future shifts in land-use types and management practices in densely populated areas influence surface atmosphere fluxes of CO2?

Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)

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Programme(s)

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Topic(s)

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Funding Scheme

Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.

MSCA-IF-GF - Global Fellowships

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Call for proposal

Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.

(opens in new window) H2020-MSCA-IF-2014

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Coordinator

UNIVERSITAT AUTONOMA DE BARCELONA
Net EU contribution

Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.

€ 257 191,20
Address
EDIF A CAMPUS DE LA UAB BELLATERRA CERDANYOLA V
08193 Cerdanyola Del Valles
Spain

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Region
Este Cataluña Barcelona
Activity type
Higher or Secondary Education Establishments
Links
Total cost

The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.

€ 257 191,20

Partners (1)

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