Water networks have been integral to the expansion of urban centres and the development and expansion of trade, thus also interacting with flood control strategies and the construction and maintenance of rural landscapes. There has been a long history of artistic and cultural representation of these waterways, and the life that they have brought to their surrounding landscapes. This is in danger of being lost. In this post-industrial age it is therefore necessary to develop new, more coordinated, strategies to promote memory and identity of river cultures, linking institutional activities and encouraging the exchange of experiences. The presence in many European countries of artificial waterways and connected natural hydrography can thus be considered a significant cultural heritage. Characterized by an intrinsic hydraulic complexity, this heritage goes back far in time at least to the Middle Ages, develops further during the Renaissance and reaches its maturity during the industrial era. In some cases, this hydraulic network is already a tourist attraction; in other cases, it has a hidden potential for sustainable development. Such a precious, historic heritage deserves today a renewed, coordinated commitment to its re-evaluation, by considering both the structural heritage of the waterways (canals, bridges, locks, shipyards, mills, quays) and the artistic and cultural artefacts that are now in peril (artistic and cultural interpretations of river life, traditional wooden boats and other crafts). The research will be undertaken from a multi-disciplinary perspective, involving teams from the University of Brighton (UK), University Ca Foscari Venice (Italy), the University of Leiden and the Free University of Amsterdam (The Netherlands) and the University of Gerona (Spain). The project will bring cultural geography into conversation with art history, oral history, digital media and design. In the contexts of geography and spatial planning, discourses about the cultural-historical dimensions of landscape are elaborate and on-going, particularly in the field of cultural geography. At the same time, in the humanities - for example in the research field of 'ecocriticism' - a growing interest in ecological concerns is being expressed by artists and writers. From the diverse disciplines of geography, spatial planning and the humanities, there is thus clearly a need to research how (both historical and contemporary) cultural heritage can contribute to our knowledge about land and waterscapes. Allied to this is a broad wish to explore the new opportunities offered by digital media to record, represent and interpret cultural heritage, particularly where it engages with often hidden secondary and essentially local communities and their environments. This project aims to develop these theoretical discussions and to elaborate - beyond theory and at the same time developing theory further - concrete tools in which both oral history and cultural heritage information are linked to geospatial information that can be shared with the communities that created the content, as well as the wider public, government agencies and other bodies who share a stake in the future of Europe's rich heritage of secondary waterways and associated waterscapes.

The UK faces serious strategic challenges with the future supply of aggregates, critical minerals and elements. At the same time, the UK must sustainably manage multimillion tonne annual arisings of industrial, mining and mineral wastes (IMMWs). The amount of these wastes generated is projected to increase over the coming years, particularly (i) ash from the combustion of biomass and municipal solid waste, and (ii) contaminated dredgings. These wastes will continue to be landfilled despite often containing valuable resources such as high concentrations of critical metals, soil macronutrients and useful mineral components, some of which actively drawdown atmospheric CO2. The fundamental aim of the ASPIRE (Accelerated Supergene Processes In Repository Engineering) research project is to develop a sustainable method by which ashes, contaminated dredgings and other IMMWs can be stripped of any valuable elements. These stripped elements would then be concentrated in an ore zone for later retrieval and the cleaned residues also returned to use, for example as aggregates, cement additives, or agricultural amendments (including those for carbon sequestration through enhanced mineral weathering). It is a very challenging problem to devise a truly sustainable method to achieve this is an economically viable way, and almost all processes suggested so far in the literature for leaching wastes are themselves carbon and chemical intensive and thus non-sustainable. We are proposing research that comprises the first steps in developing the "ASPIRE waste repository" concept with accelerated analogues of ore-forming "supergene" processes engineered in, such that the dormant waste undergoes processes to (i) concentrate valuable components (e.g. critical metals, phosphate) as an anthropogenic ore to facilitate their future recovery, and (ii) concurrently decontaminate residual mineral material so as to make it available as a bank of material to drawdown for "soft" uses in agriculture, silviculture, greenspace, landscaping in new developments, habitat creation and/or as a cement/concrete additive or replacement aggregate. The processes investigated rely on rainwater passing through a vegetated surface layer which releases naturally occurring compounds from the plant roots and/or other natural organic matter which then pass through and strip valuable elements from the IMMW. The mobilised elements will then pass into a capture zone where they will be stripped from solution and concentrated to form an artificial ore. The research project will seek to engineer the internal processes of the temporary storage waste repository to optimise this. At the same time the upper vegetated surface of the waste repository will serve as greenspace with commensurate ecological and amenity value for local populations. Among the key research challenges is in how to engineer the internal ASPIRE waste repository processes which rely on complex biogeochemical interactions and flow behaviour. Another critical research challenge is to develop an understanding of stakeholder and wider acceptability of this concept which does not fit with current legislation on waste management. With this project we seek to provide a circular technology solution for how we can sustainably manage the future multimillion tonne arisings of IMMW at a critical time as the UK government develops strategies and supporting regulation for the transition to a circular economy.

This innovative interdisciplinary project aims to develop an easy-to-use, evidence-based resource which can be used in decision-making in drought risk management. To achieve this, we will bring together information from drought science and scenario-modelling (using mathematical models to forecast the impacts of drought) with stakeholder engagement and narrative storytelling. While previous drought impact studies have often focused on using mathematical modelling, this project is very different. The project will integrate arts, humanities and social science research methods, with hydrological, meteorological, agricultural and ecological science knowledge through multi-partner collaboration. Seven case study catchments (areas linked by a common water resource) in England, Wales and Scotland will be selected to reflect the hydrological, socio-economic and cultural contrasts in the UK. Study of drought impacts will take place at different scales - from small plot experiments to local catchment scale. Citizen science and stakeholder engagement with plot experiments in urban and rural areas will be used as stimuli for conversations about drought risk and its mitigation. The project will: (i) investigate different stakeholder perceptions of when drought occurs and action is needed; (ii) examine how water level and temperature affect drought perception; (iii) explore the impact of policy decisions on drought management; (iv) consider water users' behaviours which lead to adverse drought impacts on people and ecosystems and; (v) evaluate water-use conflicts, synergies and trade-offs, drawing on previous drought experiences and community knowledge. The project spans a range of sectors including water supply; health, business, agriculture/horticulture, built environment, extractive industries and ecosystem services, within 7 case-study catchments. Through a storytelling approach, scientists will exchange cutting edge science with different drought stakeholders, and these stakeholders will, in turn, exchange their knowledge. Stakeholders include those in: construction; gardeners and allotment holders; small and large businesses; local authorities; emergency planners; recreational water users; biodiversity managers; public health professionals - both physical and mental health; and local communities/public. The stakeholder meetings will capture various data including: - different stakeholder perceptions of drought and its causes - local knowledge around drought onset and strategies for mitigation (e.g. attitudes to water saving, responses to reduced water availability) - insights into how to live with drought and increase individual/community drought resilience - the impact of alternating floods and droughts The information will be shared within, and between, stakeholder groups in the case-studies and beyond using social media. This information will be analysed, and integrated with drought science to develop an innovative web-based decision-making utility. These data will feedback into the drought modelling and future scenario building with a view to exploring a variety of policy options. This will help ascertain present and future water resources availability, focusing on past, present and future drought periods across N-S and W-E climatic gradients. The project will be as far as possible be 'open science' - maintaining open, real-time access to research questions, data, results, methodologies, narratives, publications and other outputs via the project website, updated as the project progresses. Project outputs will include: the decision-making support utility incorporating science-narrative resources; hydrological models for the 7 case-study catchments; a social media web-platform to share project resources; a database of species responses/management options to mitigate drought/post-drought recovery at different scales, and management guidelines on coping with drought/water scarcity at different scales.

This project aims to develop a low cost ground imaging system (PRIME - Proactive Infrastructure Monitoring and Evaluation) for remote monitoring of infrastructure earthwork assets. PRIME will assess the condition of the earthworks on a continuous 24/7 basis, helping to predict failures and enable timely intervention. Conventional asset monitoring involves examining the surface (either by people on the ground or from aerial photos) and using point sensors, like moisture content and tilt meters, which only give information in the immediate vicinity of the sensor. But PRIME will use geophysics to 'see inside' the earthworks, enabling volumetric tracking of moisture content changes and ground movement, and so identifying problems at a much earlier stage. The development of PRIME is driven by the increasing rate and severity of infrastructure earthwork failures. This is due to aging assets (many canal and rail earthworks are over a hundred years old) and more extreme weather events (e.g. the extreme rainfall during winter 2013-14). Asset failures are enormously expensive, costing hundreds of millions of pounds per year in the UK alone, not to mention risks to human health and disruption of services, transport systems and the wider economy. There is growing recognition among asset owners, managers, and consultants that remote monitoring technologies have the potential to reduce these costs and risks by providing continuous condition information and early warnings of failure. To this end, low-cost PRIME hardware has already been successfully developed and demonstrated during a pilot phase project. But in an operational environment, the processing and interpretation of the large volumes of data that PRIME will produce must be automated for the technology to be commercially viable. Manual oversight of the systems simply would not be able to deliver cost-effective near real-time condition assessments and early warnings over extended monitoring periods. To address this, the project aims to develop a fully-automated data processing, image analysis and decision support system for PRIME. Methods already used in medical physics will be employed to recognise conditions likely to give rise to failure and will automatically generate alarms. The near real-time interpretation of the earthwork condition will be provided by an end-user interface (the dashboard), which will also enable PRIME information to be exported to, and interface with, industry-standard monitoring systems. The system will be validated at two test sites on operational rail and waterways infrastructure, and its development will be steered by a broad consortium of stakeholders to ensure that the technology is fit-for-purpose. Implementation of the PRIME information delivery system will represent a step-change in asset condition monitoring, providing high frequency subsurface information at unprecedented resolution. This will facilitate a powerful new approach to near-real-time decision-support and early warning, which will provide the information necessary to implement low-cost early interventions and avoid catastrophic very high cost infrastructure failures. Moreover, the development and commercialisation of PRIME will enable specialist consultants and technology companies to provide cutting edge services and monitoring solutions. By the end of the project, the aim is to have developed and demonstrated PRIME technology to a point where it is ready to be translated to the commercial sector. Stakeholders: Arup; Atkins; Network Rail; Canal and River Trust; Scottish Canals; National Grid; HS2; Rail Safety and Standards Board (RSSB); ITM Monitoring; GeoSense; Transport Scotland. Keywords: Remote monitoring; early warning; subsurface information; geophysical imaging; environmental risks; infrastructure condition.

Green and blue spaces (GI) can directly and indirectly influence human health and wellbeing. However, access to health and wellbeing benefits is not shared equally amongst the population, particularly in urban areas. Research shows that people aged 65 and over are most likely to suffer from poor health, yet this group may be the least likely to benefit from GI. Although good health and wellbeing in an ageing population might be promoted through access to GI, using GI may not always be beneficial particularly as older people can be more susceptible to environmental stressors. Understanding how GI is valued in the context of the health and wellbeing of older people is one such unknown. This value might include the monetary value of preventing ill-health but also broader interpretations, such as the historical, heritage or wildlife value that influences whether older people actively seek experiences in green and blue spaces. The GHIA research project; 'Green Infrastructure and the Health and Wellbeing Influences on an Ageing Population' aims to better understand the benefits and values of urban GI for older people and how GI and specific 'greening projects' can be best used to support healthy ageing in urban areas. The proposed case-study area is Greater Manchester (GM). GM is the first northern city to adopt a devolutionary settlement including control of health and social care spending. The research team are partnering with organisations involved in improving the health and wellbeing of older people and the design and management of GI across GM, including GM's Red Rose Forest, Public Health Manchester, Manchester City Council and Manchester Arts and Galleries Partnership. A core part of the research will look at how the research findings can be translated into policy and practice and the transferability of findings to other cities, potentially with similarly devolved powers. It will do this by involving older people as 'co-producers' of the research to better understand thoughts, experiences and values that are associated with green and blue spaces. This will have a particular arts focus, including storytelling, sensory engagement and offering new experiences for engaging with green and blue spaces. Different types of urban GI will be used, including green 'patches' within the city (e.g. urban parks), green and blue 'corridors' (e.g. canals and waterways) and green spaces within the wider urban fabric or 'matrix' (e.g. private gardens). This co-production of research findings will be linked to all the other areas of work undertaken in the project. Other aspects of research will be conducted on the potential benefits and disbenefits of green spaces on ageing health and wellbeing and the value that this provides. This will include looking for relationships between health data and the occurrence of GI across space, 'before and after studies' exploring the influence that different greening projects have on the physical activity of older people, measuring how GI may affect older people's exposure to environmental hazards (such as air pollution and extreme temperature) and working with people with early-onset dementia to understand how they appreciate the urban landscape through different 'sensory' perceptions. The findings from the other components of the research will then be used to explore the values applied to the GI benefits and how these can help guide policy and practice. This will include evaluating existing measures of valuing greenspace, including monetary valuation and then work with older people to understand broader interpretations of value, such as culture, heritage, history and the natural or 'biodiversity' value. These findings will be used to develop online mapping tools that demonstrate the needs, provision and value of GI for older people. The team will then work to explore how these findings relate to other locations and communicate findings to urban areas across the UK.