Browsing by Author "Mercer, Theresa G."

Now showing 1 - 5 of 5
  • Thumbnail Image
    ItemOpen Access
    Assessing the progress of river restoration in the UK: has biophysical condition improved over two decades of intervention?
    (Wiley, 2021-09-26) Moore, Harriet Elizabeth; Mercer, Theresa G.; de Alwis Pitts, Dilkushi; Beagley, Sam; Naura, Marc; Bryden, Alexandra
    Biophysical condition is one indicator of the immediate success of efforts to restore degraded rivers as well as longer-term progress towards improving water quality. In the context of the Water Framework Directive (WFD), the biophysical condition of river systems in the UK also reflects how well international environmental policy translates into improved river management domestically. We assess whether the condition of river systems in the UK has improved or declined over the past two decades, whether regions identified by the first WFD assessment have improved or declined, and thus, how effectively international policy has been implemented nationally. Methods include: statistical and spatial analysis of more than 25,000 habitat condition records collated in the River Habitat Survey over the 1990s and 2000s; computing of an Index of Change for Local Authorities; and comparison of Indices of Change with a sub-sample of 1,727 WFD assessments conducted in 258 Local Authorities. Findings include that three of four measures indicate that biophysical quality has declined, although only the decline in one measure (habitat quality) was statistically significant. Riparian quality has improved, although measures do not consider invasive compared to native coverage. In total, 27 regions were identified with the worst declining quality. Comparative analysis of regions suggests that condition has declined most substantially in regions that were previously in “good” condition. Priorities for future investment include improving degraded sites, protecting high quality sites, and increasing monitoring of “data poor” regions. Our methodology offers an approach for utilising “messy” routinely collated data like the RHS. However, guidelines are needed to support the use of similar datasets for the international river restoration community.
  • Thumbnail Image
    ItemOpen Access
    By students, for students
    (Nature, 2017-01-04) Mercer, Theresa G.
    Loneliness, writers' block and demotivation are just three of many challenges faced by PhD students across all disciplines. It was this realization that inspired me and a social-science colleague to organize an event about the experience of being a PhD student.
  • Thumbnail Image
    ItemOpen Access
    Physical soil quality indicators for monitoring British soils
    (Copernicus Publications, 2016-11-18) Corstanje, Ronald; Mercer, Theresa G.; Rickson, R. Jane; Deeks, Lynda K.; Newell-Price, Paul; Holman, Ian P.; Kechavarzi, Cédric; Waine, Toby W.
    The condition or quality of soils determines its ability to deliver a range of functions that support ecosystem services, human health and wellbeing. The increasing policy imperative to implement successful soil monitoring programmes has resulted in the demand for reliable soil quality indicators (SQIs) for physical, biological and chemical soil properties. The selection of these indicators needs to ensure that they are sensitive and responsive to pressure and change e.g. they change across space and time in relation to natural perturbations and land management practices. Using a logical sieve approach based on key policy-related soil functions, this research assessed whether physical soil properties can be used to indicate the quality of British soils in terms of its capacity to deliver ecosystem goods and services. The resultant prioritised list of physical SQIs were tested for robustness, spatial and temporal variability and expected rate of change using statistical analysis and modelling. Six SQIs were prioritised; packing density, soil water retention characteristics, aggregate stability, rate of erosion, depth of soil and soil sealing. These all have direct relevance to current and likely future soil and environmental policy and are appropriate for implementation in soil monitoring programs.
  • Thumbnail Image
    ItemOpen Access
    Urban meadows as an alternative to short mown grassland: effects of composition and height on biodiversity
    (Ecological Society of America, 2019-07-22) Norton, Briony A.; Bending, Gary D.; Rachel Clark, Rachel; Corstanje, Ronald; Dunnett, Nigel; Evans, Karl L.; Grafius, Darren R.; Gravestock, Emily; Grice, Samuel M.; Harris, Jim A.; Hilton, Sally; Hoyle, Helen; Lim, Edward; Mercer, Theresa G.; Pawlett, Mark; Pescott, Oliver L.; Richards, J. Paul; Southon, Georgina E.; Warren, Philip H.
    There are increasing calls to provide greenspace in urban areas, yet the ecological quality, as well as quantity, of greenspace is important. Short mown grassland designed for recreational use is the dominant form of urban greenspace in temperate regions but requires considerable maintenance and typically provides limited habitat value for most taxa. Alternatives are increasingly proposed, but the biodiversity potential of these is not well understood. In a replicated experiment across six public urban greenspaces we used nine different perennial meadow plantings to quantify the relative roles of floristic diversity and height of sown meadows on the richness and composition of three taxonomic groups – plants, invertebrates and soil microbes. We found that all meadow treatments were colonised by plant species not sown in the plots, suggesting that establishing sown meadows does not preclude further locally determined grassland development if management is appropriate. Colonising species were rarer in taller and more diverse plots, indicating competition may limit invasion rates. Urban meadow treatments contained invertebrate and microbial communities that differed from mown grassland. Invertebrate taxa responded to changes in both height and richness of meadow vegetation, but most orders were more abundant where vegetation height was longer than mown grassland. Order richness also increased in longer vegetation and Coleoptera family richness increased with plant diversity in summer. Microbial community composition seems sensitive to plant species composition at the soil surface (0–10 cm), but in deeper soils (11–20 cm) community variation was most responsive to plant height, with bacteria and fungi responding differently. In addition to improving local residents’ satisfaction, native perennial meadow plantings can produce biologically diverse grasslands that support richer and more abundant invertebrate communities, and restructured plant, invertebrate and soil microbial communities compared with short mown grassland. Our results suggest that diversification of urban greenspace by planting urban meadows in place of some mown amenity grassland is likely to generate substantial biodiversity benefits, with a mosaic of meadow types likely to maximise such benefits.
  • Thumbnail Image
    ItemOpen Access
    The use of educational game design and play in higher education to influence sustainable behaviour
    (Emerald, 2016-07-21) Mercer, Theresa G.; Kythreotis, Andrew P.; Robinson, Zoe P.; Stolte, Terje; George, Sharon M.; Haywood, Stephanie K.
    Purpose The purpose of this paper is to discuss a novel life cycle approach to education for sustainable development (ESD) where the students become “design thinkers”. Design/methodology/approach A case study on the creation, development and utilisation of educational games by university students is presented. The paper discusses the case study in the context of Kolb’s experiential learning and dynamic matching model, Perry’s stages of intellectual development and Beech and Macintosh’s processual learning model. The data used were from questionnaire feedback from the pupils who played the games and students who designed the games. Further qualitative feedback was collected from local schools involved in playing the games created by the students. Findings Overall, the students responded positively to the assessment and would like to see more of this type of assessment. They enjoyed the creativity involved and the process of developing the games. For the majority of the skill sets measured, most students found that their skills improved slightly. Many students felt that they had learnt a lot about effectively communicating science. The school children involved in playing the student-created games found them accessible with variable degrees of effectiveness as engaging learning tools dependent on the game. Originality/value This paper contributes a new approach to ESD which incorporates learner-centred arrangements within a full life cycle of game creation, delivery, playing and back to creation. The games can be used as a tool for enhancing knowledge and influencing behaviours in school children whilst enhancing ESD capacity in schools. The assessment also helps forge important links between the academic and local communities to enhance sustainable development.