Professor Nick Ostle
ProfessorSoil Plant and Land Systems, Sustainable Catchments, Understanding a changing planet
Soil, Plant & Land Systems
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Projects
Tackling Pharmaceutical and Personal Care Product Pollutants in the North-Western Himalayan Region of India
01/04/2021 → 31/07/2021
Research
Travel Grant - Limestone pavements
01/04/2021 → 31/07/2021
Research
"UKRI Interdisciplinary Circular Economy Centre For Mineral-based Construction
Materials"
01/01/2021 → 31/03/2025
Research
CASE : ENVISION : British Geological Survey - Elizabeth Flint
01/10/2020 → 31/03/2024
Research
CASE : ENVISION : Wallacea Trust - Catherine Sheppard
01/10/2020 → 31/03/2024
Research
Science Hunters: Strategic Collaboration with Lancaster University
01/08/2020 → 31/07/2023
Research
COVID-19: Delivering Remote Outreach to Schools
15/06/2020 → 31/03/2021
Research
Detecting soil degradation and restoration through a novel coupled sensor and machine learning framework
31/01/2020 → 16/09/2024
Research
A comparative assessment of foliar traits and P fractions to fertilization in two tropical forests: understanding plant acclimation to P-limitation
02/01/2020 → 30/03/2023
Research
Investing in the future of science - assessing engagement with school-age children
01/11/2019 → 31/03/2020
Research
Revealing Long-Term Change in Vegetation Landscapes: The English Lake District and Beyond
01/11/2019 → 30/09/2022
Research
FACE underground: Can trees in mature forests gain greater access to soil nutrients
15/10/2019 → 31/10/2023
Research
ACTUATE : Accelerating the adoption of circular sanitation demonstration systems for improved health outcomes
01/10/2019 → 31/12/2021
Research
CASE: Envision: Low Carbon Ltd - Hollie Blaydes
01/10/2019 → 31/12/2023
Research
Can we reduce the use of single use plastics in food production?
01/10/2019 → 30/09/2023
Research
Elsevier Community Grant
01/09/2019 → 31/12/2019
Research
LOCKED UP: The role of biotic and abiotic interactions in the stabilisation and persistence of SOC
01/09/2019 → 31/08/2024
Research
Nitrogen Futures
22/08/2019 → 14/05/2020
Research
The Minecraft Periodic Table of Elements
10/06/2019 → 31/07/2020
Research
UK Energy Research Centre Phase 4 Call
01/05/2019 → 04/10/2024
Research
Intra- and interspecific leaf trait variation, decomposition processes and the ‘home-field advantage’ in European woodlands
08/04/2019 → 30/11/2020
Research
Restoring African degraded landscapes with plant biodiversity and livestock management
01/04/2019 → 31/03/2022
Research
Rurban Revolution: Can ruralising urban areas through greening and growing create a healthy, sustainable & resilient food system?
01/04/2019 → 31/03/2021
Research
Measuring carbon flows in mangrove ecosystems: importance and vulnerability
01/03/2019 → 31/01/2020
Research
N8: Mapping the expansion of soft rush (Juncus effusus) in grasslands
07/02/2019 → 31/10/2019
Research
DSI: Monitoring and predicting the effects of climate change on crop yields
01/02/2019 → 31/07/2020
Research
Science Hunters
01/02/2019 → 30/06/2019
Research
The language of nitrogen: Why is understanding of the environmental challenges caused by nitrogen from agriculture so low?
01/02/2019 → 31/08/2019
Research
Can ruralising urban areas through greening and growing create a healthy, sustainable & resilient food system?
01/01/2019 → 31/12/2021
Research
How does 25 years of low-level chronic warming and drought stress influence the resilience of soil communities after an extreme weather event
01/01/2019 → 31/12/2019
Research
Climate and science insights for Nestlé’s TCFD reporting process
01/12/2018 → 31/07/2020
Consultancy
ERRC EnergyREV
01/12/2018 → 01/03/2022
Research
GCRF Global IAA Institutional Award:RECIRCULATE impact event
01/12/2018 → 31/03/2019
Research
Preparatory action to Boost Global Crop Yield for Food & Nutrition Security and fueling a Bioeconomy
01/11/2018 → 30/04/2022
Research
ENVISION: Fracking magma: field and experimental investigation of hydrofracture in volcanic systems - Student: Holly Unwin
01/10/2018 → 30/11/2022
Research
Resistance by adaptation: Does evolution stabilise plant community structure and function under climate change?
10/09/2018 → 30/05/2022
Research
Soil Hydrology research platform underpinning innovation to manage water scarcity in European and Chinese cropping systems
01/09/2018 → 31/08/2022
Research
Rutherford Fund Strategic Partner Grant 2018
01/04/2018 → 31/03/2019
Research
Assessing theImpact of Future Nitrogen Deposition and Warming on Methane and Nitrogen Cycling in Temperate Forests
31/03/2018 → 30/09/2021
Research
Carbon Cycling in Mangrove Ecosystems
16/03/2018 → 15/03/2023
Research
Complementary laboratory and field phenotyping to extend the future agro-climatic range of soybean
29/01/2018 → 31/01/2020
Research
UK - Solar parks impacts on ecosystem services: implementation
01/01/2018 → 31/12/2019
Research
Q-NFM : Quantifying the likely magnitude of nature-based flood mitigation effects across large catchments
01/11/2017 → 31/03/2023
Research
CASE Studentship Agreement Matt Amos
01/10/2017 → 30/09/2020
Research
RECIRCULATE : GCRF: Driving eco-innovation in Africa:capacity-building for a safe circular water economy
01/10/2017 → 31/12/2021
Research
RECIRCULATE : GCRF: Driving eco-innovation in Africa:capacity-building for a safe circular water economy
01/10/2017 → 31/03/2022
Research
N8 : UK Soya Production for Economic Benefits
01/06/2017 → …
Research
The Water Towers of East Africa : Policies and Practices for enhancing co-enefits from joint forest and water conservation.
01/03/2017 → 31/12/2020
Research
Soil-Value: Valuing and enhancing soil infrastructure to improve societal sustainability and resilience
01/06/2016 → 31/05/2021
Research
Solar Park Impacts on Ecosystem services : a Framework for Best Practice (SPIES)
01/01/2016 → 30/06/2017
Research
Developing a Suite of Novel Land Conditioners and Plant Fertilisers from the Waste Streams of Biomass Energy generation
05/01/2015 → 14/04/2019
Research
Biodiversity, Ecosystem Functions and Policy Across a Tropical Forest Modification Gradient
01/04/2014 → 30/03/2019
Research
Ecosystem carbon and nutrient dynamics under global change
01/04/2014 → …
Research
Dual Land-Use for Solar Energy and Food Production
01/10/2013 → 30/09/2016
Research
LPIA: Developing collaborations to facilitate the optimal deployment of terrestrial solar farms
01/07/2013 → 30/06/2014
Research
Piloting a Cost-Effective Framework for Monitoring Soil Erosion in England and Wales
01/06/2013 → 31/05/2016
Research
Developing a Suite of Novel Land Conditioners and Plant Fertilisers from the Waste Streams of Biomass Energy Generation
30/04/2013 → 29/10/2013
Research
Analysis and simulation of the long term/large scale interactions of C, N and P in UK land, freshwater and atmosphere
12/11/2012 → 11/11/2015
Research
U.K. Natural Environment Research Council–Analytical Chemistry Trust Fund studentship
01/10/2012 → …
Research
Presentation of the Survey Project Results
17/09/2012 → 30/09/2012
Research
Ecological Continuity Trust: Establishing a Consortium Application
05/09/2012 → 31/12/2013
Research
Implementing Component 2 of Demonstration Test Catchments
01/06/2012 → 30/09/2017
Research
Diversity in Upland Rivers for Ecosystem Service Sustainability - DURESS
01/05/2012 → 30/06/2016
Research
ECSG: The effect of direct and diffusion radiation on carbon cycling and plant productivity
01/05/2012 → 30/09/2014
Research
Establishing the impact of vegetation on DOC concentrations in the context of peatland management and the mechanisms responsible
20/03/2010 → 18/04/2010
Research
MOPS 2
01/04/2008 → 30/09/2013
Research
Research Activity
Our research is focused on the effects of global change and human activity on the form and function of terrestrial systems.
The Soil, Plant & Landscape Systems Group consists of leading academics and researchers working across disciplines, and internationally, to address uncertainties regarding the impacts of environmental change on natural and managed ecosystems. We work with, and train, UK and international students and researchers to improve knowledge, skills, outcomes and impact.
Research Questions
Specific research questions include - How resilient are plant-soil systems to climate change? What are the ecosystem impacts of land use change? How can soils help our ambition for a circular nutrient economy? Will global soils sequester climate mitigating carbon? How can we communicate our science effectively? How to make agricultural systems more sustainable? How do we protect ecosystems from degradation and pollution? How do we balance agricultural production and environmental quality? How does urbanisation effect plant-soil ecosystems? How can we manage renewable energies to co-benefit ecosystem services? What controls greenhouse gas emissions from tropical wetlands, tropical and sub-tropical forests? Can we restore damaged ecosystems?
Our Approach
Our research is truly global with projects and partners in the UK, Africa, Asia, South America, North America and Europe. We use state-of-the-art technologies in the field and laboratory such as the Soils and Ecosystem Ecology Research Laboratory within Lancaster Environment Centre, and those of our partners in the Centre For Ecology and Hydrology and around the world. We innovate with novel large scale and international field experiments. We measure, model and predict the impacts of change on ecosystem functions. Our well-resourced laboratories are fully equipped with instrumentation for plant-soil and ecosystem biogeochemical, hydrological, microbial and ecological research.
Collaborations and Funding
Beyond Europe we have strong collaborative links-partnerships and ongoing research in:
- Panama (STRI)
- Brazil (UFLA)
- Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda (CIFOR)
- Peru (University of Huancayo)
- Ghana (LU Ghana and CSIR)
- Nigeria (University of Benin, CGE Nigeria, National Commission of Energy and Environment)
- Malaysia (Forest Research)
- China (SCAU, Chinese Academy of Sciences)
- The Argentine National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET)
Our research is funded by
- UKRI
- NERC
- BBSRC
- EPSRC
- EU
- Royal Society
- DEFRA
- BEIS
- Leverhulme
- GCRF
- IFAD
- German Science Foundation
We work in collaboration with stakeholders within the UK and overseas to deliver changes in policy and practice, including SMEs, big businesses, NGOs, and Government.
Research Highlights
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