Poorly planned cities in developing countries create dangerous traffic environments and traffic congestion is growing in many of these rapidly growing conurbations. There is a need for plans and policies that ensure a more equitable appropriation of space for different types of travel modes, from the standpoint of equity, accessibility, safety and environmental protection. Inclusive travel options to allow access within cities to education, healthcare and employment is a critical component of sustainable urbanization; however, of the annual 1.25 million road traffic fatalities globally, 90% are in low and middle-income countries such as those in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Africa has the joint highest road crash fatality rate of all global regions and transport-related deaths are growing and overtaking some major diseases such as tuberculosis, cholera, leprosy, hepatitis and malaria. Over half of all fatalities are among vulnerable groups (e.g. pedestrians, cyclists and public transport users) and death and injury burdens are heavily skewed towards lower income groups. The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) call for inclusive and sustainable urbanization including increasing the capacity for participatory, integrated and sustainable human settlement planning and management. There is a specific request for improving road safety incorporating local level planning reform to ensure clean and safe mobility within urban systems. Creative methods (e.g. the use of arts interventions, including drama, participatory map making, storytelling, creative writing, photography, etc.) have a particular contribution to make in revealing vulnerable peoples' needs and desires for urban mobility. They have demonstrated value in effectively communicating these needs between stakeholders addressing the need for inclusion in planning processes irrespective of age, gender, religion, origin or economic status. The arts and humanities have a role to play in bringing forward new viewpoints and generating novel solutions by providing a discussion space to explore these key issues. Sometimes providing a counterpoint or challenge to existing bureaucratic and technical knowledge and power processes. This project will build a network of UK arts and humanities academics with their counterparts from East Africa alongside local urban planners, designers, NGOs, civil society groups and urban decision makers. The UK participants have experience of a range of creative approaches used to reveal different groups problems (in relation to mobility and travel); but methods that are also useful in helping identify novel solutions co-designed with these groups themselves. The network will identify how these approaches could be developed and used in East Africa to help address issues around sustainable travel options for all residents of the regions rapidly growing cities contributing to the delivery of the SDGs.

The COVID-19 pandemic is having substantial consequences on UK and global food and nutrition security (FNS). This project will undertake world-leading research to provide government, business and decision makers with the evidence that they need to develop a robust FNS response to the current pandemic. The pandemic is causing major shocks to the four pillars of FNS: access; availability; utilisation and stability. Examples include reductions in productivity (labour limitations), breakdown of norms of food systems (distribution, changed demand) and supply chain restrictions (e.g. shortages of agri-chemicals for crop management). Economic impacts are altering both supply, distribution and demand. Collectively these shocks are substantially altering food systems whilst in the longer-term normal processes of trade may not adapt appropriately leading to changes in the balance of traded commodities, reduction in food reserves and price increases. The issue of FNS is relevant to all members of society, particularly for those most vulnerable to shortages or price increases. The food sector is also a major part of the UK economy, as it contributes approximately £111 billion a year and accounts for over 13% of national employment. It is the UK's largest manufacturing sector. The project focusses on UK FNS which is heavily dependent on global markets. Nearly half of the food we consume is imported and UK livestock industries rely heavily on imported feed. Some countries have already restricted exports in order to supply home markets. Normal market forces, transportation and distribution networks may no longer be appropriate to provide national requirements. A priority is to understand how to increase capacity for self-reliance to maintain civic stability, a healthy population and to understand the ramifications for third countries. The aim of this study is to conduct an initial rapid FNS risk assessment and explore options for changes in agricultural production, trade and distribution to protect FNS without jeopardising wider ecological and climate goals. The Research Programme will deliver seven key outputs: 1. Report on rapid risk assessment of the global food system considering how direct and indirect COVID-19 impacts and responses are propagating risks to food and nutrition security. 2. Report on Rapid risk assessment of UK food system responses and vulnerabilities and consequences on access, availability, utilisation and stability. 3. A set of plausible scenarios to explore the cascading risks and consequences of pandemic impacts on food sand nutrition security. 4. Report on alternative land use and management options that will increase resilience. 5. Report and maps of the spatial assessment of the alternative land use and management options. 6. Report including infographics reviewing lessons learned from the pandemic to improve Food and Nutrition Security. 7. Two workshops and other dissemination events and report with recommendations. The knowledge and foresight generated will be applicable to and of value across multiple sectors of the economy. It will inform policy support and development within UK and devolved Governments and help industry and business make informed decisions and plan adaptations. Information generated will support the UK's strong position in global trade. Identifying data gaps now will enable improved monitoring of impacts, both at UK and global scales.

Despite the fact that approximately 85% of total agricultural output across the African continent is produced by small-holder farmers, with the small-holder farming sub-sector accounting for 75% of Kenya's total agricultural output, there remains a persistent imagining amongst some academics, policy makers and NGOs that African farming practices are static, inefficient and inherently vulnerable in the face of environmental change and population growth. These ideas have in turn supported a longstanding modernising paradigm whereby African agriculture is argued to require a host of 'new' technical inputs such as mechanisation, chemical fertilisers and pesticides, and hybrid and GM crops. This process has deep colonial roots and, in the wake of pressing issues surrounding climate change and population growth, has re-emerged in recent calls for a new African Green Revolution. However, this 'modernising' paradigm has failed to deliver sustainable prosperity, suggesting that alternative frameworks are required. By analysing how small-holder farmers in Eastern Africa innovate in daily practice, this project will reconsider why wholesale attempts at modernisation have often failed and, in the process, offer alternative ways toward prosperous rural livelihoods. Working with multisectoral partners currently active in food systems research and delivery, we challenge the 'modernisation' imperative by historicising contemporary farming practices in Kenya and diachronically exploring ongoing processes of innovation and ingenuity that seem to have been characteristic of African farming for centuries, arguing instead that these may offer crucial insights into the future of farming practice in the region. The premise that African farming systems have historically been diverse and highly adaptive draws upon a wealth of archaeological and historical material that demonstrates how they have developed in dynamic ways over several thousand years, continuously diversifying as they became integrated into expansive inter-continental exchange networks with SW Asia, India and China. Such processes continued into the 19th century when, with the formalisation of colonisation, new waves of domesticates and concepts surrounding soil and forest conservation were introduced by 'professional' colonial agricultural officers. Whilst many of these colonial interventions understood African agricultural systems as resistant to change (Anderson 2018; Beinhart 2000), we argue here for a more nuanced narrative wherein small-holders selectively adopted and propagated new ideas, practices, crops and materials (Moore 2018). In this view farmers experiment, generate knowledge, and selectively adopt the ideas of others on a daily basis. We argue that this historic process of creative innovation, selective valuation and intelligent (re-)combination is what constitutes what are often referred to (and often brought into opposition) as both 'tradition' and 'modernity' and that this historical reconceptualization offers an important new starting point for revaluing, supporting and extending farmers capabilities. Working with diverse partners we will co-design original empirical research with small-holder 'digital farmers' in Elgeyo-Marakwet Kenya. We have specifically chosen to work with partners from both the UK and Kenya and from academic, NGO, international and policy sectors so as to share diverse institutional practices and agenda and to co-design and deliver research that will stimulate institutional responses and specific policy recommendations. By working with, challenging, and supporting partners active in food systems research and delivery we aim to have multiple tangible impacts on policy making and farming livelihoods more broadly, thus demonstrating the important value of arts and humanities led multidisciplinary and transdisciplinary research.

Empowering social inclusion through 'improving access to clean water and sanitation' for all requires a robust understanding of water-related ecosystems and the benefits that they can provide to society. However, 'the global data currently collected through the SDG process do not reflect the general state or trends known about freshwater ecosystems'. Novel mathematical sciences research is essential to enable fusion of Earth observation and on-the-ground data sources to fill the knowledge gaps, provide improved understanding of water quality and address the water management challenges faced by developing countries. This proposal will deliver world leading statistical research supporting the development of a water quality monitoring and modelling framework for the Ramganga sub-basin of the Ganges river basin. Traditional water sampling is based on a small number of sites, and is very labour intensive and expensive, and our proposal brings together data from new in-situ sensors, delivering data at high temporal frequency, coupled with intensive coupling high-end in-situ above and below water characterisation of the biogeo-optical properties of the Ramganga with measurements from calibrated miniaturised hyperspectral imaging radiometers deployed from drones, and data from new satellite missions (Sentinel 2). Together, these provide an efficient and unprecedented means of collecting significant data across a range of environments and pollution discharge scenarios of optical water types in the Ramganga basin. Coupling these data with conventional measures of WQ will provide the much desired framework for extrapolating WQ data at hitherto unachievable spatial and temporal resolutions. Covering 26% of India's total landmass, water quality and water resources in the Ganges basin are vital for the wellbeing of one of the largest and densest global populations (43% of India's population). However, they are being compromised due to activities such as rapid industrialization and urbanization, and mitigation efforts are hampered by lack of historical and contemporary discharge and quality data. This project will develop and implement new statistical methodology specifically for the Ramganga sub-basin to integrate the new and existing water quality data with remote sensing satellite data (both historical data from multiple sensors and new retrievals from recent Sentinel missions). To address the water quality challenges in the Ramganga sub-basin and to fully utilise the new data streams, novel statistical downscaling and data fusion methodologies through a varying coefficient, hierarchical Bayesian modelling framework will be developed to incorporate river network structure and model quantiles of flow. These approaches support integration of disparate data sources to enable prediction of water resource condition and associated uncertainties to inform risk-based modelling under a range of socio-economic and climate change scenarios, and provide tools to inform future monitoring design. The output of catchment-wide WQ estimates will be made available to policy makers and future researchers to guide policy and design future sampling sites and temporal frequency.

Deforestation and land degradation contribute significantly to human-induced greenhouse gas emissions. How land is used and managed is therefore vital in determining how much carbon is stored or released into the atmosphere. Payment systems encouraging particular land uses and land management practices that help to store organic carbon in soils and vegetation are becoming increasingly popular. However, little is known about the risks and gains this produces for the environment, particularly in terms of its ability to support food production, nor how it could affect the livelihoods of the poor. This lack of knowledge is especially apparent in dryland and sub-humid systems, as much more attention has focused on tropical forests, even though poverty problems are often less acute than in sub-Saharan Africa where this project focuses. Assessing the risks and gains of managing land for carbon is an urgent challenge that requires the cooperation of a large team, working across traditional disciplinary and sectoral boundaries. As such, this proposal has been developed by a multidisciplinary group of natural and social scientists with expertise from across 4 southern African countries, supported with inputs from international, policy, private sector and Non-Governmental Organisation partners. The aim of the project is to hold a planning and capacity building workshop in Namibia in September 2010, which will refine and develop research ideas on the topic of 'managing land for carbon'. We will focus on study areas in Namibia, Botswana, Zambia and Malawi. These countries include a range of different land use systems, and encompass parts of sub-Saharan Africa in which poverty remains an important challenge. Workshop activities will: a) review current understanding of carbon stores and losses and the ways in which they are measured for both soil and vegetation; b) identify the livelihood activities that the poor pursue in the study areas and the groups of people that could benefit from payments associated with managing the land for carbon; c) identify the current environmental status of land in relation to nutrient cycling, water, and food production, with a view to assessing how managing the land for carbon could alter these wider services; and d) evaluate existing best practices in research for the development of community-based payments for carbon storage projects. The novelty of our project lies in its drawing together of different disciplines and groups in a truly integrated and international approach to build on the current research base yet, we extend it by assessing organic carbon in both soil and vegetation and link this with social and economic analyses to enable more complete assessment of different land use options. Activities during the workshop will include a 'stakeholder analysis' to identify which groups of people and organisations need to be involved in the larger proposal. This will ensure it has a significant lasting impact in improving the lives of the poor across southern Africa while also increasing the carbon stored in the environment. In pursuing these activities, the project addresses the ESPA programme objectives by: 1) contributing towards an improved research and evidence base on ecosystem services, their dynamics and management and the ways they can help to reduce poverty; 2) developing innovative, multidisciplinary research methodologies; 3) engaging key research users (policymakers, the private sector, NGOs and the poor) in the entire process, thus enhancing the uptake and utility of research outputs; and 4) building multidisciplinary south-south and south-north partnerships that help enhance the capacity of southern researchers.