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A-Z essay series

Our A-Z of Environmental, Climate and Sustainability Research is a series of short essays by early career researchers in UCD about their work.

If you'd like to submit a piece for the A-Z series or have a suggestion for another topic we should cover do (opens in a new window)get in touch!

Tyres in a large landfill, large letter A
A is for Anthropocene

Nick Scroxton from the UCD School of Earth Sciences asks whether the vast scale of human change to our planet has instigated a new period of geological time, and if so, when did it start?
Bee on a flower, large capital B
B is for Bees

Katherine Burns from the UCD School of Agriculture and Food Science tells us why solitary bees are the working single mothers of the pollinator world and explains what we can do to support them.
Cannabis plants growing in a scientific facility, large capital C
C is for Cannabis

Caroline Dowling from the UCD School Biology and Environmental Science explains why Cannabis is a most versatile yet misunderstood crop, with uses in medicine, energy, construction and more.
Sign carried by protester reading 'System change not climate change', large capital D
D is for Degrowth

Ciarán O'Brien, a graduate of the MSc in Sustainable Development in UCD, discusses the idea of degrowth, which critiques global capitalism's pursuit of growth, and advocates for societal transformations to ensure a good life for all within planetary boundaries.
Child's drawing of a landscape, large capital E
E is for Education

Georgina Fagan, a graduate of the MSc in Environmental Sustainability in UCD, discusses how climate change will impact us all but most of all our youth and captures the views and concerns of children aged 12-16 in relation to climate change.
Photo of a wetland, large capital F
F is for Finance

Dr Shane McGuinness, a Research Fellow in the School of Architecture, Planning and Environmental Policy at UCD outlines how, like anything in life, money matters in conservation and how large-scale investment can be attracted to conservation.
Globe and plant graphic, capital G
G is for Gaia

Dr. Federico Cerrone, a senior postdoctoral researcher in the Bioeconomy SFI Research Centre (BiOrbic) at UCD, explores how Earth can be seen as a superorganism able to control the environmental conditions thanks to the cooperation and for the benefit of the living biodiversity within Her.

River height measurement on bridge, capital H
H is for Hydrometry

Kate de Smeth, a PhD student in the UCD School of Geography explores rescuing old river flow records and explains why and how hydrologists use historic documents to help understand river behaviour in the past, present and possible future.
Two people talking next to a tractor
I is for Innovation

Innovation is a popular buzzword in sustainability. COP27 even had an ‘Innovation Zone’. But what is innovation, and what can we learn about innovation in the context of the bioeconomy asks Hannah Gould, a PhD candidate at BiOrbic.
Older woman adjusting settings unit in home, large capital J
J is for Justice

Energy poverty is impacting the standard of living and mental wellbeing of Ireland’s most vulnerable citizens. To deliver solutions in line with UN Sustainable Development Goal commitments, we need to listen to the lived experiences of these households, says Lauren Minion, Sustainability Officer with the national housing and homeless charity, the Peter McVerry Trust, and UCD graduate.
Kelp, large letter K
K is for Kelp

Improving methods for processing kelp can help seaweed farmers preserve large amounts of kelp quickly, easily, and cheaply – and in a more environmentally friendly way because they are using less fossil fuel-powered heat. This quest to improve methods for processing kelp has taken Priya Pollard - from the UCD School of Biosystems and Food Engineering - from Ireland to the Arctic Circle.
Beach scene, large capital L
L is for Landscape

Tomas Buitendijk from iCRAG, the School of Earth Sciences and the Earth Institute at UCD tells us about why the coastal landscape matters to people and how this relationship can be protected during periods of change.
Illustrated map, large capital L
L is for Landscape part 2

Amy Strecker and Amanda Byer from UCD’s Sutherland School of Law explain why landscape is more than a view and why protecting place-based understandings of land is critical for sustainable land use.

Pine marten in a forest, large capital M
M is for Mammal

The history of mammals in Ireland is complicated, with extinctions of large mammals in the past and management problems in the present. Will it come full circle with the reintroduction of some of the long-gone large mammals in the future?, asks Virginia Morera-Pujol, a postdoctoral researcher in the School of Biology and Environmental Sciences.
Man carrying out experiment in a field, large capital N
N is for Nitrogen

Ernest Osei-Asante's research investigates how optimising livestock diets can mitigate urine nitrogen emissions. By understanding nitrogen loss pathways and exploring practical interventions, Ernest (UCD School of Agriculture and Food Science Doctoral Researcher and Teagasc Walsh Scholar) aims to identify solutions that balance environmental sustainability with agricultural productivity.
Scientific experiment in a flask
Reusing microbial ‘bathwater’ for sustainable drug production

Laura Murphy, a PhD candidate at BiOrbic, explores how reusing large volumes of liquid waste produced by drug manufacturing, specifically waste made by yeast, can lead to more sustainable drug production.

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