Category: Blog

Within SARTRAC we have been interviewing fishers along the coast of Ghana in Beyin and Newtown, to find out how they are being impacted by sargassum events. Focus groups and questionnaires have been undertaken by the field research team led by Dr Winnie Sowah of the University of Ghana in June 2021, with a second…

This question has been asked by the newly funded ‘MONISARG’ project. MONISARG is a UK NERC funded collaboration between Professor Robert Marsh and Professor Jadu Dash at the University of Southampton, Professor Hazel Oxenford at CERMES in UWI Cave Hill, and Dr Ava Maxam at MGI, UWI Mona (NERC grant ref: NE/W004798/1 https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=NE%2FW004798%2F1). The SARTRAC…

Data are being collected in Jamaica to assess the impact of ash clouds from the La Soufrière volcanic eruptions on sargassum prevalence around Jamaica, as part of the MONISARG project. Mona GeoInformatics Institute (MGI) in Kingston Jamaica, have conducted five (5) beach surveys evaluating the volume and area of beached Sargassum in August 2021. Monitoring…

A colleague has just returned from a holiday in Antigua and shared photos of the small number of beaches affected by sargassum, on the eastern side of the island. One of the beaches affected is an important turtle nesting beach. He noted his perception of the sargassum, specifically the unpleasant smell from the decomposing sargassum…

On 13-15 July 2021, the University of Southampton More than Maps Team hosted a three-part online workshop series for early career professionals, covering: An introduction to research theories and frameworks, through examining the importance of evidence-based policy in adapting to environmental change An introduction to remote sensing, through a case study of detecting environmental threats…

On 25 June 2021, our More than Maps Team attended Day 4 of the SARTRAC Annual Consortium Meeting #2 “Capacity Building – Outward Facing”. Capacity building is a key component of the SARTRAC programme and the Global Challenges Research Fund (click here for further information). As part of the ACM2 programme, PhD students Marie Schlenker and…

by Emma L. Tompkins, Robert Marsh, Sien van der Plank, Jadu Dash, Nikolaos Skliris, Yanna Fidai Our first UK-based fieldwork involved use of: a bathtub, chicken-wire, Play-Doh and a dip in the sea. Our objective – to make a home-made floating case for GPS trackers for sargassum mat deployment GPS trackers need to be housed…

The next More than Maps workshop series is open for any members of the public interested in attending. We will be covering: Tuesday 13 July, 17.00-18.30 BST Introduction to Research theories and frameworks: The importance of evidence based policy in adapting to environmental change Wednesday 14 July, 17.00-18.30 BST  Introduction to Remote sensing: Detecting environmental threats from…

The University of Southampton SARTRAC* team is delighted to be part of the UK / Australia Season 2021, a collaboration between the British Council and the Australian Government’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. SARTAC will be organising and running a workshop series on the theme of “Managing Climate Change Adaptation at the Coast through…

The fifth and final day of SARTRAC’s second Annual Consortium Meeting was all about looking forward to the year ahead, including the project’s work package specific visions and the big picture. This encompassed the logistical details of budgets, finance and contracts, but also discussion around how we can deliver impact and legacy, and our vision…