Professor Mark Huxham seminar

Professor Mark Huxham of Edinburgh Napier University will give a seminar "Mangroves and carbon: turning muck into brass?" at the James Hutton Institute in Aberdeen. It will be broadcast live to the Dundee site.

Abstract

Mangrove ecosystems are being rapidly destroyed, despite their importance for local people and for global ecosystem services. As one of the most efficient natural carbon sinks mangroves can contribute to climate mitigation and adaptation, and emerging markets for carbon, including for ‘blue carbon’, may provide new sources of finance for mangrove conservation and restoration. This talk describes some recent research on carbon stocks and flows in mangrove forests and explains attempts to use this scientific understanding to develop a demonstration project in southern Kenya that supports community development and mangrove conservation through carbon payments.

Biography

Mark Huxham is professor of Teaching and Research in Environmental Biology at Edinburgh Napier University. With a background in estuarine ecology and food web theory, mark has worked on mangrove restoration and ecology for the last ten years and is establishing a new charity, the Association for Coastal Ecosystem Services, to assist community-based tropical projects with accessing payments for ecosystem services.