Hutton Highlights, February 2020

Awards, Accolades & Appointments New Barley Hub Chair The International Barley Hub, the unique platform to translate barley research into commercial benefits, has been reinforced through new appointments within its leadership team. Professor James Brosnan has been named Interim Chair, and former farmer George Lawrie has stepped into the Vice-Chair role. James is Director of Research at The Scotch Whisky Research Institute (SWRI) and sits on the AHDB Wheat and Barley Committees and the UK Malting Barley Committee. He has a personal interest in cereal science, and as director at SWRI is also concerned with ensuring a sustainable supply of raw materials, that meet distillers’ needs, to the Scotch whisky industry. George is currently a board member of the James Hutton Institute, and is a past board member of NFUS and the Land Use and Environment Committee. He is also on the board of The Scottish Agricultural Organisation Society and a trustee and chairman of The Royal Highland Educational Trust. “As a whisky scientist I know that without barley there is no Scotch whisky!” says James. “The International Barley Hub is a great opportunity for the supply chain to work together to ensure a long term, resilient supply of barley to support key domestic industries and address challenging aspects of climate change mitigation. It will also help establish the next generation of UK cereal scientists.” Backed by a £35m investment by the UK and Scottish Governments, the IBH will translate scientific research into tangible impacts for all barley-related industries in the breeding, farming, malting, brewing, feed, food and health sectors. Senior Hutton Ecological Sciences researcher Professor Alison Hester has been awarded an Honorary Fellowship of the Royal Scottish Geographical Society (RSGS) in recognition of outstanding contributions to science and its application to real- world issues. Over a quarter of a century, Alison has played a leading role in developing a greater understanding of land use especially in the uplands, on the face of conflicts between renewable energy, plantation forestry, low-intensity farming, deer management, retaining open moorland for breeding birds and halting persecution of raptors. Chair of RSGS Professor Roger Crofts said Alison had “brought sound science to enable these issues to be addressed through her rigorous and objective scientific approach and challenging the apparent experts with a depth of knowledge second to none. “And, in addition, she has been adept at persuading the many voices all with their own answers to come together and begin to listen to research results and put new ideas into practice.” Hutton CEO Colin Campbell noted that “Alison’s knowledge and expertise on upland ecology are internationally recognised and she has been an outstanding scientist and colleague. She has the great quality of being empathic and tirelessly seeks solutions and contributions from all perspectives and people involved in an issue. In that sense, she is not just an expert in her discipline, but she is one of the pioneers of inter-disciplinary working.” RSGS Honorary Fellowship Hutton expertise to advise CSA Professor Bob Ferrier, Director of Scotland’s Centre of Expertise for Waters and Hutton board member Professor Marian Scott of the University of Glasgow are among six leading scientists set to join the Scottish Science Advisory Council (SSAC), the expert panel that supports the Chief Scientific Adviser for Scotland in her work with Scottish Ministers. The new members will serve for three years, until 30 November 2022. Scotland’s Chief Scientific Adviser Professor Sheila Rowan said the new members’ wealth of science expertise together with their experience of working with industry and organisations across the UK, would help ensure that the Scottish Government had access to the best scientific advice across a diverse range of policy areas. The SSAC provides independent advice, through its Chair, to the Chief Scientific Adviser (CSA) for Scotland, to inform policy development and delivery across all areas of the Scottish Government’s work. The SSAC supports the work of the CSA Scotland, Professor Sheila Rowan, the Chief Scientist (Health), Professor David Crossman, and the Chief Scientific Adviser for Environment, Natural Resources and Agriculture, Professor Andrew Millar, all of whom are also ex-officio members of the SSAC. 6 Hutton Highlights February 2020 7 Comments? Two researchers based at the James Hutton Institute in Dundee have been named as Highly Cited Researchers in the Highly Cited Researchers 2019 list published by the Web of Science Group. Professor Philip J. White is a senior scientist within the Institute’s Ecological Sciences group, with over 200 refereed papers and has featured in the Highly Cited Researchers list since 2014. His research focuses on many aspects of plant mineral nutrition, from the genes to the ecosystem. He holds a Chair in Biology at King Saud University, Riyadh, and has been also awarded a DSc by the University of Manchester for his contributions to the knowledge of the accumulation of mineral elements by plants. Professor John Raven is Emeritus Professor from the Division of Plant Sciences of the University of Dundee and an Honorary Fellow of the Institute. His primary research interests are in the energetics, ecophysiology and biogeochemistry of aquatic and terrestrial primary producers, with related studies on palaeoecology and some recent forays into astrobiology. He was recently awarded the Albert I Grand Medal in recognition of his research in the oceanographic field. The Highly Cited Researchers list identifies scientists and social scientists who produced multiple papers ranking in the top 1% by citations for their field and year of publication, demonstrating significant research influence among their peers. The methodology used to compile it draws on the data and analysis performed by bibliometric experts from the Institute for Scientific Information at the Web of Science Group. Professor Colin Campbell, Chief Executive, commented: “The influential contributions made by Philip and John have been aptly recognised with their inclusion in the Highly Cited list. We are fortunate to have them, and they make a great contribution to science by supporting other scientists too. This accolade further demonstrates the Institute’s world-class capabilities in science.” The Web of Science Group, part of Clarivate Analytics and publishers of the Highly Cited Researcher list, specialise in organising the world’s research information to enable academia, corporations, publishers and governments to accelerate the pace of research. The full 2019 Highly Cited Researchers list and executive summary can be found in the Web of Science website . More information about the methodology employed can be found here . Philip White and John Raven in Highly Cited Researchers 2019 list Professor Rob Brooker and Dr Tony Craig have been appointed to the leadership of our Ecological Sciences and Social, Economic and Geographical Sciences departments. Rob’s research includes experience of ecology in environments such as arctic, montane, alpine, semi-arid and arable ecosystems, and features work at sites across Scotland. He leads the Natural Assets elements of the current Scottish Government Strategic Research Programme, a role that reflects his interest in communicating biodiversity research outcomes to stakeholders, in particular in the policy arena. Likewise, Tony carries out research in the area of people- environment studies. His interests are in findings ways to adequately represent dynamic people-environment relationships to allow meaningful computer simulations models in this area to be developed. He has recently been developing a portfolio of research around the topic of time use and time pressure in everyday life. Professor Lesley Torrance, Director of Science, said: “It is a pleasure to announce Rob and Tony as the new heads of Ecological Sciences and Social, Economic and Geographical Sciences. They are highly respected in their own fields, have influential national and international networks, and impressed the selection panel with their vision and plans.” New science leader appointments