QUEST
Reports and key findings
The following case studies are linked to this research programme. Full details of each case study are available from NERC's Science Impacts Database.
The 4 degree map - taking climate change science to Copenhagen and over 10 million people worldwide Synopsis: Science from NERC's QUEST programme underpinned the '4 degree map' campaign tool that reached over 10 million people in the run-up to the 2009 Copenhagen climate negotiations.
QUEST forestry research influences international climate negotiations Synopsis: Research into the carbon sources and sinks in forests in developed countries has helped UK negotiating teams in international climate talks, including the Cancun negotiations of 2010.
UK upland peat: advice on mitigating climate-related loss and safeguarding 'ecosystem services' Synopsis: Half the UK's upland peatlands will be vulnerable to climate change by 2050. QUEST was part of a partnership summarising available knowledge and producing an 'implications for policy' brief that Defra used in its UK Climate Change Risk Assessment.
NERC scientists contribute to Global Carbon Budget calculations 2008 and 2009 Synopsis: Scientists from across NERC programmes and centres led, and contributed to, the Global Carbon Budgets for 2008 and 2009, published in Nature Geoscience to wide media and policymaker attention.
QUEST contributions to the United Nations' 2009 Copenhagen Climate Negotiations Synopsis: QUEST scientists answered questions from government and the media before the 2009 Copenhagen Climate Negotiations, influencing negotiations and public opinion.
Climate and human influence on wildfires Synopsis: Climate influences wildfires, but humans have also affected their frequency, reducing their number over many centuries. However, as the climate becomes warmer, their number, and severity, is likely to increase.
Climate-carbon cycle feedbacks affect greenhouse gas policies globally Synopsis: Quantifying the feedbacks between climate and carbon emissions, and forging a better understanding of the processes affecting CO2 absorption and emissions from land and oceans, has led to a call for long-term global carbon emissions cuts.