University expands its work to address critical challenges facing our planet

This CRISPS centre is a significant step forward for the University in a number of critical sectors. Providing sufficient food to feed an expanding human population is one of the major challenges of the 21st century. At the same time, we need to establish ways to reduce carbon emissions and reverse the dramatic decline in biodiversity. We are also in a period of significant political change, where new legislation has the potential to have significant impact on the landowners and communities. Through the new CRISPS centre, the University now has the capacity to work with existing and new partners to meet those challenges head-on and deliver real and lasting benefits both in the South West region and for the planet as a whole.

Research England’s £5.7 million of funding is an important indicator that our University has been on a trajectory of increasing our research intensity and we intend to continue that success. Through initiatives like CRISPS, our teams are finding exciting new ways to feed the world’s growing population without wrecking the planet in the process.

This investment highlights the critical importance of the world-class research coming out of our region. The South West is critical to the UK’s future food security, and underscores the importance of the region to the national economy. Understanding how to address food security while supporting biodiversity is a global challenge; and one that the Great South West, as a key UK food producer, is poised to deliver. The research supported by this funding will have a transformative impact on the UK’s long-term food security, while ensuring our environment is protected for generations to come.