Water networks have been integral to the expansion of urban centres and the development and expansion of trade, thus also interacting with flood control strategies and the construction and maintenance of rural landscapes. There has been a long history of artistic and cultural representation of these waterways, and the life that they have brought to their surrounding landscapes. This is in danger of being lost. In this post-industrial age it is therefore necessary to develop new, more coordinated, strategies to promote memory and identity of river cultures, linking institutional activities and encouraging the exchange of experiences. The presence in many European countries of artificial waterways and connected natural hydrography can thus be considered a significant cultural heritage. Characterized by an intrinsic hydraulic complexity, this heritage goes back far in time at least to the Middle Ages, develops further during the Renaissance and reaches its maturity during the industrial era. In some cases, this hydraulic network is already a tourist attraction; in other cases, it has a hidden potential for sustainable development. Such a precious, historic heritage deserves today a renewed, coordinated commitment to its re-evaluation, by considering both the structural heritage of the waterways (canals, bridges, locks, shipyards, mills, quays) and the artistic and cultural artefacts that are now in peril (artistic and cultural interpretations of river life, traditional wooden boats and other crafts). The research will be undertaken from a multi-disciplinary perspective, involving teams from the University of Brighton (UK), University Ca Foscari Venice (Italy), the University of Leiden and the Free University of Amsterdam (The Netherlands) and the University of Gerona (Spain). The project will bring cultural geography into conversation with art history, oral history, digital media and design. In the contexts of geography and spatial planning, discourses about the cultural-historical dimensions of landscape are elaborate and on-going, particularly in the field of cultural geography. At the same time, in the humanities - for example in the research field of 'ecocriticism' - a growing interest in ecological concerns is being expressed by artists and writers. From the diverse disciplines of geography, spatial planning and the humanities, there is thus clearly a need to research how (both historical and contemporary) cultural heritage can contribute to our knowledge about land and waterscapes. Allied to this is a broad wish to explore the new opportunities offered by digital media to record, represent and interpret cultural heritage, particularly where it engages with often hidden secondary and essentially local communities and their environments. This project aims to develop these theoretical discussions and to elaborate - beyond theory and at the same time developing theory further - concrete tools in which both oral history and cultural heritage information are linked to geospatial information that can be shared with the communities that created the content, as well as the wider public, government agencies and other bodies who share a stake in the future of Europe's rich heritage of secondary waterways and associated waterscapes.

The proposed project seeks to change current asset management practice with an economically viable monitoring and early warning system, PRIME, that produces near-real-time information to provide decision support and 'solutions' for a range of infrastructure earthwork instability problems. In particular, this project aims to demonstrate and validate newly developed geophysical monitoring technology as a means of improving the resilience of vulnerable rail and water transportation earthworks infrastructure to environmental risks, such as extreme weather and flooding. The new technology could stream near-real-time information on the internal condition of earthworks direct to geotechnical asset owners - thereby allowing slope failure processes to be identified at an early stage so low cost preventative intervention can be planned with minimal disruption to infrastructure (rather than high-cost renewal and remediation of catastrophic earthwork failures, which can be highly disruptive - particularly for the rail industry due to financial penalties associated with delays). In response to guidance by the industrial partners we aim to further demonstrate and validate the PRIME concept by testing the approach in a greater range of operational settings, including a railway embankment and a water retaining structure on the canal network. This will allow the project team (asset owners, managers and research providers) to consider a range of practical deployment options, demonstrate an adaptive intelligent monitoring approach, undertake a cost benefit analysis, and formally assess the Technology Readiness Level of PRIME by drawing upon the outcomes of the case studies developed under this project and the study undertaken during the related Innovation B project. The overarching aim of the project is to provide the necessary evidence to the stakeholders that PRIME is applicable as an economically viable monitoring, early warning and decision support system (i.e. a 'solution') for a range of infrastructure earthwork instability problems.

The UK faces serious strategic challenges with the future supply of aggregates, critical minerals and elements. At the same time, the UK must sustainably manage multimillion tonne annual arisings of industrial, mining and mineral wastes (IMMWs). The amount of these wastes generated is projected to increase over the coming years, particularly (i) ash from the combustion of biomass and municipal solid waste, and (ii) contaminated dredgings. These wastes will continue to be landfilled despite often containing valuable resources such as high concentrations of critical metals, soil macronutrients and useful mineral components, some of which actively drawdown atmospheric CO2. The fundamental aim of the ASPIRE (Accelerated Supergene Processes In Repository Engineering) research project is to develop a sustainable method by which ashes, contaminated dredgings and other IMMWs can be stripped of any valuable elements. These stripped elements would then be concentrated in an ore zone for later retrieval and the cleaned residues also returned to use, for example as aggregates, cement additives, or agricultural amendments (including those for carbon sequestration through enhanced mineral weathering). It is a very challenging problem to devise a truly sustainable method to achieve this is an economically viable way, and almost all processes suggested so far in the literature for leaching wastes are themselves carbon and chemical intensive and thus non-sustainable. We are proposing research that comprises the first steps in developing the "ASPIRE waste repository" concept with accelerated analogues of ore-forming "supergene" processes engineered in, such that the dormant waste undergoes processes to (i) concentrate valuable components (e.g. critical metals, phosphate) as an anthropogenic ore to facilitate their future recovery, and (ii) concurrently decontaminate residual mineral material so as to make it available as a bank of material to drawdown for "soft" uses in agriculture, silviculture, greenspace, landscaping in new developments, habitat creation and/or as a cement/concrete additive or replacement aggregate. The processes investigated rely on rainwater passing through a vegetated surface layer which releases naturally occurring compounds from the plant roots and/or other natural organic matter which then pass through and strip valuable elements from the IMMW. The mobilised elements will then pass into a capture zone where they will be stripped from solution and concentrated to form an artificial ore. The research project will seek to engineer the internal processes of the temporary storage waste repository to optimise this. At the same time the upper vegetated surface of the waste repository will serve as greenspace with commensurate ecological and amenity value for local populations. Among the key research challenges is in how to engineer the internal ASPIRE waste repository processes which rely on complex biogeochemical interactions and flow behaviour. Another critical research challenge is to develop an understanding of stakeholder and wider acceptability of this concept which does not fit with current legislation on waste management. With this project we seek to provide a circular technology solution for how we can sustainably manage the future multimillion tonne arisings of IMMW at a critical time as the UK government develops strategies and supporting regulation for the transition to a circular economy.

This innovative interdisciplinary project aims to develop an easy-to-use, evidence-based resource which can be used in decision-making in drought risk management. To achieve this, we will bring together information from drought science and scenario-modelling (using mathematical models to forecast the impacts of drought) with stakeholder engagement and narrative storytelling. While previous drought impact studies have often focused on using mathematical modelling, this project is very different. The project will integrate arts, humanities and social science research methods, with hydrological, meteorological, agricultural and ecological science knowledge through multi-partner collaboration. Seven case study catchments (areas linked by a common water resource) in England, Wales and Scotland will be selected to reflect the hydrological, socio-economic and cultural contrasts in the UK. Study of drought impacts will take place at different scales - from small plot experiments to local catchment scale. Citizen science and stakeholder engagement with plot experiments in urban and rural areas will be used as stimuli for conversations about drought risk and its mitigation. The project will: (i) investigate different stakeholder perceptions of when drought occurs and action is needed; (ii) examine how water level and temperature affect drought perception; (iii) explore the impact of policy decisions on drought management; (iv) consider water users' behaviours which lead to adverse drought impacts on people and ecosystems and; (v) evaluate water-use conflicts, synergies and trade-offs, drawing on previous drought experiences and community knowledge. The project spans a range of sectors including water supply; health, business, agriculture/horticulture, built environment, extractive industries and ecosystem services, within 7 case-study catchments. Through a storytelling approach, scientists will exchange cutting edge science with different drought stakeholders, and these stakeholders will, in turn, exchange their knowledge. Stakeholders include those in: construction; gardeners and allotment holders; small and large businesses; local authorities; emergency planners; recreational water users; biodiversity managers; public health professionals - both physical and mental health; and local communities/public. The stakeholder meetings will capture various data including: - different stakeholder perceptions of drought and its causes - local knowledge around drought onset and strategies for mitigation (e.g. attitudes to water saving, responses to reduced water availability) - insights into how to live with drought and increase individual/community drought resilience - the impact of alternating floods and droughts The information will be shared within, and between, stakeholder groups in the case-studies and beyond using social media. This information will be analysed, and integrated with drought science to develop an innovative web-based decision-making utility. These data will feedback into the drought modelling and future scenario building with a view to exploring a variety of policy options. This will help ascertain present and future water resources availability, focusing on past, present and future drought periods across N-S and W-E climatic gradients. The project will be as far as possible be 'open science' - maintaining open, real-time access to research questions, data, results, methodologies, narratives, publications and other outputs via the project website, updated as the project progresses. Project outputs will include: the decision-making support utility incorporating science-narrative resources; hydrological models for the 7 case-study catchments; a social media web-platform to share project resources; a database of species responses/management options to mitigate drought/post-drought recovery at different scales, and management guidelines on coping with drought/water scarcity at different scales.

The Quantum Technology Hub in Sensors and Timing, a collaboration between 7 universities, NPL, BGS and industry, will bring disruptive new capability to real world applications with high economic and societal impact to the UK. The unique properties of QT sensors will enable radical innovations in Geophysics, Health Care, Timing Applications and Navigation. Our established industry partnerships bring a focus to our research work that enable sensors to be customised to the needs of each application. The total long term economic impact could amount to ~10% of GDP. Gravity sensors can see beneath the surface of the ground to identify buried structures that result in enormous cost to construction projects ranging from rail infrastructure, or sink holes, to brownfield site developments. Similarly they can identify oil resources and magma flows. To be of practical value, gravity sensors must be able to make rapid measurements in challenging environments. Operation from airborne platforms, such as drones, will greatly reduce the cost of deployment and bring inaccessible locations within reach. Mapping brain activity in patients with dementia or schizophrenia, particularly when they are able to move around and perform tasks which stimulate brain function, will help early diagnosis and speed the development of new treatments. Existing brain imaging systems are large and unwieldy; it is particularly difficult to use them with children where a better understanding of epilepsy or brain injury would be of enormous benefit. The systems we will develop will be used initially for patients moving freely in shielded rooms but will eventually be capable of operation in less specialised environments. A new generation of QT based magnetometers, manufactured in the UK, will enable these advances. Precision timing is essential to many systems that we take for granted, including communications and radar. Ultra-precise oscillators, in a field deployable package, will enable radar systems to identify small slow-moving targets such as drones which are currently difficult to detect, bringing greater safety to airports and other sensitive locations. Our world is highly dependent on precise navigation. Although originally developed for defence, our civil infrastructure is critically reliant on GNSS. The ability to fix one's location underground, underwater, inside buildings or when satellite signals are deliberately disrupted can be greatly enhanced using QT sensing. Making Inertial Navigation Systems more robust and using novel techniques such as gravity map matching will alleviate many of these problems. In order to achieve all this, we will drive advanced physics research aimed at small, low power operation and translate it into engineered packages to bring systems of unparalleled capability within the reach of practical applications. Applied research will bring out their ability to deliver huge societal and economic benefit. By continuing to work with a cohort of industry partners, we will help establish a complete ecosystem for QT exploitation, with global reach but firmly rooted in the UK. These goals can only be met by combining the expertise of scientists and engineers across a broad spectrum of capability. The ability to engineer devices that can be deployed in challenging environments requires contributions from physics electronic engineering and materials science. The design of systems that possess the necessary characteristics for specific applications requires understanding from civil and electronic engineering, neuroscience and a wide range of stakeholders in the supply chain. The outputs from a sensor is of little value without the ability to translate raw data into actionable information: data analysis and AI skills are needed here. The research activities of the hub are designed to connect and develop these skills in a coordinated fashion such that the impact on our economy is accelerated.