Centre for Agroecology, Water and Resilience - CAWR

Professor Dr Ulrich Schmutz, WP11 ‘Agroecology at Scale” lead, of the 300-million, 10-year Agroecology Partnership (AP) Horizon Project visited Terre et Cité and the University Paris-Saclay. Both have joined the partnership project and work in WP11. Both can also participate in the 30-million annual calls of the AP partnership.
However, a Coventry University (CU) contribution in the partnership calls is dependent on the new government to sign up and contribute 50% for England to make the partnership work. This is different to the EU Horizon project running the calls where CU and CUAS Ltd. (CU Academic Services Limited) are already in with €5.2 million (leading WP11). For the calls of the partnership funding is 50-50. This means 50% funding from the country (e.g. Ireland, Turkey, or England if signed up) topped up with 50% from the European Union (EU).

We've got four Green Gown Award category shortlists to tell you about!

Run annually by the EAUC, these awards recognise sustainability achievements across the education sector.

These are the categories for which we have nominations:

🔹2030 Climate Action category:
This nomination recognises our commitment in the 2030 Group Strategy to achieve net zero for scope 1 and 2 emissions and reduce scope 3 emissions by 30% by 2030: https://pulse.ly/xm1htchfh6

🔹Staff Sustainability Champion category:
Over the past 8-12 months, Your Students' Union has established a Sustainability Working Group to support and enhance its delivery, in line with our organisational values of being helpful, inclusive and ethical: https://pulse.ly/efbexs7hzq

🔹Research with Impact category:
Two finalists in this category come from our Research Centre for Agroecology, Water and Resilience (CAWR):

Focusing on bracken, a toxic, climate-driven fern that fuels wildfires and releases hazardous compounds, CAWR developed a nature-based solution centred on the endangered Welsh Mountain Pony which reduced the risk/spread of wildfires: https://pulse.ly/hxg05vqy5p

The second nomination is for the design and evaluation of peat-free blocking media. Peat has been a mainstay in horticulture due to its exceptional properties, but its extraction exacerbates climate change, destroys habitats and increases flood risk: https://pulse.ly/b2dlyl0vmy

The 3rd meeting of the OneSTOP Living Lab, organised by Katharina Dehnen-Schmutz and Helen Bayliss took place in July at Ryton Pools Country Park to discuss first results from the air eDNA sampling conducted there last year. Participants also had an opportunity to see the CamAlien system designed to record invasive plants along roads, canals and train tracks from vehicles and will now be available to stakeholders for testing. Further updates included the launch of the new Plant Alert citizen science app to report invasive ornamental plants from gardens and the forthcoming non-native flatworm app. https://bit.ly/44ZkiRg

Ulrich Schmutz and Rosemary Venn attended the bi-annual international EURAF agroforestry conference (the next conference will be in Portugal, 2028, and possibly 2030 in England or Ireland). A presentation titled “Valuing silvo-arable ecosystem services for agroforestry certification” was given which included ecological economics and post-capitalist valuing of nature. Data were based on selected AGROMIX project results (a 7m Horizon RIA project with a CU-lead completed in 2025). Further highlights were excursions to FIBL (the world leading organic research centre) and agroforestry sites across Switzerland with agroforestry Living Labs. These are also valuable for the Agroecology Partnership (AP) at landscape scale and organise efficient marketing in place-based food hubs.
The conference gave a platform to advertise BAH (oldest academic journal in the world on Biological (incl. organic, agroecological, agroforestry) Agriculture and Horticulture, with CU as editors-in-chief), and Wakelyns (one of the oldest organic agroforestry research sites in the world) and now in a community buy-out to secure £1.2 million for its future, Guardian newspaper article: https://bit.ly/4xnbi4F

Publication Spotlight:
Leo Faedo has authored a new paper 'Floristic composition and land use potential of an urban agroforestry system in the city of Lages, Santa Catarina, in the southern region of Brazil: an observational study'.
Faedo, L. F. (2026). Floristic composition and land-use potential of an urban agroforestry system in the city of Lages, Santa Catarina, southern Brazil: an observational study. REVISTA DELOS – Desarrollo Local Sostenible, 19(82), e9759. ISSN 1988-5245 https://doi.org/10.55905/rdelosv19.n82-028

On 1st July, Julia Wright chaired a session at the Groundswell Farming Festival, discussing Hi-TEK (Traditional Ecological Knowledge) approaches for improving seed and plant health using paramagnetic rock organised as standing stones or more complex design structures. On the panel were Dr Patrick MacManaway of Animate-Earth and architect Felix Sagar of Mudmasons.

The SCALE-it, WINN-ORGANIC and AGROECOLOGY Partnership projects were all showcased at the recent Groundswell agricultural festival at Lannock’s Farm, Hertfordshire. The event is well attended by farmers, growers, researchers, NGOs and others interested in food production and the environment. This was a valuable opportunity for CAWR researchers, in particular interns and PhD researchers to experience the richness of UK agriculture and attend talks and demonstrations on organic, agroecological, regenerative and other cultivation types. There was also chance to meet research collaborators in a different setting and for festival attendees to find out about CAWR’s work on a range of related projects.

As part of the Royal Society-funded APEX research project, Liliane Binego and Stanley Oramah travelled to Uganda from 20 June to 5 July 2026 to examine the Mpanga River Catchment Management (MRCM) area, a priority sub-catchment within the Albert Water Management Zone (AWMZ) of Uganda’s Ministry of Water and Environment (MWE). Key informant interviews were conducted along the catchment's full longitudinal profile, from its glacial headwaters in the Rwenzori Mountains, via its confluence with the Rushango River, to its outlet at Lake George. Stakeholder engagement was undertaken across the Mpanga River catchment with key institutions, resource managers, private sector actors, and local communities. Consultations included, Kyambogo University, the AWMZ Team Leader, Mountains of the Moon University, local council authorities, the Chairperson of the Mpanga Catchment Management Organisation, Kiko Tea Estate, and the Mpanga Hydropower Plants. Community-level discussions were also held with maize growers, cattle keepers, and valley dam users in the lower catchment. These engagements provided insights into catchment management, implementation of the MRCM Plan, and the impacts of extreme weather events on water resources and livelihoods.

Researchers working in CAWR’s Agroecological Farming Innovations cluster led by Francis Rayns visited Millpiece Gardens in Bubbenhall, just a few miles from Ryton Organic Gardens. Gareth Davies gave a tour of polytunnels and beds growing various vegetables, fruits and salads as well as agroforestry and rewilding areas.
After years working as a researcher, entomologist and grower, Gareth, who is also on the board of the Community Supported Agriculture network explained the importance of ecological principles at Millpiece: minimal soil disturbance, avoiding external inputs and harnessing natural pest and disease protection through diverse planting. Crop diversity is also a key theme of the Coventry Agroecological Living Lab coordinated by Judith Conroy, who is exploring natural pest control with Gareth at Millpiece.