Biosphere Evolution, Transitions & Resilience (BETR) is a joint programme between Natural Environmental Research Council (NERC) and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC). The aim of the BETR programme is to advance understanding of the evolution of the biosphere by integrating excellent palaeoscience (e.g. palaeontology, geochemistry, geochronology and phylogenomics) and cutting edge modelling. A major component of the BETR programme will be undertaken under the ‘Understanding Monsoon and Biodiversity Relevant to Landscapes and Livelihoods in Asia’ (UMBRELLA) project. The broad aim of this project is to better understand the evolution of the climate and ecosystem throughout S.E. Asia during the last 65 million years applying outcomes that can help us understand what might happen in our warming world.
The specific aims and objectives of the project can be found here.
The UMBRELLA project consists of academics from both China and the UK at a host of different academic institutions giving a broad range of different skillsets and specialisations required to undertake this ambitious project. These include:
- The University of Bristol (UK), department of Geographical Sciences.
- Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden (China), China academy of Sciences.
- The University of Bristol (UK), Organic Geochemistry Unit (OGU).
- Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research (China)
- The Open University (UK), Environment, Earth and Ecosystem Sciences.
- Sun Yat-Sen University (China), School of Life Sciences
- Kunming Institute of Botany, the Chinese Academy of Sciences
A detailed list of the members of UMBRELLA and their research interests/contact information can be found in the ‘People’ drop down menu. Members include:
- Professor Paul Valdes (UK)
- Associate Professor Tao Su (China)
- Professor Bob Spicer (UK)
- Professor Lin Ding (China)
- Professor Rich Pancost (UK)
- Associate Professor Xiaoyan Liu (China)
- Professor Dan Lunt (UK)
- Professor Zhe-Kun Zhou (China)
- Senior Research Associate Alex Farnsworth (UK)
- Professor Yao-Wu Xing (China)
- Research Associate J.P Mayser (UK)
- Professor Jianhua Jin (China)
- Assistant Professor Yong-Jiang Huang (China)
- Associate Professor Xu Qiang (China)
- Associate Professor Wen-Yun Chen (China)
- Research Associate Shufeng Li (China)
- Senior Research Associate Greg Tourte (UK)
- Associate Professor Alice Hughes (China)
- Research Assistant Jian Huang (China)
- Professor Tatiana M. Kodrul (China)
- Posdoc Jia Liu (China)