If you are seeking to deliver an impactful dissertation topic, with direct relevance to environmental policy makers or, simply looking for inspiration for your final year project, you can search for ideas below.
You can search the research questions that have been directly submitted to us, or browse other collections of research ideas from partner organisation such as Natural Resources Wales and Climate Cymru. We are still adding relevant keywords to the data, so try a different search term if nothing comes up or get in touch for support searching the database.
If you do find a question of relevance and decide to address it through your dissertation, we would really like to know about it. Please fill out the form that can be found here.
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What are the reasons for the decline of specific species and benthic habitats across the Marine Protected Area (MPA) Network in Wales?
Summary of the Research Question / Evidence Need:
Monitoring has shown a decline in the health of various habitats and species in Welsh Marine Protected Areas (MPAs). Work is needed to identify the causes of these declines. This will include the following: maerl and herring around Milford Haven in Pembrokeshire Marine Special Area of Conservation (SAC), sponges in the Menai Strait and Conwy Bay SAC, Modiolus modiolus (horse mussel) beds in the Pen Llyn a’r Sarnau (PLAS) SAC, sandbank infaunal diversity across the MPA Network, pink sea fan Eunicella verrucosa in the Skomer Marine Conservation Zone. This will allow effective management measures to be identified that will improve our understanding of the ways to improve the condition of MPA features, improving the resilience of marine ecosystems across Wales. Suggested level of research: Various
Keywords (discipline, other): Marine science, decline, species, benthic habitats, Marine Protected Areas, MPAs, monitoring, delcine, maerl, herring, marine special area of conservation
Website/URL links: https://naturalresources.wales/evidence-and-data/research-and-reports/marine-biodiversity-collaborative-research-priorities/?lang=en
Looking for collaborators: Yes External Partner: Yes Organisation: Natural Resources Wales
Contact Details
Name: Dr Kirsten Ramsay Email Address: kirsten.ramsay@cyfoethnaturiolcymru.gov.uk Phone: NA
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What are the reasons for the decline of specific species and benthic habitats across the Marine Protected Area network in Wales?
Summary of the Research Question / Evidence Need:
Monitoring has shown a decline in the health of various habitats and species in Welsh Marine Protected Areas (MPAs). Work is needed to identify the causes of these declines. This will include the following: maerl and herring around Milford Haven in Pembrokeshire Marine Special Area of Conservation (SAC), sponges in the Menai Strait and Conwy Bay SAC, Modiolus modiolus (horse mussel) beds in the Pen Llyn a’r Sarnau (PLAS) SAC, sandbank infaunal diversity across the MPA Network, pink sea fan Eunicella verrucosa in the Skomer Marine Conservation Zone. This will allow effective management measures to be identified that will improve our understanding of the ways to improve the condition of MPA features, improving the resilience of marine ecosystems across Wales.
Next steps and progress: Being progressed as part of a Nature Networks project with current collaborations with Universities. However, further research work is needed into sensitivities and reasons for decline of these species and habitats that cannot be addressed within current programme (ideally PhDs but also shorter term research projects).
Keywords (discipline, other): Marine sciences, decline, species, benthic habitats, Marine Protected Area, MPAs, maerl, herring, Special Area of Conservation, SAC, sponges, Menai Strait, Conwy Bay, Modiolus modiolus beds, sandbank, marine ecosystem
Website/URL links: https://naturalresources.wales/evidence-and-data/research-and-reports/marine-biodiversity-collaborative-research-priorities/?lang=en
Looking for collaborators: Yes External Partner: Yes Organisation: Natural Resources Wales
Contact Details
Name: Kirsten Ramsay Email Address: kirsten.ramsay@cyfoethnaturiolcymru.gov.uk Phone: NA
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What are the reasons for the decline of specific species and benthic habitats across the Marine Protected Area network in Wales?
Summary of the Research Question / Evidence Need:
Keywords (discipline, other): Marine Protected Areas, species decline, benthic habitats, marine ecosystems, maerl, herring, Modiolus modiolus, Eunicella verrucosa, Alcyonium glomeratum, Pentapora foliacea, sponges, infauna, Burry Inlet, conservation, Wales
Website/URL links: https://naturalresources.wales/evidence-and-data/research-and-reports/marine-biodiversity-collaborative-research-priorities/?lang=en
Looking for collaborators: No External Partner: Yes Organisation: Natural Resources Wales
Contact Details
Name: Email Address: Phone:
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What are the recent population trends in uncommon grassland invertebrates, including section 7 priority species?
Summary of the Research Question / Evidence Need:
Diversity is a basic measure of sustainable management of natural resources. Past declines in grassland invertebrates are documented, but recent trends less well understood
Keywords (discipline, other): Semi-natural grassland
Ecosystem resilience
Biodiversity
Website/URL links: https://naturalresources.wales/evidence-and-data/research-and-reports/state-of-natural-resources-report-sonarr-for-wales-2020/evidence-needs-table/?lang=en
Looking for collaborators: n/a External Partner: Y Organisation: Natural Resources Wales
Contact Details
Name: n/a n/a Email Address: Phone: NA
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What are the recent population trends in uncommon grassland vascular plants, including section 7 priority species?
Summary of the Research Question / Evidence Need:
Diversity is a basic measure of sustainable management of natural resources. Past declines in grassland vascular plants are documented, but recent trends less well understood
Keywords (discipline, other): Semi-natural grassland
Ecosystem resilience
Biodiversity
Website/URL links: https://naturalresources.wales/evidence-and-data/research-and-reports/state-of-natural-resources-report-sonarr-for-wales-2020/evidence-needs-table/?lang=en
Looking for collaborators: n/a External Partner: Y Organisation: Natural Resources Wales
Contact Details
Name: n/a n/a Email Address: Phone: NA
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What are the seascapes and ecosystem cultural services of the Welsh coast?
Summary of the Research Question / Evidence Need:
Complete the coverage of local seascape character assessment in Wales:
1. spatialise areas
2. identify key characteristics of character for each area
3. relate to LANDMAP
4. create ecosystem cultural services typology
5. attribute relevent services to relevent seascapes. Work fills missing gaps (spatial, topical) – required so NRW can more effectively provide evidence for SoNaRR and advise in case work and highlight trends and issues for policy development. Current coverage approx 65%, plus some updating needed to bring existing assessment into line with sustainable management of natural resources and ecosystems language.
Keywords (discipline, other): Marine
Freshwater
Coastal Margins
Website/URL links: https://naturalresources.wales/evidence-and-data/research-and-reports/state-of-natural-resources-report-sonarr-for-wales-2020/evidence-needs-table/?lang=en
Looking for collaborators: n/a External Partner: Y Organisation: Natural Resources Wales
Contact Details
Name: n/a n/a Email Address: Phone: NA
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What are the soil erosion rates and frequency of erosion events within common management systems in grassland and arable land?
Summary of the Research Question / Evidence Need:
Soil is a vital natural resource and there is very little information available on soil erosion in Wales. It is often assumed that the rate of soil loss is low as grassland systems predominate. Anecdotal evidence however suggests otherwise.
Keywords (discipline, other): Enclosed farmland
Land use and soil
Ecosystem resilience
Climate change
Website/URL links: https://naturalresources.wales/evidence-and-data/research-and-reports/state-of-natural-resources-report-sonarr-for-wales-2020/evidence-needs-table/?lang=en
Looking for collaborators: n/a External Partner: Y Organisation: Natural Resources Wales
Contact Details
Name: n/a n/a Email Address: Phone: NA
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What are the soil types and their main functions across the network of protected sites in Wales?
Summary of the Research Question / Evidence Need:
To give soils more of a prominent role in site descriptors.
Keywords (discipline, other): Land use and soil
Woodland
Freshwater
Coastal margins
Mountains, moorland, and heath
Urban
Semi-natural grassland
Biodiversity
Website/URL links: https://naturalresources.wales/evidence-and-data/research-and-reports/state-of-natural-resources-report-sonarr-for-wales-2020/evidence-needs-table/?lang=en
Looking for collaborators: n/a External Partner: Y Organisation: Natural Resources Wales
Contact Details
Name: n/a n/a Email Address: Phone: NA
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What are the state and trends of soils in Wales and their vulnerability and resilience to land use, land management, and changing weather patterns across different soil types in Wales?
Summary of the Research Question / Evidence Need:
To assess the impact of climate change on soils.
Keywords (discipline, other): Land use and soil
Woodland
Mountains, moorland, and heath
Coastal margins
Semi-natural grassland
Enclosed farmland
Climate change
Biodiversity
Website/URL links: https://naturalresources.wales/evidence-and-data/research-and-reports/state-of-natural-resources-report-sonarr-for-wales-2020/evidence-needs-table/?lang=en
Looking for collaborators: n/a External Partner: Y Organisation: Natural Resources Wales
Contact Details
Name: n/a n/a Email Address: Phone: NA
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What are the synergies and trade-offs of energy with the Well-being Future Generation Goals and SoNaRR themes?
Summary of the Research Question / Evidence Need:
To obtain an understanding which Well-being goals and SoNaRR themes are intrinsically linked to energy.
1. Energy cuts across many sectors that is intrisically linked to well-being goals. There are no evidence available that considers the well-being goals against the SoNaRR or key themes for Wales.
2. Energy cuts across many sectors and areas as seen in the synergies and trade of energy with the UN SDG goals. So it is useful to see how energy other themes link to the well-being goals. This would be very useful assesing the progress of energy in relation to wider Welsh goals.
Keywords (discipline, other): Energy
Woodland
Marine
Mountains, moorland, and heath
Freshwater
Coastal margins
Urban
Semi-natural grassland
Enclosed farmland
Land use and soil
Air Quality
Waste
Water efficiency
Invasive non-native species
Ecosystem resilience
Climate change
Biodiversity
Website/URL links: https://naturalresources.wales/evidence-and-data/research-and-reports/state-of-natural-resources-report-sonarr-for-wales-2020/evidence-needs-table/?lang=en
Looking for collaborators: n/a External Partner: Y Organisation: Natural Resources Wales
Contact Details
Name: n/a n/a Email Address: Phone: NA
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