Four out of twelve funded CRISP teams will pursue research at the nexus of climate, environment and the food system.
Forty-five Duke University scholars will pursue new research on sustainable, equitable solutions to address climate change and its effects, supported by grants from the Duke Climate Research Innovation Seed Program (CRISP). CRISP advances the objectives of the Duke Climate Commitment, which unites the university’s education, research, operations and public service missions to address climate challenges.
A total of twelve teams were collectively been awarded nearly $700,000 to investigate topics such as equitable disaster recovery, community insurance, financing climate-smart agriculture, water quality challenges posed by sea level rise, forest-based carbon offsets and more. Read Announcement.
The three food systems projects include faculty members from the Duke Food & Environmental Sustainability Collaboratory.
New Climate, Environment and the Food Systems Projects
Rising Tides and Water Quality Challenges in Down East North Carolina
Emily S. Bernhardt (Biology, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences) (PI)
Akhenaton-Andrew Dhafir Jones III (Civil and Environmental Engineering, Pratt School of Engineering)
Ryan Emanuel (Environmental Sciences and Policy, Nicholas School of the Environment)
Kiera O’Donnell (Postdoctoral Associate, Biology, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences)
Kayla Farley (Ph.D. Student, Pratt School of Engineering)
Elizabeth Frankenberg (Carolina Population Center, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill)
Karen Willis Amspacher (Core Sound Waterfowl Museum and Heritage Center)
As sea levels rise, various water sources across coastal landscapes — like aquifers, reservoirs and sewers — become increasingly interconnected, creating all kinds of new risks. Focusing on the rural regions of Carteret County, North Carolina, this team will identify some of the most serious risks by interviewing local residents, testing tap water and assessing infrastructure. Ultimately, the researchers aim to develop a new way to profile risk for not only individuals and communities but also entire watersheds.
Monetizing Resilience to Mobilize Climate Capital: Understanding the Value of Climate-Smart Agriculture in East Africa
Marc Jeuland (Sanford School of Public Policy) (PI)
Jonathan Phillips (Nicholas Institute for Energy, Environment & Sustainability)
Mark Borsuk (Civil and Environmental Engineering, Pratt School of Engineering)
Alexander Pfaff (Sanford School of Public Policy)
Norbert Wilson (Duke Divinity School)
James Moody (Sociology, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences)
Liilnna Teji (Policy Associate, Nicholas Institute for Energy, Environment & Sustainability)
Rahel Deribe Bekele (Postdoctoral Associate, Nicholas Institute for Energy, Environment & Sustainability)
William Ferris (Postdoctoral Associate, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Pratt School of Engineering)
Alejandro Diaz-Herrera (Ph.D. Student, University Program in Environmental Policy)
Dylan Munson (Ph.D. Student, University Program in Environmental Policy)
The investments required to protect developing countries from climate change are at least 10 times larger than international public finance flows, with an estimated gap of $194 billion to $366 billion per year. To help fill that gap, this project will study new approaches to private-sector investment. Focusing on smallholder farmers in East Africa, the team aims to help develop new financial instruments, including resilience credits, carbon credits with resilience co-benefits and resilience bonds, among others.
Resilient Communities Built on Farmer Flourishing: Policy Frameworks for Climate-Ready Local Food Systems
Kerilyn Schewel (Duke Center for International Development, Sanford School of Public Policy) (PI)
Jack Daly (World Food Policy Center, Sanford School of Public Policy)
Saskia Cornes (John Hope Franklin Humanities Institute and Duke Campus Farm)
Lee Miller (Duke School of Law)
The world needs more farmers committed to climate-resilient practices—but they often face enormous social, environmental and policy challenges to maintaining productivity and profitability. This project will engage with farmers, policymakers and businesses in North Carolina’s Durham and Orange Counties, gleaning insights to inform new county land use and climate action plans. The team also aims to create a database of county-level policies from across the nation to aid grassroots organizations and decisionmakers in advancing climate-resilient local food systems. Note: This project is funded in part by the Office of Durham and Community Affairs and the Office of Interdisciplinary Studies.