Champaign, Ill. — Professor Francis Pope from the University of Birmingham (UoB) will discuss his work with air pollution and climate change in East Africa starting at 9:15 a.m. on May 16 at the Medical Sciences Building, Room 274.
The Medical Sciences Building is located at 506 South Mathews Avenue in Urbana.
This is the second lecture in the BRIDGE Guest Lecture Series hosted by Illinois International during a strategic partnership visit from the UoB.
Pope has led multiple projects in East Africa where he has strengthened research capabilities and technological expertise with local stakeholders and experts that were involved in the conception, implementation, and uptake of a program and its outcomes.
Pope’s lecture, titled “Atmospheric Science Research in the Global South,” will outline these projects and will define how to set up responsive programs of activity that not only work for local communities but also enhance local decision-making abilities to improve urban air quality, reduce the effects of air pollution upon human health, and allow for sustainable development to proceed without further deterioration in air quality.
Additionally, he will provide insights on how to guard against the potential for parachute science.
Parachute science refers to a situation where a researcher or team from the Global North, conducts research within the Global South. The Global North researchers then proceed without engaging meaningfully with either their counterparts or wider stakeholders from the Global South.
“Parachute science is widespread, but Pope will argue the drivers behind the practice are not as one dimensional as simply myopic researcher from the Global North,” according to a press release from the UoB. “A better understanding of the drivers and metrics of success, for all involved stakeholders, leads to greater project impacts.”
According to the press release, Pope is an expert on the causes and effects of climate change, air quality and resilient cities, drawing together insight from the fields of chemistry, biology, physics, and social science to understand how climate change and air pollution affects human health and how it relates to urban development.
Pope also has significant experience working in the Global South and has active projects in the UK, Europe, Africa, and India, through which he interacts with various stakeholders, including academics; international, government and city authorities; charities, and UN bodies.
Before gaining his professorship in atmospheric science in 2018, he held a Birmingham Fellowship (2012-2017), which allowed outstanding, high potential researchers to establish world-leading research groups.
He has generated more than 12 million pounds in funding since 2009 from research councils in the UK and EU, and government agencies, has led several multi-institute and multinational projects to completion, and he provides policy directed research for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), Department for International Development (DFID), Department for Transport (DfT), and Transport Scotland.
He publishes widely (over 110 peer reviewed papers, four book chapters, and multiple government reports), is an editor for the prominent Atmospheric Measurement Techniques journal, and has convened many conference sessions and workshops.
All three lectures are also available on Zoom. To register for the lecture, and to find the Zoom information, follow this link: https://go.illinois.edu/BRIDGEguestlectures.
Analicia Haynes is the storyteller and social media specialist for Illinois International. She can be reached at ahayn2@illinois.edu.
