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CAWR Newsletter
October 2026
Our monthly newsletters are an easy way to keep up-to-date with new developments at our research centre. From successful project bids to upcoming events, our newsletter informs you on how we are 'driving innovative transdisciplinary research on equitable, sustainable and resilient food and water systems.'
The views and opinions expressed in this newsletter are those of the contributors at the Centre for Agroecology, Water and Resilience (CAWR) and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Coventry University.
Photo © Connie Bickerton for ROOTED
Getting ROOTED in Brussels and Lille
“A landed community kitchen in every neighbourhood”, that is the long-term goal of CAWR’s new project ROOTED that kicked off in Brussels and Lille between September 28-October 1.
Led by Chiara Tornaghi with colleagues Csilla Kiss, Chris Maughan, Adam Millet, Jasber Singh and Adelina Skirth, ROOTED investigates the role of Landed Community Kitchens (LCKs) as pioneering neighbourhood infrastructures that support ecologically and socially just food systems.
Grounded in principles of equity and care for both people and nature, LCKs are embedded within local agroecological food networks and provide welcoming, convivial spaces where people can access, cook, and share affordable, sustainably produced food. Through ROOTED, we seek to ensure that the infrastructural arrangements, socio-ecological pedagogies, business models, business models and policy frameworks underpinning LCKs are inclusive of culturally and socially diverse communities, including those experiencing food insecurity.
Funded by the European Commission (€6 million) until February 2030, ROOTED brings together 26 partners from 10 countries.
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Gathering of the European Network of Agroecological Living Labs and Research Infrastructures
The Annual Network Meeting and 2026 Summit of the AGROECOLOGY Partnership’s European Network of Agroecological Living Labs and Research Infrastructures took place 6th to 8th October at the Leibniz Institute for Agricultural Engineering and Bioeconomy (ATB). This was an important opportunity for living lab representatives to meet with one another and the wider project to explore ideas and collaboration to accelerate agroecological transition. Ulrich Schmutz attended as leader of work to scale the Network and Judith Conroy represented the Coventry Agroecological Living Lab (CALL).
Knowledge exchange on novel food quality research method
Julia with RMT partners and Dr Doesburg of Crystal Lab
In early October, Julia Wright accompanied partners from Ruskin Mill Trust to visit the laboratories of the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Basel as well as the Crystal Lab which has pioneered the picture forming copper chloride crystallisation method. This is an extremely sensitive tool that reveals the formative processes that shape biological substances in nature and may also determine their vitality. The Lab has developed cutting-edge, scientifically validated portable crystallisation equipment around which the potential for collaborative research was discussed.
Impact News - 'working for change'
Conventional vegetable transplants being raised at Fountain Plants
Launch of the Peat-Free Pathway
Francis Rayns attended an event at Fountain Plants near Boston to launch the Peat-Free Pathway. This initiative has developed ‘roadmaps’ to phase out peat from key horticultural growing associations: propagators, brassicas, herbs, leafy salads and mushrooms. These identify issues such as technical challenges or availability of alternatives and highlight where additional funding is needed. The roadmaps will help us to maximise impact of future growing media projects.
Attendees at the Peat Free Pathway Launch event
A practical workshop on ‘Getting Started on Homeopathy for Plants’ was held at the Organic Growers Gathering
At the annual Organic Growers Gathering on September 26th 2026 in Oxfordshire, Charlotte Southall, working with Whole Health Agriculture, taught 45 growers how to start to use homeopathy on plants and soil in their market gardens. The workshop included discussing what common problems could be treated with homeopathy and how to choose homeopathic preparations for different scenarios. There was a practical demonstration on how to make up and apply the preparations to plants. Over half of the growers took away samples of homeopathic preparations to use in their own market gardens.
Charlotte teaching homeopathy on plants
Soil Stories
On the evening of 20th October, local food growers including the Coventry Agroecological Living Lab (CALL) gathered at the Food Union allotment in Coventry to share their ‘soil stories’.
The very hot and dry 2026 growing season was a rich source of fire-side discussion. Topics included: how to conserve soil moisture with mulch and green manures, diversifying with perennial crops and how to keep flowers blooming through the extremes of summer. The growers also discussed hopes and plans for 2027 and living lab collaborations.
CALL is coordinated by Judith Conroy and is part of the AGROECOLOGY Partnership’s European Network.
Procurement for Good’s annual meeting, Hughes Hall, Cambridge
Procurement for Good project team
Procurement for Good had their mid-project annual meeting, hosted by Cambridge Organic Food Company and held in Hughes Hall, Cambridge. Project partners and advisory board members gathered to discuss progress, next steps and key challenges across the sector. The project hosted external Cambridge food system actors in the evening to discuss governance and enjoy delicious seasonal food provided by Cambridge Organic Food Company.
Group photos of stakeholders and academic participating to the HydrEX-Africa workshop
HydrEX-Africa – Stakeholder Workshop “Foreseeing Management of Unprecedented Climate Extremes to Build Resilience in Sub-Saharan African Communities”
On 29–30 September 2026, as part of the Royal Society-funded HydrEX-Africa project, Bastien Dieppois, Liliane Binego, Jana Fried and Stanley Oramah organised a participatory stakeholder workshop in Kampala, Uganda. Bringing together around 30 participants from government institutions, civil society, local water users and academia across Central and East Africa, the workshop combined scientific presentations with interactive World Café discussions. Focusing on the Mpanga River catchment, participants explored future hydroclimatic extremes, their impacts on water resources and livelihoods, and the potential of landscape restoration and nature-based solutions to support more climate-resilient and equitable water management.
Photo of the world café discussion
Strengthening International Collaboration on Water Research: CAWR's Contribution to the UK Committee for International Hydrology
Photo of the UK-CIH meeting hosted at the University of Birmingham
On 22 September 2026, Bastien Dieppois, a member of the UK Committee for International Hydrology (UKCIH), participated in a committee meeting hosted by the University of Birmingham. Discussions highlighted research addressing global water challenges, including water security, climate resilience, pollution and sustainable water management. Bringing together researchers, policymakers and practitioners, UKCIH works to strengthen UK contributions to international hydrological initiatives, particularly through UNESCO's Intergovernmental Hydrological Programme (IHP) and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO). The meeting provided an opportunity to strengthen collaboration, knowledge exchange and the international visibility of UK water research.
WINN-ORGANIC update - Organic Food for All
The first annual meeting of the WINN-ORGANIC project took place in Girona, 13th – 15th October. This was an important opportunity for CAWR researchers to meet with partner organisations to advance work to improve access to local organic food through a range of innovations.
Ulrich Schmutz, Adrian Evans and Judith Conroy are working with Tamar Grow Local in south west England to establish one of WINN-ORGANIC’s 8 Organic Farming Innovation Hubs. The UK hub’s mission is ‘Organic Food for All’ and the meeting was a chance to engage with the project’s technology providers to progress innovations such as biodegradable packaging, a farm sustainability assessment tool and enhancements to the Open Food Network platform which is already used by Tamar Grow Local.
Composted wood for development of peat-alternatives
In 2020, as part of the Organic-PLUS project we set up a series of long-term ash wood compost piles to produced materials that could be used as ingredients in peat-free growing media. Now an MSc student, Sakhi Gokarapu, is testing the effect of adding various plant feeds to this compost. Before sieving we found it contained an abundance of insect life, including what are probably larvae of the lesser stag beetle (Dorcus parallelipipedus).
Publications
Yazlık, A., Ulutaş, O. C., & Dehnen-Schmutz, K. (2026). Ornamental plant producers’ perceptions of invasive plants: non-native taxa highlighted in Yalova Province, Türkiye. Invasive Plant Science and Management, 19, e15. 10.1017/inp.2026.10048
Raimondo, M., Bartolini, F., Dumper-Pollard, R., Reinhard-Kolempas, M., Roganovic, D., Schmutz, U., Thiesmeier, A. Zander, P. & Vergamini D. (2026) Understanding motivations for agroforestry maintenance and adoption: a comparative analysis in Europe. Agric Econ 14, 64. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40100-026-00506-6
Wigboldus, S., Wezel, A., Dauber, J., Migliorini, P., Schmutz, U., & Hassink, J. (2026). Systemic perspectives on agroecology’s potential to transform European agriculture and food systems: A review. Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems, 1–49. https://doi.org/10.1080/21683565.2026.2710292
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
Evans, M. (2025). Visual arts, insecurity and an elusive peace in Casamance, Senegal. International Journal of Art and Design Education, 44(4), 886-901. https://doi.org/10.1111/jade.12623
Nyanghura, Q., Mandela, P., Binego, L., Mombo, F., Schmutz, U. (2026). Analyzing the economics of agroforestry within land use and land cover change: The case of the Baga-Kisimagonja ecological corridor of Tanzania. Land Use Policy, Volume. 169, 2026, 108158, ISSN 0264-8377 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landusepol.2026.108158
Adekola, O. E., Jones, T. S., & Dehnen-Schmutz, K. (2026). Using bioacoustics to assess the impact of evergreen invasive plants on bird communities in Wales, United Kingdom. NeoBiota, 107, 89-103. https://doi.org/10.3897/neobiota.107.157629
He, Q., Fok, H. S., Dieppois, B. & Ferreira, V. (2026). Diverse Seasonal Patterns of Precipitation and Terrestrial Water Storage over the Indochina Peninsula: Roles of Monsoons, ENSO, and Topography. Hydrological Processes. In press. https://doi.org/10.1002/hyp.70529
Mkonda, M. Y., Dieppois, B., Mombo, F., Binego, L. & Van De Wiel, M. (2026). Exotic Trees and Ecosystem Impacts in Sub-Saharan Africa: The Case of Sao Hill, Tanzania. Scientific African, 32, e03404. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sciaf.2026.e03404
Wright, J.; Bojesen Jensen, J.; Dufour, C.; Altobelli, N.; McTiernan, D.; Gosnell, H.; Prescott, S.L.; Legrand, T. Conscious Food Systems: Supporting Farmers’ Well-Being and Psychological Resilience. Challenges 2026, 17, 3. https://doi.org/10.3390/challe17010003
Diop, S. B., Tramblay, Y., Bodian, A., Dieppois, B. & Ouarda, T. (2026). Intercomparison of regional flood frequency estimation procedures in West Africa. Stochastic Environmental Research and Risk Assessment. In press.
He, Q., Fok, H. S., Dieppois, B. & Ferreira, V. (2026). Diverse Seasonal Patterns of Precipitation and Terrestrial Water Storage over the Indochina Peninsula: Roles of Monsoons, ENSO, and Topography. Hydrological Processes. In press.
Argamino, C. R. A., Silva, J. dos S., Kizhakkethil, J. P., Stevanovic, S., Ward, M., McKenzie, M., Bogush, A., Hamilton, J. F., Godoi, R. H. M., and Kourtchev, I.: Assessment of the occurrence of phthalate esters (PAEs) in indoor office PM2.5 from Brazil and the UK, Atmos. Pollut. Res., https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apr.2026.102987, 102987, 2026.
Kosgahakumbura, H. H., Kourtchev, I., Charlesworth, S., Callahan, D. L., and Gates, W. P.: Stability of recycled plastics in an aqueous alkaline cementitious matrix, Polymer Degradation and Stability, 246, 111915, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.polymdegradstab.2025.111915, 2026.
Kourtchev, I., Coupe, S., Buckley, A., Pandamkulangara Kizhakkethil, J., Gatta, E., Massabò, D., Prati, P., Vernocchi, V., and Mazzei, F.: Controlled chamber formation of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) aerosols with Pseudomonas fluorescens: size distributions, effects, and inhalation deposition potential, Atmos. Chem. Phys., 26, 3237–3252, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-26-3237-2026, 2026.
Peyton, J. M., Rorke, S., Aldridge, D. C., Pescott, O. L., Dehnen‐Schmutz, K., Noble, D. G., ... & Roy, H. E. (2026). Assessing the success of a horizon scanning approach in predicting invasive non‐native species arrival. Journal of Applied Ecology, 63(1), e70217. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2664.70217
