News / Research
Bristol Uni lecturer awarded £1.3m grant for Amazon study
A University of Bristol lecturer has been awarded a grant to study gold mining, illegal logging and land-grabbing in the Amazon.
Dr Amy Penfield, senior lecturer in Archaeology and Anthropology, is one of 400 young scholars across Europe to win the European Research Councils (ERC) Starting Grant.
Penfield believes that researching smaller players who allow the wider environmentally damaging schemes to occur, is the missing piece in current research.
is needed now More than ever
Dr Amy Penfield is a senior lecturer in archaeology and anthropology at the University of Bristol – photo: University of Bristol
Penfield’s comparative research will focus on how and why these smaller players succeed in small scale informal economies despite the presence of geographical, legal, and economic barriers.
She says gaining insight into the “complex dynamics” between the instigators of environmental damage, specifically “from the inside” is “crucial to mitigating declining biodiversity and climate change in the Amazon and beyond.”
Her study will include research into the networks promoting land grabbing, gold- mining and illegal logging.
As a member of the University of Bristol’s ‘Cabot Institute for the Environment’, Penfield’s research will contribute to a growing understanding of the environmental damage in the Amazon.
Penfield notes the lack of research involving people directly responsible for large-scale deforestation, despite the issue being, “one of the most pressing issues of contemporary world”.
Main photo: Martin Booth
Read next:
- £500k grant for ‘groundbreaking’ greenhouse project
- Local media can give a voice to grassroots environmental organisations
- University of Bristol announces new environmental campaign
Listen to the latest Bristol24/7 Behind the Headlines podcast:
Our top newsletters emailed directly to you
