Dr Jo House

Summary

My research focuses on the carbon cycle; land use change and greenhouse gas emissions; climate impacts on forests; mitigation of climate change through avoided deforestation, forestry and bioenergy; climate mitigation scenarios, emissions pathways and policy implications. I have extensive experience in science synthesis and communication with policy makers, industry and NGOs.  I have been a lead author for the IPCC (Intergovenrmental Panel on Climate Change) for which we jointly received the Nobel Prize in 2007, and I continue to contribute to these Assessments.  I was a convening lead author on the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment.

Land use change (mainly deforestation) accounted for between 7 and 39% of all carbon dioxide emissions in the 1990s. Whether we are at the high or low end of the range can make a difference to global average temperature of about 1 °C by the end of the century.  This has serious implications for estimating climate impacts, and how to meet desired mitigation targets.  Major decisions are being negotiated under the UNFCCC (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change). The aim of my research is to provide a better evidence base for climate policy on climate mitigation targets and land based mitigation options.

For My Leverhulme fellowship I will evaluate different methods of estimating both land-based emissions and mitigation options (reduced deforestation, afforestation, management, bioenergy) including full life-cycle impacts and socio-economic context. The project will characterize uncertainty, recommend improved methodologies and provide robust evidence for policy making.

Biography

PhD, Bristol University, October 2010 “Terrestrial Ecosystems, Carbon Cycle and Climate Change”

First Class Honours in Human Environmental Science, Kings College London, University of London, 1988-1991

Keywords

• Earth System science
• global environmental change
• climate change
• environment
• carbon cycle
• land use change
• greenhouse gas emissions
• forests
• bioenergy
• climate impacts
• climate mitigation
• climate policy

Memberships

Organisations

School of Geographical Sciences

Research groups

• Bristol Research Initiative for the Dynamic Global Environment (BRIDGE)
• Cabot Institute

Links

• Bristol Research Initiative for the Dynamic Global Environment (BRIDGE)
• Cabot Institute, Bristol University
• Global Change group, Bristol University

Selected publications

• Dawson, T, Jackson, S, House, J, Prentice, I & Mace, G 2011, ‘Beyond Predictions: Biodiversity Conservation in a Changing Climate’. Science, vol 332., pp. 53 - 58
• Davis, S, House, J, Diaz-Chavez, R, Molnar, A, Valin, H & DeLucia, E 2011, ‘How can land-use modelling tools inform bioenergy policies?’. Interface Focus, vol 1.
• House, J, Orr, H, Clark, J, Gallego-Sala, A, Freeman, C, Prentice, I & Smith, P 2010, ‘Climate change and the British Uplands: evidence for decision-making’. Climate Research, vol 45., pp. 3 - 12
• Quere, CL, Raupach, M, Canadell, J, Marland, G, Bopp, L, Ciais, P, Conway, T, Doney, S, Feely, R, Foster, P, Friedlingstein, P, Gurney, K, Houghton, R, House, J, Huntingford, C, Levy, P, Lomas, M, Majkut, J, Metzl, N, Ometto, J, Peters, G, Prentice, I, Randerson, J, Running, S, Sarmiento, J, Schuster, U, Sitch, S, Takahashi, T, Viovy, N, Werf, Gvd & Woodward, F 2009, ‘Trends in the sources and sinks of carbon dioxide’. Nature Geoscience, vol 2., pp. 831 - 836
• House, J, Huntingford, C, Knorr, W, Cornell, S, Cox, P, Harris, GR, Jones, CD, Lowe, JA & Prentice, I 2008, ‘What do recent advances in quantifying climate and carbon cycle uncertainties mean for climate policy?’. Environ. Res. Lett, vol 3.
• House, J, Brovkin, V, Betts, R, Constanza, R, Dias, MS, Holland, E, Que're, Cl, Phat, NK, Riebesell, U & Scholes, M 2006, ‘Climate and Air Quality’. in: R Hassan, R Scholes, N Ash (eds) Ecosystems and Human Wellbeing: Current State and Trends: Findings of the Conditions and Trend Working Group of the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment. Island Press, Washington DC, pp. 355 - 390
• House, J, Prentice, I, Ramankutty, N, Houghton, R & Heimann, M 2003, ‘Reconciling apparent inconsistencies in estimates of terrestrial CO₂ sources and sinks’. Tellus B: Chemical and Physical Meteorology, vol 55 (2)., pp. 345 - 363
• House, J, Prentice, I & Quéré, CL 2002, ‘Maximum impacts of future reforestation or deforestation on atmospheric CO₂’. Global Change Biology, vol 8 (11)., pp. 1047 - 1052
• Knorr, W, Prentice, I, House, J & Holland, E 2005, ‘Long-term sensitivity of soil carbon turnover to warming’. Nature, vol 433 (7023)., pp. 298 - 301
• Houghton, R, Werf, Gvd, DeFries, R, Hansen, M, House, J, Quere, CL, Pongratz, J & Ramankutty, N 2012, ‘Carbon emissions from land use and land-cover change’. Biogeosciences Discuss, vol 9., pp. 835 - 878

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View complete publications list in the University of Bristol publications system