Accumulated sediments contain plant macro and microfossils; lakes, swamp and bog sediments trap evidence from the surrounding environments for paleoenvironmental reconstruction. The plant microfossils provide evidence of historical changes in the surrounding environment. These sediments are the indicators studied in palynology which is concerned with the structure and formation of the pollen grains Pollen analysis can […]
Project Overview – Resilience in East African Landscapes (REAL)
Project summary The strong temporal dynamics of the East African landscape and natural-resource distributions have always encouraged people to innovate and adapt to changing conditions. However, the realities of current social and environmental changes are occurring at unprecedented rates and amplitudes. Increasing population growth, changes in patterns of land tenure, industrialization, weak systems of governance, […]
CHIESA Vegetation from space and from the ground Workshop
Between the 17th to 22nd March 2014, several members of the REAL group (Aynalem, Chris, Christine and Esther) participated in the Vegetation from space and from the ground workshop (KITE-CHIESA). This workshop was facilitated by Dr. Phil Platts and Dr. Marion Pfeifer. The course provided an introduction to the use of Earth Observation (EO) products in the […]
Survey of Kenya visit
The Survey of Kenya, with headquarters in Nairobi, was involved in field mapping alongside the Directorate of Overseas Surveys and Directorate of Colonial Surveys during British colonial rule and remains the main centre of geospatial information in Kenya. The Survey maintains the air photography, maps, cadastrals and geospatial data of Kenya and is an important […]
Obsidian tools
Obsidian is a volcanic extrusive rock with a glassy texture that is very hard and dense. The volcanic glass is usually black in colour, but it can also be dark green and brown. In rare cases trace elements of mineral crystals can cause obsidian to reflect light in various colours, or even the colour spectrum […]
CLOSED Call for applicants: REAL project PhD at the University of York
Marie Curie Early Stage Researcher Department Environment Based at University of York – Heslington Campus Hours of work Full-time Contract status Fixed term Salary £37,822 – £40,687 a year Apply by 30/05/2014 Role Description [Job post LINK] The KITE research group in the Environment Department, University of York, has a research position in Environmental Modelling […]
Nyabuiyabui Swamp fieldwork
Nyabuiyabui swamp field work was carried out between 10-12/04/2014 by Colin Courtney Mustaphi, Esther Githumbi who were accompanied by Rebecca Muthoni (Intern at National Museums of Kenya) and Joseph Mutua (BIEA). Nyabuiyabui Swamp is located in Mau forest, Kiptunga block and permission to carry out the field work was granted by the KFS. It […]
Amboseli fieldwork
Assorted REALers accompanied Esther and Colin on their fieldwork trip to the Amboseli region. Two swamps were targeted for analysis, resulting in some beautiful cores and a ton of fun, all under the watchful eye of Mount Kilimanjaro. Further activities included mapping the sediment depth, taking pictures with the trusted Quad “Don’t land me in […]
Workshop on archival sources
From March 24 to 25, 2014, Dr. David Anderson and Dr. Benoit Hazard led a workshop on accessing and critically analysing archival sources and historical research methods at the British Institute in Eastern Africa and the Kenya National Archives. The workshop introduced archival sources and historical research methods to scholars with limited experience in historical research. The workshop […]
Accessing historical air photographs of Kenya
Most of the Colony of Kenya was photographed in the late 1940s, 1950s and 1960s, and used to compile the Kenyan topographic maps (scale 1:50 000; Series Y731). These maps show the locations of the air photographs and a copy of the photos are held by the Rhodes House of the Bodleian Libraries at the […]
ESR 4: Long-term ecosystem dynamics and societal interactions in the Amboseli and Mau ecosystems from swamp sediments
ESR 4 – Esther Githumbi SUPERVISOR – Dr. Rob Marchant INSTITUTION – University of York I am based at The York Institute for Tropical Ecosystems (KITE), University of York. KITE works across Eastern Africa to understand ecosystem patterns and processes, how these interact with environment, biotic and human populations. The region encompasses some […]
ER 1: (Wild?)fire
Marie Curie ITN Experienced Researcher: Dr. Colin Courtney Mustaphi Host Institution: University of York Institute for Tropical Ecosystems (KITE), Environment Department Duration: November 2013 to November 2015 Summary: Fire is an important disturbance in East African ecosystems , influencing community structure and function, species distributions, nutrient processes, and plays a role in global carbon cycle. Humans have […]