Supporting Government in Climate Monitoring and Research

Humans have massively altered nitrogen flows on our planet, leading to both benefits for food production as well as creating multiple threats to the environment. There are few places on Earth more affected than South Asia, with levels of nitrogen pollution rapidly increasing. Nitrogen pollution damages human health, threatens biodiversity, and contributes to global climate change. The UKRI GCRF South Asian Nitrogen (SANH) aims to tackle the nitrogen challenge by bringing together experts from over 32 leading research organisations from across South Asia and the UK. We work with researchers from all eight South Asian countries and are dedicated to international co-operation for a healthier planet. The Hub includes research on how to improve nitrogen management in agriculture and investigates how nitrogen is impacting our ecosystem. SANH is also working with South Asian governments to further develop the policy conversation on nitrogen management in the region. Together we can overcome the nitrogen challenge for a healthier planet!

The Clean and Healthy Oceans: Sustainable Nitrogen for the Maldives project, funded by UNEP, aims to reduce nitrogen pollution and protect marine ecosystems through evidence-based research, targeted interventions, and strengthened national policies. Led by The Maldives National University (MNU), the project focuses on data collection, modelling, and awareness initiatives that promote sustainable practices and encourage investment in innovative solutions such as ‘Nitro-Finance’. These efforts are designed to create long-term, system-wide benefits for ocean health across the Maldives.

MNU is partner institution of the project Resilience to climate vulnerability and environmental risk (RECOVER): focus on small islands funded by CLARE. The project led by University of Waterloo, Canada is aimed at addressing climate change adaptation through a multi-risk and multi-sector approach. By conducting pilot projects in three small island states—Maldives, Mauritius, and Fiji –referred to as “hubs of innovation”, scalable and systems-changing climate resilience approaches will be co-developed to enhance understanding of small island climate adaptation capacities and possibilities. The pilot projects will be conducted by implementing partners in activity countries: Maldives National University, University of Mauritius and University of Fiji.

Organized by MNU, the consultation brought together key stakeholders to advance climate resilience solutions around water usage, access and security in Small Island Developing States (SIDS). The event highlighted solutions co-created by both vulnerable groups, NGOs and government stakeholders to come up with context-based relevant strategies from the Maldives, marking a significant step toward sustainable, self-reliant island futures in the face of climate vulnerability and environmental risk.

Under the project “Building Capacity to Improve Air Quality in South Asia: Reducing PM2.5 Through Low-Cost Sensor Network Driven Policy Decisions”, led by Duke University, funded by the US Department of State, MNU has installed 18 low cost sensors across the Maldives. This makes it the largest air quality sensor network to exist so far in the country. This pilot project in the Maldives aims to monitor PM2.5 levels in South Asian countries by deploying and maintaining low-cost sensors, continue monitoring PM2.5 levels and generate recommendations to reduce PM2.5 to healthier levels.
TSI BlueSky sensors (model 8143) are used for monitoring PM₂.₅ concentration. The 18 sensors were deployed in several deployment projects from September 2021 to May 2023. There are currently 14 sensors in operation, which continues to monitor PM2.5 levels. The sensors were first harmonised through inter-sensor colocation, and then one of the sensors was calibrated against a BAM instrument operated at the U.S. Embassy in Colombo. This calibrated sensor was subsequently used to calibrate the rest of the network across the Maldives.
Real-time PM₂.₅ levels can be accessed by registering at tsilink.com and logging into the site. You can zoom in or out to view PM₂.₅ levels in your neighborhood using the mouse or the navigation buttons located below your username on the right-hand side.The Air Quality Index (AQI), displayed at the bottom-left corner, indicates the level of health concern based on the color of the pin at each location.

Adaptation potential in the context of island resilience refers to the capacity of island communities to adapt to changing environmental, social, and economic conditions, particularly those related to climate change. This includes the ability of island communities to manage and reduce their vulnerability to hazards such as storms, floods, sea-level rise, and other climate-related impacts. To date, there are several studies conducted in the Maldives on shoreline erosion as a consequence of anthropogenically forced sea-level rise and climatic change and the notion of islands disappearing underwater has been subject to concern and debate on media over the couple of years. The susceptibility of atoll islands as being increased due to widespread erosion and inundation has raised new challenges in risk reduction, leading to the growth of grey infrastructure in all islands of the country taking form of the fortified nature of the capital Male’. However, there are several scientific studies that prove this static notion of islands false, and are in favour of dynamic in nature. This research pursues alternative adaptation pathways which support the ongoing mitigation actions to curtail future sea level impacts and climatic changes on small island nations and help formulate policy to embrace new adaptation pathways which will present considerable national-scale challenges to planning, development goals and land tenure systems in the Maldives. The research would also aim to sensitise public on adaptation options that are more nature based compared to the widespread acceptation of grey infrastructure today. Assessments would be conducted based on historical imagery of islands to assess all the Maldivian islands and classifying them according to their adaptation potentials.

This report highlights key insights from the state-of-art review on the availability, circulation and integrity of critical resources (e.g., food, water, energy, waste, and infrastructure) and associated climate impacts in the Maldives. This country review is the first in a series of three, conducted as part of the RECOVER project, a needs-driven initiative funded by Climate Adaptation and Resilience initiative (CLARE). The project is aimed at addressing climate change adaptation through a multi-risk and multi-sector approach in the Maldives, Mauritius and Fiji. This briefing report provides an overview on Maldives, a Small Island Developing State (SIDS) in the Indian Ocean, its climate and resource-use challenges, and ongoing efforts to address some of these.

Created as part of the PROMISE project Lakshadweep zero waste alliance (LOWA) is registered as an NGO in Maldives. LOWA aims to promote sustainable consumption and production along Lakshadweep shorelines in the Maldives, Sri Lanka, and India thereby contributing towards a zero-waste future.

This  project was awarded an MNU Research Grant. The research aims to understand the composition of microplastics in the marine environment surrounding Thilafushi, and thus determine the exact sources of waste pathways. Ingestion of microplastics can cause multiple, long-term health impacts ranging from permanent hormonal alteration and even acting as a mutagen. Currently, in Maldives, there has been little done to determine or monitor the bioaccumulation of microplastics regarding the increasing waste output. Hence, this project proposes to determine the contamination state of the marine environment near the greater Male’ area, by analyzing samples collected from several native species of fish, as well as sediment and seawater. The type of microplastics will be identified using a spectrometer, wherein their

Dissemination of the MNU research grant “Livebait Fishery of the Maldives Fishing Grounds in the Central and Southern Atolls, Fisher Perception and Current Trends in Fishery”.
Dive into the comprehensive report on fishing locations, trends, and fisher perspectives in the Maldives. Essential insights for sustainable fishery management. The project is carried out by The Maldives National University under the research Grant.

The proposed research aims to address a variety of aspects concerning the livebait fishery in the Maldives, with the following objectives:

• Gather and compile a comprehensive dataset pertaining to the livebait fishery in the Maldives.
• Map livebait resources in the nothern regions of the Maldives, including data on utilization intensity and fishing practices employed.
• Investigate livebait harvesting and holding practices in the northern regions of the Maldives.
• Understand fishers perceptions regarding the potential establishment of a separate livebait fishery for pole-and-line and/or handline operations.

This research aims to explore and enhance the role of urban open spaces in promoting sustainable infrastructure in Male, Maldives. It focuses on assessing the availability, distribution, and impact of public open spaces in both traditional and new urban settlements. The objectives are to understand how these spaces affect social, economic, and environmental conditions, explore ways to maintain and improve them, and investigate their usage and functions for sustainable development.
Significance: Urban open spaces, including streets, parks, and public playgrounds, are critical for the quality of urban life. They facilitate social interaction, cultural activities, and environmental sustainability. However, rapid population growth and urbanization in Male have led to a significant reduction in these spaces, particularly in older parts of the city. This reduction adversely affects community cohesion, social well-being, and overall urban livability. By studying both traditional and new settlements, this research aims to provide insights that can inform urban planning and policy-making, ensuring that public open spaces contribute effectively to sustainable urban development.

Exploring the use of Satellite Imagery for shoreline monitoring, and farmland mapping: A case study of change analysis. As part of this project, a field survey in G.Dh. Hoadedhoo was conducted, collecting drone imagery and farmer interviews to explore the effects of anthropogenic changes on crop yields and plant health. This survey was conducted under the Australian Award Alumni Grant, led by AusAID Alumni