Benjamin Redmond Roche

Motivation for Research:

Arctic sea ice covers a vast expanse of the Earth's surface (~6.2-15.3 million km², 1981-2010 median values) and plays a significant role in regulating the climate through the large value of the albedo of sea ice and snow. The Arctic Ocean also acts as a large biome, with primary production yielding up to ~682 Tg C year^-1; 30-45% of the total primary production occurs in ice-covered areas. Arctic sea ice has significantly declined over the past few decades and is predicted to be ice-free by the year 2050. Hosting up to 13% of global undiscovered oil reserves and with potential northern shipping routes decreasing transit time by up to 40%, the race to exploit the Arctic is on.

Personal Profile:

I am an Earth Science/Net Zero PhD student. My research has previously focused on palaeoclimatic changes in the Arctic (Weckström, Redmond Roche et al. 2019), and my current research focuses both on the climatic effect that oil pollution has on Arctic sea ice (Redmond Roche and King, 2022) and how decreasing sea ice and snow may affect primary production and carbon budgets in the Arctic Ocean. I am also exploring the numerous solutions we have to meet the requirements of the energy transition through the 100 days of training provided by the GeoNetZero Doctoral Training Program.

Ultimately, I am interested in utilising my research background to help identify and employ the mitigation mechanisms that will solve the myriad problems that the Climate Emergency brings.

Research Interests:

• Cryospheric science
• Polar science
• Anthropogenic forcing
• Marine pollution
• Marine ecology
• Two-Eyed seeing
• Net Zero/Sustainability

Additional:

I also work part-time as an energy efficiency officer for Oxford City Council, where I primarily co-lead on the roll-out of government-funded retrofit campaigns (e.g., HUG2, ECO4, ECO FLEX, and The Great British Insulation Scheme).

• International Glaciological Society Member
• American Geophysical Union Member
• European Geophysical Union Member
• Fellow of the Geological Society
• Higher Education Academy Associate Fellow (AFHEA)
• Bloomberg Market Concepts
• Bloomberg ESG

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ResearchGate Profile