Ulrich Schmutz as WP11 Agroecology Partnership (AP) together with Judit Fehér, co-lead from KVANN Norway, attended the joint 3-project conference on ‘pesticide-free’ farming at the Research Infrastructure (RI) Julius Kühn Institute for cultivated plant research in Berlin-Dahlem.

In July, Julia Wright joined colleagues in the Agroecology Partnership to present a framework of ethical principles for co-creation for Agroecological Living Labs, at the 16th International Farming Systems Association Conference, hosted at CIHEAM, Montpellier.

CAWR PhD David Anene attended the Microplastics Conference, held at the University of Birmingham in July. His research examines the role of human behaviour in addressing the complex challenge of microplastic pollution, with a particular focus on exposure arising from face masks.

Peat is still widely used in horticulture. A recent article in The Guardian described the issues of its use and the ongoing lobbying of government to make its use illegal; this highlighted ongoing work by CAWR to develop effective alternatives: https://bit.ly/454SLxJ

ZALF researcher Sara Delaney has published 2 further articles on the Coventry Agroecological Living Lab. In her post for The Aggregate, she describes Food Union’s Marc Hammond as an ‘Agroecology Superhero’ given the range of activities he is involved with: https://bit.ly/4fTmmiL

In June Dr Leo Faedo presented several research projects developed by CAWR at the international conference, Agriculture for Life, including SCALE-it, WINN Organic, Agroecology Partnership & TERRA. He lectured to the Faculty of Horticulture about a health-based approach in agriculture.

Prismita Nursetyowati (Mita), a third-year PhD student, presented her poster “Linking Sanitation Behaviour to Emerging Contaminant Risks in Riverbank Communities” at the International Conference on Emerging Trends in Water Treatment 2026 in Mikkeli, Finland.

See the publication: Qambemeda N, Mandela P, Binego L, Mombo F, Schmutz U. Analysing the economics of agroforestry within land use & land cover change: The case of the Baga-Kisimagonja ecological corridor of Tanzania. Land Use Policy, Volume. 169, 2026: https://bit.ly/4oX6OOW

CAWR's Katharina Dehnen-Schmutz & Helen Bayliss have been promoting the new OneSTOP PlantAlert app for gardeners to record spreading ornamental garden plants that are proving difficult to control: https://bit.ly/44FQqsK

Work continues on the WINN ORGANIC project to improve access to organic food through novel on-farm technologies. To test the impact on sustainability, CAWR's team is contributing to the development of a user-friendly digital tool. Adrian Evans & Judith Conroy conducted some focus groups.

Over the 30th-31st May weekend Shavena Vigneswara Kumar curated a public exhibition bringing together the work of Tamil creatives, community groups & academics to explore relationships to Tamil histories & heritage, as part of her PhD project.

2026 is the UN International Year of Rangelands & Pastoralists (IYRP): https://iyrp.info/ CAWR staff & students are undertaking research in Africa on rangeland management, smallholder livestock systems & are advocating for pastoralist rights.

In June, Coventry welcomed partners from across Europe & Colombia to kick off DRAGONS - a new Horizon Europe project that develops, tests & diffuses innovative approaches to overcome the psychological, emotional & structural barriers that limit meaningful action for biodiversity.

Publication Spotlight: Katharina Dehnen-Schmutz had co-authored a new paper 'Using bioacoustics to assess the impact of evergreen invasive plants on bird communities in Wales, United Kingdom'. https://doi.org/10.3897/neobiota.107.157629

Sara Delaney from ZALF (Leibniz Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research) visited CAWR as part of the European Agroecology Partnership. Sara is examining co-creation within living labs. Judith & Sara visited participants to discuss how co-creation occurs. Sara’s blog: https://bit.ly/4v5xXR8

Happening tomorrow - Join the WATERSENS project webinar: Digital tools as enablers of replication: understanding pilots and transferring solutions across sites. 📅 Wednesday, 8 July 🕑 13:00-14:30 BST Register here: https://bit.ly/3TaWR4z

Working with Doug Thake, Associate Professor in Human & Applied Physiology, & the Fire Service, CAWR's Donna Oldbury-Thomas' new ESRC funded WISDOM project will generate timely, actionable evidence to strengthen the UK’s wildfire response.

In June, CAWR's Judith Conroy gave a guided butterfly walk at the Coventry University city centre campus. There is a rich patchwork of perennial flowers, wild grassland & the edible garden which has led to awards such as the Bees Needs Champions Award: https://bit.ly/4eTCaRY

Francis Rayns made a presentation to the Norfolk group of Garden Organic Master Composters at a recent meeting held near Dereham. Referring to research conducted at CAWR he described the ways in which a variety of composted materials can be used as soil improvers and as components of growing media.

7th-9th of May, the International HAE Conference 2026 was held online, bringing together researchers, extensionists & farmers. Dr Leo Faedo was a keynote speaker & PhD student Charlotte Southall chaired a session. This is part of the research programme on Subtle Agroeclogies.

20th May was World Bee Day and CAWR's Judith Conroy gave guided walks, looking at the bees & wider biodiversity in Coventry city centre and at Ryton Organic Gardens. The rich life on both walks demonstrates the ecological significance of garden spaces.

In celebration of Insect Week 2026 we are sharing our Ryton Organic Gardens iNaturalist project page so you can see the array of things we've spotted: https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/ryton-organic-gardens

Dr Emma Burnett, who completed her PhD at CAWR in 2024, is soon to have a book published! During her time as a research student, she was also a prolific short story writer. Ex Partum centres on food, family & predatory capitalism. Released in June 2026: https://emmaburnett.carrd.co/

This year's Agroforestry Open Weekend & Farm Woodland Forum were combined. Judith Conroy, Ulrich Schmutz, Katharina Dehnen-Schmutz & intern Pratiksha Sharma visited Haye Farm, a mixed agroforestry farm, Little Hidden Farm & Reading University, where Liliane Binego & Ulrich Schmutz gave a talk.

Researchers at Coventry University need input from farmers & growers on how 'sustainability' is measured. If you can spare 15 minutes, you can help the WINN ORGANIC project which is working to increase access to organic food through novel technologies. Survey closes tomorrow: https://bit.ly/4oyQ28x

Within the Horizon-Europe Innovation Action SCALE-it, CU is preparing sectoral business plans for countries to phase-out inputs “at scale”. Ulrich Schmutz visited Plumpton College, the heart of British wine know-how & Ridgeview vineyard to help prepare for the SCALE-it data collection.

Tina Fallah presented her PhD research at the EGU General Assembly 2026 in Vienna, supervised by Prof. Marco Van De Wiel. The study explored how hydrological and mechanical effects of soil water repellency influence catchment-scale soil erosion under different rainfall and landscape conditions.

Dr Bastien Dieppois has been elected Chair of the European Geosciences Union “Catchment Hydrology” Sub-division. Providing an opportunity to support & represent the international catchment hydrology community, foster scientific exchange & contribute to shaping the EGU General Assembly programme

Dr Bastien Dieppois, Liliane Binego & Marco Van De Wiel co-authored a new paper in Scientific African examining the ecosystem impacts of exotic tree species in Sao Hill, Tanzania: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sciaf.2026.e03404

Ulrich, Liliane & Judith participated in the launch of the 2nd call of projects co-funded by the Agroecology Partnership. 19 projects totalling €30m were presented in Bordeaux, utilising living labs & research infrastructures as a means of advancing agroecology across Europe and beyond.