Earlier this year, Degrees-funded scientist Yves Wilfried Pomalegni from the Benin team successfully defended his doctoral thesis on the impacts of solar radiation modification (SRM) on Ocean Dynamics in the Eastern Equatorial Atlantic. Yves has been a member of the Benin team since 2018, their project exploring the effects of SRM on climate change in the northern Gulf of Guinea. Yves published his first paper in 2022 on this subject as lead author, and was also a co-author on a paper on modelling the impacts of SRM on West African monsoon precipitation. Earning his PhD is a fantastic achievement, so we took the opportunity to chat with Yves about his journey to get there, how he got involved in SRM research, and what he hopes to do next in this growing field in West Africa.
What inspired you to get involved with climate science and environmental work?
Since my teenage years, the two words that kept nagging at the back of my mind were ‘global warming’. To better understand this problem and to contribute to solutions was a dream of mine. I decided to get involved in climate science and environmentalism, to finally achieve that dream.
How did you start working on solar radiation modification?
In September 2018, I successfully defended my master’s degree in physical oceanography and applications. The Benin 2018 team supported by Degrees had just been granted funding. This is how my thesis project in this new field of SRM started. On the recommendation of Dr Casimir DA-Allada (who was one of my professors), Prof Ezinvi Baloïtcha (PI of the project), integrated me into the team. I’m very grateful to them for this wonderful opportunity and I was excited to find out about SRM and the climate responses in the West African region
Can you tell us about your PhD, and how you might explain your work to friends or family?
My work examines the impact of Stratospheric geoengineering on dynamics of the eastern equatorial Atlantic Ocean. First of all, stratospheric geoengineering is an SRM approach that involves the injection of sulfur dioxide aerosols into the stratosphere in order to limit global warming. Overall, the research findings reveal that the implementation of stratospheric SRM would affect ocean dynamics in the eastern equatorial Atlantic. Specifically in the Gulf of Guinea, there would be a slowdown in ocean surface currents. Moreover, in the region of the Equatorial Atlantic Cold Tongue, there would be a decrease in sea surface temperature, while the sea surface salinity of this region would increase slightly.
How did you become interested in SRM research in your region?
The West African region (especially Benin, my country) is facing enormous challenges due to climate change, namely increased climatic variability associated with flooding, periods of drought, reduced rainfall, desertification, depletion of water resources which are strongly linked to agricultural activities, food insecurity, ecosystem destruction, and sea level rise. To resolve these crucial challenges, we need to explore possibilities to mitigate global warming in order to provide policy-makers with accurate tools to take appropriate decisions. Hence my interest in the region.
A strong PhD is a long and difficult journey, particularly in such a new field – did you encounter any challenges?
Yes, absolutely! There were quite a few challenges, such as the heavy weight of the data used, which was difficult to run on our laptops. There was also the lack of previous studies, which were almost non-existent in our study area in this new field of SRM.
Despite the difficulties, what part of your PhD research did you most enjoy and why?
The final acceptance for publication of my first paper entitled “Response of the Equatorial Atlantic Cold Tongue to Stratospheric Aerosol Geoengineering ” was notified to me on December 25, 2021 . It was like a Christmas present! It was one of those moments where I felt enormous joy and the strength to continue my research.
What’s next for your research?
There are several perspectives opening up after my research. I hope to be awarded a post-doctoral fellowship to deepen my research and skills in this field of SRM in the West African region, and particularly in my country, Benin.
