UCCRI Newsletter 5th October 2015

Research Funding Opportunities

ESRC calls for Doctoral Training Partnerships and Centres for Doctoral Training in Biosocial Research and New Forms of Data. University’s applications to these calls are coordinated by the Cambridge ESRC DTC team. If you are interested contributing to these applications, please contact Isobel Humphreys, ESRC DTC Coordinator: isobel.humphreys@admin.cam.ac.uk. 

Future Manufacturing Research Hubs. 
Restricted Call: EPSRC Future Manufacturing Research Hubs
EPSRC has announced a call for The budget is up to £10 million for up each Hub (over a seven year period).  Further information on the call is available here: https://www.epsrc.ac.uk/files/funding/calls/2015/futuremanufacturingresearchhubs2016/
Internal Coordination:  EPSRC is not restricting the number of applications the University can submit in total, but they state that they will only fund one hub within a given area and there are restrictions on applications which overlap with existing EPSRC investment in this field. As a result,  the call will be coordinated according to University’s Restricted Calls Policy: http://www.research-strategy.admin.cam.ac.uk/research-funding/restricted-calls-funding

If you are interested in leading an institutional bid, or if you are contributing to another institution’s bid, please fill in the attached short form to register your interest in this call and send it to  researchstrategy@admin.cam.ac.uk by 12th October 2015 (17:00) The bids will be reviewed to ensure that there are no overlaps between the applications. Funder deadline:  19th November 2015 (16:00) – Outline application stage. If you have any queries please contact researchstrategy@admin.cam.ac.uk

Cambridge Humanities Research Grants Scheme
Since 2011, with generous support of the University, the Isaac Newton Trust, and the Schools of Arts & Humanities and the Humanities & Social Sciences, the Cambridge Humanities Research Grants Scheme [CHRG] has supported a wide portfolio of research projects within the arts, humanities and social sciences. A substantial number of researchers using the Scheme have gone on to secure major project grants or have developed enduring collaborative networks, all of which is reflected in a thriving research community at Cambridge. There is clear evidence that undertaking pilot research or networking through a CHRG award has directly benefited subsequent research, generating higher-quality applications and improving success rates. Increased funding will be available, in a second phase of the Scheme between 2015-2019. The Scheme will support three tiers of activity:

Tier 1 – Newton Trust Small Grants - £1500 max
This tier continues to provide dedicated support for small-scale research activity, e.g. to scope a project, complete editorial tasks, assemble/manage data etc. This tier is particularly effective in assisting researchers to complete publications or to launch a new activity. Up to £30k in total will be awarded each year within Tier 1

Tier 2 – Standard Grants - £1-20,000
This tier supports a wide range of general research grants which may further develop an initial idea or enable preparatory work for a large-scale project. The scale of these grants also facilitates collaborative research.

Tier 3 – PSL/Exchange – up to £10,000
This tier assists Cambridge researchers to develop effective networks with researchers in Paris Sciences et Lettres – http://www.univ-psl.fr/default/EN/all/about_en/member_institutions__1.h…. Up to £40k in total will be awarded each year within Tier 3.

The Scheme as a whole is intended for any researcher in the arts, humanities and social sciences holding a current contract of employment as an independent researcher - at the point of application - with either the University or a College. Please see the attached scheme notes for more specific information relating to eligibility within the individual tiers.

The Scheme is now open for applications to support research projects in the 2015-16 academical year.

Applications, (including, for Tier 2 only, a project proposal and an independent external reference, are to be submitted online at https://webservices.admin.cam.ac.uk/cbk/gabb/index.cgi by close of business on 16 October 2015. Other application formats, or late applications, cannot be accepted.

Questions about the Scheme may be directed to the Secretary of the School of the Humanities and Social Sciences by email to GrantsAHSS@admin.cam.ac.uk

Innovation projects
Natural Environment Research Council
These support translational and knowledge exchange activity which delivers direct demonstrable benefits to end users, particularly businesses. Each project may receive up to £125,000 at 80 per cent fuil economic cost over a maximum period of two years.
Closing date: 22 Oct 15  

Green infrastructure innovation projects call
Natural Environment Research Council
This aims to increase and accelerate the impact of research output by supporting translational and knowledge exchange activity which delivers direct tangible and demonstrable benefits to end users, particularly local policymakers and businesses such as planners, landscape architects and other consultancies to support the development of green infrastructures. Up to £125,000, or £100,000 at 80% full economic costs, may be requested over a maximum of two years. Closing date: 22 Oct 15 

Resilience of the UK food systems in a global context
Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council
This supports interdisciplinary projects that integrate biological, environmental and social sciences, and address one or more of the following key themes: optimising the productivity, resilience and sustainability of agricultural systems and landscapes; optimising resilience of food supply chains both locally and globally; influencing food choice for health, sustainability and resilience at the individual and household level. The total budget is worth up to £14 million. Closing date: 27 Oct 15  

EPSRC Strategic Equipment
Funding decisions for the scheme are dependent on new funds becoming available in April 2016. The scheme has also undergone some changes, including an increase in the minimum threshold for proposals to £400,000 and the introduction of a postal peer review stage for all proposals. 

The upcoming deadlines are:

Online submission: Friday 30th October 2015
Outline panel date: November 2015
Provisional interview panel date: April/May 2016

As per University policy on strategic equipment bids to EPSRC , all applications needs to obtain the approval from the School and the PVC Research prior to submission to EPSRC:

Expression of Interest: Interested applicants should register their interest with the Research Strategy Office as soon as they decide to apply and the latest by 9th October 2015. To register interest, please write to researchstrategy@admin.cam.ac.uk stating your name, department, the equipment you are applying for, and the total amount requested from EPSRC. There is no approval at this stage; the purpose of the EoI is to identify likely number of bids, equipment requested and any overlaps.

Institutional Approval: Please contact your School office to obtain their approval of the proposed request; and then submit the draft business case for the PVC Research approval to researchstrategy@admin.cam.ac.uk by 16th October 2015. The draft business case should be maximum 1 page A4 long and should include your name and the department, a short description of the equipment, strategic case, funding requested from EPSRC and any matching funds or contributions to the bid. 

Man and biosphere young scientists awards
UNESCO
These support young scientists conducting interdisciplinary research on ecosystems, natural resources and biodiversity.  Ten awards, worth a maximum of US$5,000 each, are available. Closing date: 31 Oct 15  

St Andrews prize for the environment
University of St Andrews
This recognises significant contributions to environmental conservation. Entries should be practical and combine good science, economic reality and political acceptability, and have the potential for wider application. The winner will receive US$100,000 and two runners-up will each receive US$25,000. Closing date: 31 Oct 15 (Forecast) 

Small grantsEstuarine Coastal Sciences Association
These grants enable students to attend academic conferences, travel for research purposes, visit libraries or other collections of research materials, visit laboratories or conduct fieldwork. Grants are worth up to £500 each. Closing date: 01 Nov 15 

Africa seed grants
Cleveland Metroparks Zoo
These support field conservation and research projects in Africa, as well as educational and cultural activities, relating to wildlife and their habitats. Grants are worth US$1,000 to US$3,500 each. Closing date: 02 Nov 15  

All-discipline postgraduate student awardsFulbright Commission
These support UK citizens with the first year of their postgraduate study, doctoral study, visiting student research or special student research in any subject and at any accredited US university. Approximately 10 awards are available for a one-year period. Closing date: 06 Nov 15 

District heating: delivering affordable and sustainable energy?
Joseph Rowntree Foundation
The aims of the project are to understand how housing associations manage the development of district and communal heating and assess how efficient these schemes are, to identify where they are most efficient and suggest improvements. The budget is up to £85,000. Only one project will be funded. Closing date: 04 Nov 15  

Fulbright/Elsevier data analytics award
Fulbright Commission
This is offered to a UK citizen for the first year of their postgraduate study in any field requiring data analysis to advance understanding of research in any field or across fields.One award is available for a period of one year.Closing date:06 Nov 15 

Research fellowships
Leverhulme Trust
These enable experienced researchers to conduct a programme of research in any discipline. Fellowships are worth up to £50,000 each for a period between three and 24 months. Funding covers research expenses, and a contribution towards replacement costs or loss of earnings.Closing date: 12 Nov 15 

Restricted Call: AXA Postdoctoral Fellowships 2015 / 2016 Campaign
AXA Research Fund has announced the call for postdoctoral fellowships 2015 / 2016. Post-Doctoral projects funded by the AXA Research Fund should contribute to a better understanding of one of three clusters of risks: Environmental Risks, Life Risks, Socio-Economic Risks. The awarded projects will be funded for 2 years for a maximum total of 130,000 for the entire duration of the funding. Further information on terms and conditions of the AXA postdoctoral fellowships including the assessment criteria is available here .

Eligibility
The candidates must have been awarded his first PhD within the 5 years preceding the submission of the “light” proposal to AXA (14th December 2015). The international mobility is a strong condition for these awards and that AXA expects that most of the selected candidates move to another country between current and targeted position. The international mobility is more valued than national mobility. Where a candidate remains in the same institution a clear justification of such a decision is required.

The number of proposals per institution is limited.  The institutions will be informed how many applications they can submit on 18th November 2015 or soon after. This call will be coordinated according to University’s Restricted Calls Policy.

Internal Selection: All applicants for the internal selection should either plan to move to another country between current and targeted position, or should have spent at least minimum of 1 term abroad. All applicants should have at least one important publication without the participation of their PhD supervisor. The internal selection panel will use the same assessment criteria as outlined in AXA’s guidance document and in line with the AXA criteria will prioritise candidates with international mobility.

Please submit letter to researchstrategy@admin.cam.ac.uk by 13th November 2015 the following documents:
your internal selection form (attached),
current CV with publications (2 pages maximum + ½ page for most relevant publications) and
Head of Department support letter. The letter should confirm that the Department is happy to host the project, the reasons why the Department is recommending and supporting the particular proposal and a critical review of the proposal and its relative assessment. Sponsor deadline for this stage of the call: 14th December 2015

Ecology and evolution of infectious diseases
National Science Foundation
The programme supports research on the ecological, evolutionary, and socio-ecological principles and processes that influence the transmission dynamics of infectious diseases. The budget for this call is US$11 million and up to eight grants, each worth up to US$2.5m over five years, may be funded. The BBSRC will contribute up to £2m. Closing date: 18 Nov 15 

ESRC celebrating impact prize
Economic and Social Research Council
This recognises and rewards ESRC-funded researchers who have achieved, or are currently achieving, outstanding economic or societal impacts through their research and collaborative working, partnerships, engagement and knowledge exchange activities. A prize of £10,000 will be made to the winners of each  category. Second prizes are worth £5,000. Closing date: 20 Nov 15 (Forecast) 

Postgraduate research awards
Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers)
These enable PhD students to undertake fieldwork or data collection in the UK or overseas. Two to three awards, worth £2,000 each, are available in each of the aforementioned areas. Closing date: 23 Nov 15 

Urban living partnership – pilot phase
Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council
This aims to enhance UK global research and innovation leadership in urban development, accelerate exploitation of leading edge research knowledge and capabilities, create new products, services and business opportunities, and co-produce sustainable change in urban living to benefit cities and their communities. The total budget is worth up to £2 million to fund up to five projects. Each project may receive up to £400,000 for an initial period of up to 18 months. Closing date: 26 Nov 15 

Prize essay competition
Agricultural Economics Society
This recognises a suitable essay on any aspect of agricultural economics.The prize is worth £1,000. Closing date: 30 Nov 15 

Soil security research fellowship awards
Natural Environment Research Council
These aim to secure future soil quality to sustain ecosystems and the services they deliver to people, such as sustainable agriculture, flood and disease regulation, carbon storage and clean water. A total up to £2 million at 80 per cent of full economic costing is available for up to three years. NERC expects to give up to six awards. Closing date: 03 Dec 15 

Small conservation awards
Oriental Bird Club
These support projects involving threatened bird species and their habitats, and those aiming to raise conservation awareness. Funding is worth up to £1,500 for projects lasting 12 to 18 months. Closing date: 15 Dec 15  

Grants in herpetology
Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles
This program is intended to provide financial support for deserving individuals or organizations involved in herpetological research, education or conservation. Closing date: 15 Dec 15 (Forecast)  

Small conservation awards
Oriental Bird Club
These support projects involving threatened bird species and their habitats, and those aiming to raise conservation awareness. Funding is worth up to £1,500 for projects lasting 12 to 18 months. Closing date: 15 Dec 15  

New generation thinkers
Arts and Humanities Research Council
This enables early career researchers working in all areas of the arts and humanities to attend a series of dedicated workshops and become Radio 3’s resident new generation thinkers. Up to 10 workshop attendees receive further media training and support from AHRC, and have their travel and subsistence reimbursed for the Hay Festival 2015 and for the first recording of their radio programme. Closing date: 15 Dec 15 (Forecast) 

Young scientist research award
Commonwealth Forestry Association
This supports students undertaking forest-related research in pursuit of an academic qualification. The award is worth up to £500. Closing date: 31 Dec 15 

Maitland Emmet research fund and grants
British Entomological and Natural History Society
These support research on insects and spiders with reference to the British fauna. Grants are worth up to £500 each. Closing date: 31 Dec 15  

Marsh award for insect conservation
Royal Entomological Society
This recognises an outstanding contribution to insect conservation on the basis of lifetime achievement or considerable and exemplary contribution to a significant project or undertakings. The prize is worth £1,000. Closing date: 31 Dec 15  

Grants in 2016

Project grants
Conservation, Food and Health Foundation
These support non-profit, non-governmental organisations to build capacity within the developing countries in the fields of conservation, food, and health. The average award amount is US$17,000 and grants rarely exceed US$25,000. Closing date: 01 Jan 16  

Small grants
Parkes Foundation
These support the study into biosocial sciences, with emphasis on human biosocial projects. Grants do not usually exceed £600. Closing date: 09 Jan 16 (Forecast) 

Study abroad studentships
Leverhulme Trust
These support an extended period of advanced study or research at a centre of learning overseas, excluding the US.
Studentships comprise £18,000 per year for basic maintenance costs, a dependent partner allowance of £6,000, return airfare and baggage allowance. They support periods between 12 and 24 months. Closing date: 11 Jan 16  

PhD studentships
Fisheries Society of the British Isles
These support postgraduate study that leads to a PhD in any field relevant to fish biology, and fisheries science and conservation. Studentships are based on the NERC stipend rate plus a £1,000 supplement, and include a contribution of £1,500 per year towards consumables. Closing date: 13 Jan 16 (Forecast) 

Small research grants
Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers)
Grants are awarded as either RGS-IBG small research grants, the 20th International Geographical Congress Fund award or the Jasmin Leila award. Funds can be used for travel, maintenance, data collection and temporary research assistance. Awards are worth between £250 and £3,000. Closing date: 18 Jan 16  

Standard research grants 
Natural Environment Research Council
This is an open competition for curiosity-motivated basic, strategic or applied research. Grants are worth between £65,000 and £800,000 at 100 per cent full economic cost. Closing date: 21 Jan 16 (Forecast) 

Our planet, our health awards
Wellcome Trust
These support high-quality, transdisciplinary programmes of research that investigate novel aspects of – and build evidence for – how complex changes in our environment affect our health. Awards are worth up to £2 million per year for up to five years.  Closing date: 29 Jan 16  

Endowment fund research grants
Scottish Ornithologists’ Club
These grants are for studies that further the knowledge and conservation of birds in Scotland. Funding is available for a maximum of three years. Closing date: 31 Jan 16 (Forecast) 

Conservation and research grants
Ornithological Society of the Middle East, the Caucasus and Central Asia
These grants support bird conservation and ornithological research projects in the region. There is no upper limit to the size of grants but most average between £500 and £1,000. Closing date: 31 Jan 16  

Primate research grants
Primate Conservation
These provide support for original research that can be used to formulate and to implement conservation plans for the species studied. Funding of approximately US$2,500 is provided on average, with a maximum grant of US$5,000.Closing date: 01 Feb 16  

Research grants
Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland
The purpose of the scheme is to support research to enhance knowledge of the flora of the British Isles. Grants are typically worth £500 each, with a maximum amount of £1,000. Closing date: 06 Feb 16 (Forecast)

Worldwide small grants
People’s Trust for Endangered Species
These support short-term conservation and research projects aimed at the preservation of endangered species. Grants are awarded for projects of up to two years duration and are worth between £2,000 and £8,000, although most grants will not exceed £5,000. Closing date: 12 Feb 16 (Forecast) 

Worldwide continuation grants
People’s Trust for Endangered Species
These support research that is aimed at the preservation of endangered species around the world. Grants are worth between £3,000 and £10,000 per year for a maximum duration of two years. Closing date: 12 Feb 16  

Conservation insight grants
People’s Trust for Endangered Species
These support projects focusing on endangered species. Grants are worth between £3,000 and £10,000 per year for up to two years. Closing date: 12 Feb 16  

Conservation grants
Primate Society of Great Britain
These support research of benefit to primate conservation and primate conservation education. Grants do not typically exceed £1,000. Closing date: 28 Feb 16  

Small grants
Welsh Ornithological Society
These support projects that focus on bird species that are currently declining or threatened in Wales. Grants are worth up to £500 each. Closing date: 28 Feb 16 (Forecast) 

Large grants
Natural Environment Research Council
These support adventurous, large-scale and complex research projects tackling big science questions that cannot be addressed through other funding opportunities. Grants are worth between £1.2 million and £3.7m each, for a duration of up to five years.  Closing date: 10 Mar 16 (Forecast) 

Junior professorship for sustainable use of renewable natural resources 
Robert Bosch Stiftung
The professorship seeks to support a young outstanding scientist and to contribute to a better standing of the emerging field of sustainability science in Germany. Up to €1 million is available for independent research over five years at a German research institution or university. Closing date: 18 May 16 (Forecast)

Coming Soon

H2020-EEB-2016 energy efficient buildings
Horizon 2020: Industrial Leadership
*** The European Commission Horizon 2020: industrial leadership will shortly be inviting proposals, under the leadership in enabling and industrial technologies - nanotechnologies, advanced materials, advanced manufacturing and processing, and biotechnology work programme, for its H2020-EEB-2016 energy efficient buildings call. The call is expected to open on 15 October 2015 and the anticipated closing date is 21 January 2016. The following information, including which topics may be addressed in this call, is subject to change. Proposals may address a variety of topics within the area of energy efficient buildings. The indicative budget for this call is €49 million. *** Closing date: 21 Jan 16  

Climate Histories / Paris 2015
The Road to Paris and Beyond
7 October 2015, 14:30 - 16:30
Seminar Room SG2, Alison Richard Building

AWiSE Communication skills master class
Dr Jane Goodall (Dept of Medicine)
13th October 2015

Conflicts in conservation: hunting for solutions
Steve Redpath, Institute of Biological & Environmental Sciences, Aberdeen University
Large Lecture Theatre, Department of Geography, Downing Site
Wednesday 14 October 2015, 17:00-18:00

Invasive alien species on islands: problems and solutions
Anthony Martin, South Georgia Habitat Restoration Project, South Georgia Heritage Trust and University of Dundee
Large Lecture Theatre, Department of Geography, Downing Site
Wednesday 21 October 2015, 17:00-18:00

Cambridge-Africa Day 2015
23rd October 2015, St John’s College (Fisher Building)
This event will showcase the wide range of mutually beneficial collaborative research projects, capacity building initiatives and development activities by Cambridge academics and students in partnership with African colleagues. The Day will be introduced by the Vice Chancellor of the University of Cambridge - Professor Sir Leszek Borysiewicz, and Dr Monique Nsanzabaganwa (Vice Governor of the National Bank of Rwanda) will give a keynote speech. We are expecting attendees from Cambridge and beyond, including our colleagues, friends, supporters, representatives from development and funding organisations, other UK and African institutions and industry. The event is free to attend, but registration is required via the link https://cambridge-africa-day-2015.eventbrite.co.uk. Please also circulate this link to members of your networks who may be interested in attending the event.

On the origin of animals, and the invention of the modern biosphere
Professor Nick Butterfield, Department of Earth Sciences. 26th October 6pm

The contributions of British anthropology to the human sciences
Professor Maurice Bloch
Thursday 19 November 2015, 18:00-19:00, Fitzwilliam Auditorium

Professor Bloch studied at Fitzwilliam, obtaining his PhD in 1967. He is now Professor Emeritus in Anthropology at The London School of Economics and Political Science, and the College is delighted that he will be giving this lecture. The Foundation Lecture will be given in the Auditorium, Fitzwilliam College at 6.00pm on Thursday 19th November 2015. It is open to all, so please circulate to those who are likely to be interested.

Systems, synonyms and strife – the making of European entomology around 1800
9th November 1pm HPS

Student Conference on Conservation Science: Cambridge, UK on 22-24 March 2016
The conference series aims to bring together conservation scientists in the early stages of their research careers.  SCCS also uses its location in Cambridge to build firm links between the new generation of conservation scientists and the many national and international conservation agencies based nearby. The conference has an internship scheme, which is available for conference delegates from developing and eastern European countries.  This scheme enables student delegates to spend up to one month after the conference with a UK-based NGO or university department carrying out a conservation-related project of mutual interest.  Internship applicants are required to submit their application by 16 October 2015.Please note that the internship period will begin on Good Friday 25 March 2016.The closing date for applications to the conference is 23 October 2015 at 10:00 GMT. 

The conservation value of European deep-sea habitats
13th October, 6pm to 7.45pm, Huxley Lecture Theatre, Main Meeting Rooms, ZSL 

Global Climate Change Week
19th to 25th October
Climate change poses a major threat to sustainable development. To quote from the latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Report: ‘climate impacts are expected to slow economic growth and exacerbate poverty, and current failures to address emerging impacts are already eroding the basis for sustainable development’ (Climate Change 2014: Mitigation of Climate Change: ch. 4 (http://ar5-syr.ipcc.ch/resources/htmlpdf/ipcc_wg3_ar5_chapter4/), Box 4.1, p. 291). For this reason, it is important for all scholars concerned about sustainable development to take action on climate change. One new way for academics in particular to do so is by taking part in Global Climate Change Week (http://globalclimatechangeweek.com/), an initiative designed to encourage academics in all disciplines and countries to engage with their students and communities on climate change. It will run from October 19-25 this year in the lead-up to the UN Conference of the Parties meeting in Paris in December. This will be the first time that academics from across academia and around the world have united to create such an event.

The future of food - the future of biodiversity?
21st to 22nd October 2015, ZSL
A major symposium on the global impacts of UK food consumption.

Food production and biodiversity conservation are in conflict.  Join experts and leading voices from farmers' groups, food suppliers, major retailers, conservationists, scientists, NGOs and policy-makers to debate sustainable solutions to the growing challenge of balancing food security and environmental protection.

Hot and bothered? Species vulnerability to climate change
3rd November, 6pm – 7.45pm, Huxley Lecture Theatre, Main Meeting Rooms, ZSL

8th Ecosystem Services Partnership World Conference

South Africa, 9th to 13th November 2015

ESPA 2015 Annual Science Conference
London, UK, 25th to 26th November 2015

Global Landscapes Forum/Paris
5th – 6th December 2015

Cambridge

IPBES and Biodiversity Expertise: Regional, Gender, and Disciplinary Balance in the Composition of the Interim and 2015 Multidisciplinary Expert Panel

Are both agricultural intensification and farmland abandonment threats to biodiversity? A test with bird communities in paddy-dominated landscapes

Robustness despite uncertainty: regional climate data reveal the dominant role of humans in explaining global extinctions of Late Quaternary megafauna

Why forests matter for the Sustainable Development Goals on zero hunger

Standards for plant synthetic biology: a common syntax for exchange of DNA parts

Nonparametric Image Registration of Airborne LiDAR, Hyperspectral and Photographic Imagery of Wooded Landscapes

Robustness despite uncertainty: regional climate data reveal the dominant role of humans in explaining global extinctions of Late Quaternary megafauna

What is conservation?

Global

Culture and the Natural Environment

Robert Macfarlane: why we need nature writingTracking the origins and development of biodiversity offsetting in academic research and its implications for conservation: A review

“Icthyologue”: Freshwater Biology in the Poetry of Ted HughesThe role played by age on children’s pro-ecological behaviors: An exploratory analysis

Agriculture and the threat to biodiversity in sub-saharan africa

Forum: Technology, Ecology, and Human Health Since 1850

Estimating over- and understorey canopy density of temperate mixed stands by airborne LiDAR dataCan landscape-scale approaches to conservation management resolve biodiversity–ecosystem service trade-offs?

The roles and contributions of Biodiversity Observation Networks (BONs) in better tracking progress to 2020 biodiversity targets: a European case study

A plant economics spectrum in Mediterranean forests along environmental gradients: is there coordination among leaf, stem and root traits?

Green public procurement of certified wood: impact on international trade and global welfare

War and deforestation in Sierra Leone

Naming Plants in The Garden by Vita Sackville-West

Conservation and sustainable use of high-seas biodiversity: steps towards global agreement

Long-term modifications of coastal defences enhance marine biodiversity

Brazilian Atlantic forest: impact, vulnerability, and adaptation to climate change

A geographical biography of a nature writer

Walk in my shoes: Nudging for empathy conservation

Bio-cultural heritage and biodiversity: emerging paradigms in conservation and planning

Rise of the citizen scientist
Tree and Technology: Articulating the Ecological in The Dream of the Rood

Volunteer-based surveys offer enhanced opportunities for biodiversity monitoring across broad spatial extent

Conservation needs diverse values, approaches, and practitioners

Towards a new understanding of the links between poverty and illegal wildlife hunting

Knowledge brokerage designs and practices in four european climate services: A role model for biodiversity policies?

Community agro biodiversity conservation continuum: an integrated approach to achieve food and nutrition security

Increasing women’s participation in community based conservation: key to success?

The links between ecosystem multifunctionality and above- and belowground biodiversity are mediated by climate

Climate change, biodiversity, ticks and tick-borne diseases: The butterfly effect

Ecological network analysis reveals the inter-connection between soil biodiversity and ecosystem function as affected by land use across Europe

“Not Promising a Landfall …”: An Autotopographical Account of Loss of Place, Memory and Landscape

Climate velocity and the future global redistribution of marine biodiversity

Big World, Small Planet: Abundance Within Planetary Boundaries

Marine environmental contamination: public awareness, concern and perceived effectiveness in five European countries

The impact of communicating information about air pollution events on public health

Users of different travel modes differ in journey satisfaction and habit strength but not environmental worldviews: A large-scale survey of drivers, walkers, bicyclists and bus users commuting to a UK university

Landscape Degradation and Restoration — A Planning Approach

Engaging local communities in tackling illegal wildlife trade Can a ‘Theory of Change’ help?

Books

Transdisciplinary Solutions for Sustainable Development
From planetary management to stewardship
By Mark Charlesworth
This innovative book identifies the key issues that block progress in sustainable development and proposes transdisciplinary solutions. Presenting a review of the epistemology and ethics of this policy field including current policy responses, it examines the ethical and policy implications from a multidisciplinary perspective.
Read more

Flourishing Within Limits to Growth
Following nature's way
By Sven Erik Jørgensen, Brian D. Fath, Søren Nors Nielsen, Federico M. Pulselli, Daniel A. Fiscus and Simone Bastianoni
The book describes how nature uses three growth forms: biomass, information, and networks, resulting in improved overall ecosystem functioning and co-development. As biomass growth is limited by available resources, nature uses the two other growth forms to achieve higher resource use efficiency.
Read more

Sustainability: Key Issues
Edited by Helen Kopnina and Eleanor Shoreman-Ouimet
Sustainability: Key Issues is a comprehensive introductory textbook for undergraduate and postgraduate students doing courses in sustainability. Highly original, it covers the very broad spectrum of ideas covered under sustainability, from participation, resilience, growth, ecological modernism through to culture, sustainable communities and sustainable consumption.
Read more

News

Ivory Coast seeks to save forests from illegal cocoa boom

Think dairy farming is benign? Our rivers tell a different story

Bee tongues shrink as climate warms

Sumatran rhino likely to go extinct unless action is taken urgently, warns IUCN

Reducing the social cost of conservation: How to safeguard local communities' rights

Coffee grounds capture carbon

FAO soil and land legacy maps
FAO Land and Water Division (NRL) has made an effort to make Soil Legacy data and information available for their users. In that regard, FAO has just finished uploading 1228 soil and land legacy maps (mainly soil maps and also land use, geological and land cover legacy maps). 

Heads of State and Government Adopt 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development

‘Eye Spy’ Your Shot National Geographic assignment
Photographic submissions: sequence of three images

Indonesian village opts to protect mangroves, preserve livelihoods

Interacting global change drivers Climate change impacts on species do not occur in isolation
Now research on drought-sensitive British butterflies uses citizen science to attribute the drivers of population changes and shows landscape management to be a key part of the solution.

The International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education (IJSHE)
The IJSHE has just announced the preparation of a special issue on "Professional Development in Higher Education for Sustainable Development"

New publication: Biofuels, oil palm and agribusiness in Southeast Asia – planning for sustainability?
Stockholm Environment Institute has just published a summary and synthesis of it’s research done between 2011 and 2014 on agribusiness developments – especially of oil palm – in Thailand, Cambodia, Indonesia, and the Philippines. Read the brief

The Friends of Governance for Sustainable Development launches its web site
It is the first web site for a Friends group at the UN and has on the site many useful resources including the book that was produced during the 'Transforming Our World' SDG negotiations called 'Governance for Sustainable Development:Ideas for the Post 2015 Agenda and it is a free download.

Evaluating the conservation outcomes of wildlife
Illegal wildlife trade is an escalating threat to biodiversity conservation globally. Some proposals suggest that wildlife farming, including cultivation and ranching of wild plants and animals, can help to reduce consumer pressures on wild populations. Despite contentious policy debates about wildlife farming, the verdict on its impacts on species conservation and habitats remains uncertain. This review is crucial to strengthening the evidence-base for future decisions, including at CITES CoP 17. The National University of Singapore, Lancaster Environmental Center, and Wildlife Conservation Society are collaborating on a systematic review  to assess the diverse conservation impacts of wildlife farming on target species and habitats.

How you can help
We are looking for relevant grey literature and case studies  from organisations and institutions engaged in wildlife farming, wildlife ranching, wildlife trade, wild plant cultivation, and aquaculture. This includes working papers, project documents, impact assessments, and other unpublished (non-peer reviewed) material that  provide evidence or discussion of the various positive or negative impacts of wildlife farming on the conservation of habitat and biodiversity.

What we are looking for
We are primarily looking for case studies that have in some way sought to assess the conservation impacts of the wildlife farming and related interventions such as ranching, aquaculture and plant cultivation. We are interested in all papers that consider:

·         Impacts on the conservation of target, farmed species

·         Impacts on other species (e.g. animals used for feedstock for carnivorous farmed animals).

·         Impacts on broader habitat conservation

·         Implications for and preferences of consumers to farmed wildlife

·         Speculation about the impacts of wildlife farming

Get in touch
If you are able to assist by providing any relevant documents or information relevant to this project, we would be very interested in hearing from you by 5 October 2015.  Please contact Benjamin Ho: benjamin.ho@u.nus.edu
For more information on this line of research, please also contact Dr. Edward Webb [NUS] (ted.webb@nus.edu.sg) or Jacob Phelps [Lancaster] (jacobphelps@gmail.com).

Call for Papers

Call for Papers: The Matter of Mimesis
17 December 2015 - 18 December 2015
CRASSH (SG1&2), Alison Richard Building
Deadline for submissions: 15th September 2015

Call for Papers: Adaption Futures Conference 2016

Biennial conference of the Global Programme of Research on Climate Change Vulnerability, Impacts and Adaptation (PROVIA). The submission of abstracts is now welcome under one of the following seven themes: cities and infrastructure; food, forestry and rural livelihoods; fresh water availability and access; public health; ecosystems and ecosystem based adaptation; disaster risk reduction; and the Arctic. 

CFP Workshop on Technology, Environment & Modern Britain, UCL, 27 April 2016
Call for papers: Technology, Environment and Modern Britain
Deadline 1 Dec