Sunday, March 26, 2017

[Oikos-listan] Summer School in France on "Weak signals and emerging issues in ecological transition"

The COTE Cluster of Excellence organises its fifth Summer School on "Weak signals and emerging issues in ecological transition". We would appreciate if you could forward the announcement below or remind potentially interested PhD students. The updated programme, further details on our speakers and registration terms are also on the COTE Summer School website<http://cotesummerschool.u-bordeaux.fr/en/>. Application deadline is 09 April 2017.

The Summer School is part of the COTE Cluster of Excellence training programme and gathers PhD students in environmental sciences, each specialised in different disciplines such as ecology, chemistry, biology and even sociology. Through talks, field trips and round tables with international experts on integrative ecology, the programme will provide a comprehensive and multidisciplinary approach on the definition, detection and role of weak signals and emerging issues in the ecological transition.

Conference speakers:
Ivan Ascher (University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, USA)
Jelle Behagel (Wageningen University, the Netherlands)
Gabrielle Bouleau (Irstea Bordeaux, France)
Hélène Budzinski (CNRS Bordeaux, France)
Laure Carassou (University of Bordeaux, France)
Anne-Marie Delort (Institute of Chemistry of Clermont-Ferrand, France)
Iñaki Garcia de Cortazar-Atauri (INRA Avignon, France)
Pieter Leroy (Radboud University Nijmegen, the Netherlands)
Marcus Lindner (European Forest Institute, Finland)

Theme & programme:
Climate-induced ecological changes as well as changes in consumption patterns have led to emerging issues. These often manifest before full development as weak signals, which can reveal important trends within ecosystems. However, it is often difficult to distinguish them statistically from ambient noise, or from random fluctuations of well-known signals. The COTE Summer School will show that scientists have more and more tools to monitor the planet. Its programme will cover several aspects of weak signals and emerging issues with presentations on new detectable substances in the environment, environmental reporting, ecological governance and political change for transition, weak signals and measurement techniques in marine, vineyard, forest and river ecosystems, and even on a paradigm shift related to the role of cloud microorganisms in atmospheric processes.

Participants, fees & how to apply:
The course is free of charge and includes accommodation and meals. Travel expenses must be covered by the participants. Mobility grants are available on demand (for details see application form). The course is in English and candidates must be PhD students.
To apply, please fill in the application form on the Summer School website<http://cotesummerschool.u-bordeaux.fr/en/>, upload a CV, a cover letter and a short letter of support from your supervisor in the online application form. If you also apply for a mobility grant, please add a letter justifying your request. All documents have to be merged into a single PDF file.
Application deadline is 09 April 2017.

To learn more about the COTE Cluster of Excellence, please visit the COTE website<http://cote.labex.u-bordeaux.fr/en/>.
For any questions, please contact the COTE managers by email<mailto:mission-labexcote@u-bordeaux.fr>