Friday Email
MASTS Scotland
The Marine Alliance for Science and Technology for Scotland is a consortium of organisations engaged in Marine Science
Glacial Lake Outburst Floods in Patagonia: A decreasing hazard?
Join Professor Sebastien Bertrand ( Universiteit Gent ) on Monday 9th December at 1pm for their presentation on how Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOFs) constitute a major hazard in glacierized environments and, despite a recent increase in the size and number of glacial lakes worldwide, there is only limited evidence that climate change is affecting GLOF frequency and magnitude.
This talk was part of a wider project, supported by the MASTS Engagement with Europe (MEER) grant, that saw Professor Bertrand and colleague Dr Hage visit the University of St Andrews in September 2024 to co-design a COST action to bring together a international network of researchers to better understand carbon cycling in?fjord environments.
To find out more about the outcomes of this project register click below and register for Monday's webinar.
Contents
MASTS Newsroom
FYI
Events
Vacancies
MASTS Newsroom
New Chair of the MASTS Governing Council
Last week, Prof Neil Simco formally stepped down from their role as Chair of the MASTS Governing Council and MAST-S Board. We are extremely grateful to Neil for all their support of MASTS over recent years. Stepping into the helm, we welcome Prof Nick Fyfe from Robert Gordon University.
Join MASTSCOT on BlueSky
MASTS has recently made the decision to delete Twitter and move to BlueSky with our last day on Twitter being 20th January. Over the last 2 weeks we have seen our following on BlueSky grow from 30 followers to almost 400 followers! We are keen to keep this growth by supporting our marine science community on BlueSky. We currently have a Starter Pack (list of people to follow) with over 60 accounts - ranging from marine science researchers to national and global organisations, institutions, and government - to help you get started. Want to be added to the list? Comment on the pinned post on our profile. We are also in the process of setting up our own MASTS Feeds which will enable us to collate all the most relevant research updates and opportunities in marine science. We will keep you in the loop on all our progress and feel free to contact us with any requests regarding BlueSky.
FYI
1. National Marine Plan 2 Planning Position Statement
Scotland adopted its first National Marine Plan in 2015 to help manage the use of Scotland’s seas in a sustainable way.
In 2022 work began to create an updated national marine plan, to better reflect how the sea is currently being used, and to plan for its continued and sustainable future use. Past, present and future challenges mean we need to make the right choices for our shared marine space.??
A Planning Position Statement (PPS) summarising all that work has now been published and provides an early opportunity for comment on the proposed policy ideas to be included in NMP2, ultimately helping to shape the plan from the outset.
Read the consultation paper. The consultation paper contains full background information for this consultation. You may find it useful to read or refer to while responding.
2. Call for EMB Ambassadors and mentors
The European Marine Board IVZW are pleased to announce that they have launched our call for two new EMB Ambassadors. They will take up the post in April 2025 and serve a two-year term until spring 2027, after which they will join the EMB Ambassador Alumni programme.
Alongside this call for Ambassadors, as proposed at the EMB Autumn Plenary 2021 meeting, and after a successful first year of the mentorship programme in 2022, we are again opening a call for Ambassadors mentors. If you would be willing and interested to be a mentor for one of the EMB Ambassadors, please contact the EMB Secretariat to find out more.
What is the Ambassador programme?
EMB Ambassadors, who are early career researchers, work with the EMB Secretariat to help promote marine sciences (both natural and social) and Ocean matters, and EMB activities in particular, to their peers. The Ambassadors gain access to and knowledge about the European marine science-policy landscape, and EMB gains valuable insight and the ability to reach out to new audiences in new ways. You can find out more about the programme here. Ambassadors receive a 2,000 EUR stipend spread over the two years of the programme and an additional budget of up to 3,000 EUR to cover costs linked to events, travel and communications.
Who can apply? Any PhD student (with more than 2 years of PhD funding left) or post-doc researcher (with at least two years left on current contract). EMB Ambassadors can be stationed inside or outside the EU and can have a background in any aspect related to the marine environment, including natural sciences, social sciences and humanities, interdisciplinary research, and/or science communication. It isn’t a requirement to be an EU citizen, however Ambassadors do need to have a demonstrable link with an EMB Member Organization. It should be noted that EMB aims to achieve balance within its current cohort of Ambassadors, therefore it is extremely unlikely that a new Ambassador would be selected who is in the same country and/or at the same institute as a currently serving Ambassador.
The full call for applications, and the application form, can be found on the EMB website: https://www.marineboard.eu/vacancies. The deadline for applications is Sunday 2 February 2025 at midnight CET.
3. Inspiring the Next Generation of Champions for Scotland's Seas
Help the Scottish Seabird Centre equip more young people with the skills and confidence they need to turn the tide for our seas. The centre has set up a Just Giving page to raise funds to expand our reach, deepen our engagements, and sustain the future of our Learning programme. Their goal is to reach ￡5000 and every donation, no matter the size, can turn the tide for Scotland’s seas and inspire the next generation of environmental champions. Can't make a donation? There are many ways to help the Scottish Seabird Centre in their campaign with the biggest being to share this post far and wide. Together, we can turn this season of giving into a season of hope for the future of our marine world.
4. Bridging the disconnect between freshwater and marine research communities
We are writing to invite you to participate in an?online survey dedicated to understanding and quantifying barriers to, and solutions for, freshwater-marine scientific collaboration, developed by four early career scientists at water@leeds at the 英国利兹大学 , United Kingdom, and the Sustainability and Climate Change Lab at Tecnológico de Monterrey in Guadalajara, México.?You are receiving this request because you have been identified as an expert with general and/or specialised knowledge about freshwater and/or marine sciences. Your participation in this survey will help direct research, policy and resources towards addressing major challenges and research gaps in support of freshwater-marine scientific collaboration.
This online survey will take approximately 10 minutes to complete and closes on 15th January. Thank you very much in advance for participating in our online survey. We really appreciate your time and support. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact us: [email protected]
5. Tackling the nature emergency: Ambition to halt nature loss by 2030.
Enhancing water and air quality, protecting and restoring vulnerable marine and coastal ecosystems, and establishing a programme of species recovery are all part of a new plan to make significant progress in restoring nature by 2045.
Scottish Government's Marine Directorate News article published 27/11/24
领英推荐
6. Invitation to Participate in the Evaluation Survey of the UN Ocean Decade
The UNESCO Evaluation Office is conducting a?mid-term evaluation of the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021–2030), also known as the UN Ocean Decade . This evaluation is being undertaken to assess aspects of the Ocean Decade, including governance, resources, science delivery, inclusivity, communication, and overall impact. INOMER has been mandated by UNESCO to carry out this evaluation.
A key component of this evaluation is a short online survey, which you are kindly invited to complete. Your feedback is crucial for helping us understand the successes and areas for improvement of the Decade. Even if your engagement within the Decade has been limited, we would still greatly value your insights.
The survey is available in English, French, and Spanish and takes approximately 10–15 minutes to complete, depending on your role in the Ocean Decade. All responses are strictly confidential and will only be reported in aggregate form, ensuring anonymity.
Please complete the survey by 20 December 2024. Click here to take the survey?
7. Scottish Sea Fisheries Statistics 2023
An Accredited Official Statistics publication that provides detailed information on the tonnage and value of landings, fishing vessel characteristics and employment. Detailed supplementary excel tables and a pdf version of the publication are available in supporting documents.
8. Marine Energy Software Overview
The PRIMRE team has released a new 2-min Marine Energy Software Overview Video highlighting the Knowledge Hub’s key features and uses. Watch the video below or click the link to be redirected to YouTube. Want to discover more about the Marine Energy Software? Find out more here: https://software.primre.org/
9. Fully funded 2-year scholarships for the Erasmus Mundus Coastal Hazards MSc (deadline for UK applicants - 6th?January 2025)
The applications for the 4rd edition of the Erasmus Mundus Master Programme on Coastal Hazards, Risks, Climate Change Impacts and Adaptation?are now open. This is a unique 2-year MSc programme, where students will have the opportunity to study in three different universities in Europe, with the first semester in Spain at University of Cantabria, the second semester in the Netherlands at IHE Delft, the third semester in Portugal at the University of Algarve, and a fourth semester working on a thesis in any of these institutions or associated partners.
The MSc programme covers a wide range of coastal topics, with a strong emphasis on physical coastal processes and engineering, numerical modelling, climate change and coastal adaptation. The teaching is done entirely in English by leading international experts on the various topics. More information on the structure and content of the programme is available at www.coasthazar.eu
This programme includes 20 fully funded scholarships?(including tuition fees and a monthly living and travel allowance of 1.400 EUR). The scholarships are available to applicants from anywhere in the world, with quotas for different regions and according to distinction between programme countries* and partner countries (all those that are not programme countries). Full details available at www.coasthazar.eu/scholarships.
Additionally, there are 6 positions with reduced tuition fee available (€3.600 for the entire programme). Application deadlines vary according to country or origin/residence due to the need for timely visa applications:?
For more information check the website or contact the coordination team (https://www.coasthazar.eu/coasthazar-coordinators)
Events
12th PRIMaRE Conference
The dates and venue have been released for the upcoming PRIMaRE - Partnership for Research in Marine Renewable Energy conference: 2nd-3rd July 2025 at University of Bristol.
They will soon be opening the call for abstracts, with a submission deadline expected in March 2025. Further details will be shared in due course and will also be available on the official conference page:?
Upcoming SEER Webinar
On Thursday, January 23, 2025, from 9:00-11:00am PST (5:00-7:00pm UTC), the SEER team is hosting a free, public webinar, "Exploring the Potential Environmental Effects of Offshore Wind Energy in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico". During the webinar, speakers will introduce the offshore wind siting and permitting process in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, as well as the potential technologies and infrastructure likely to be introduced
Vacancies
PhD Opportunities